Kolkata Knight Riders outplayed Royal Challengers Bangalore in their first game since the Indian Premier League 2021 returned to the UAE.

The main architect of the victory was Varun Chakravarthy who seems to have lost a bit of weight but looked hungrier and meaner than ever before.

Eoin Morgan and co won the game by nine wickets to announce their comeback.

One goes after another

The Riders bundled out Kohli’s men for 92 runs only, something that neither side would have foreseen entering into the contest.

Virat Kohli’s form slump continued as he returned to the hut for five only.

AB de Villiers had his stumps uprooted by Andre Russell too.

Apart from a 22-run knock by Devdutt Padikkal, none of the Bangalore batsmen stood up to the task.

Russell, Chakravarthy put on a show

Varun Chakravarthy and Russell ‘Muscle’ were too hot to handle for the RCB.

The Caribbean giant had figures of 3/9 in three overs, while the Indian mystery spinner went for 3/13 in his quota of four overs.

Their inch-perfect deliveries barred Bangalore from crossing the 100-run mark.

Chakravarthy, who dismissed Sachin Baby, Glenn Maxwell and Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga, was awarded the Player of the Match award for his sublime spell.

Iyer-Gill duo hammers Bangalore

Shubman Gill announced an emphatic return to form with his fiery 48.

Venkatesh Iyer also ensured that his KKR debut was memorable.

The 26-year-old opener kept the scoreboard ticking to take the Riders over the line.

This was an important win for the Riders considering the criticism their skipper, top order and management have been receiving since the beginning of this campaign.

Kolkata Knight Riders 94 for 1 (Gill 48, Iyer 41*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 92 (Padikkal 22, Russell 3-9, Varun 3-13) by nine wickets.

Match preview: DC vs SRH

Rishabh Pant-led Delhi Capitals will lock horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 33^rd clash of the Indian Premier League 2021.

Sheikh Zayed Stadium will host the match at 6:30pm (India Time) on Wednesday.

Probable best performers

Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan may not have been picked in India’s squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, but his IPL form speaks volumes of his current form.

The left-handed opener has scored the most runs this campaign so far.

His 380 runs have come at a 54.28 average which makes him a dependable asset for the Capitals.

Prithvi Shaw

While Dhawan has been all about class and reliability, Shaw has been the accelerator in every game.

Dhawan seems to have the role of strike rotator while Shaw does the damage with consecutive boundaries.

His ability to smack good deliveries for fours and sixes takes the game away from the opposition in the powerplay.

The right-handed star has already got 308 runs, making him the fourth-highest run-getter in the competition.

Match prediction

Hyderabad are at the bottom of the table, having won just once in seven matches.

They are a mess, to say the least.

David Warner was removed from the side after one sluggish knock.

Kane Williamson is likely to lead the side after Hyderabad’s bizarre decision to axe Warner as a player and captain.

On the other hand, Delhi Capitals are joint table-toppers with Chennai Super Kings. They have lost only twice in the eight games they have featured in so far.

Rishabh Pant has led the side like a veteran in Shreyas Iyer’s absence.

Perhaps, this is why the Capitals’ huddle decided to let Pant lead the team despite Iyer’s return after should surgery.

His aggressive stance in captaincy has worked out for Delhi so far.

The Capitals are brimming with confidence and are likely to beat Sunrisers Hyderabad.