DD VS KXIP

08:43 55

START TIME

8:30 PM

2:30 PM GMT

8:00 PM LOCAL

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Your reputation precedes you, they say. Funny thing is, even after a considerable shuffle at the player auction each year, the teams carry forward the tags into the next season. Defending champions are always 'favourites' going into every clash, as Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab have been, more often than not, persistent members of the under-achievers club.

KKR VS SRH

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After three games each, both Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad have followed a similar pattern and have occupied slots in the top half of the table. Only net run-rate separates both teams and it will certainly make for a good contest when the two pretty evenly matched teams face off on Saturday (April 15).

KKR VS KXIP

 Preview by PRASENJIT

The IPL bandwagon for the year 2017 finally hits Kolkata, the home of the two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders. Gautam Gambhir's men will go up against a Kings XI Punjab side that has surprised almost everyone by winning its first two games quite comfortably. Glenn Maxwell's men have won games by being quietly efficient on the field even while they talk of playing a more free-spirited game. KKR meanwhile have blown hot and cold, thrashing Gujarat Lions in their opening game before lacklustre bowling and catching cost them the game against Mumbai Indians.

SRH VS MI

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Having overcome the Chris Lynn threat and an in-form Kolkata Knight Riders, the challenge only gets bigger for Mumbai Indians as they will be up against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday (April 12). Sunrisers are one of only two teams that is yet to taste defeat in IPL 2017. The defending champions have carried on from where they left off in the summit clash in 2016, starting in clinical fashion. Mumbai Indians will be keen to use their home advantage and try to emulate what Sunrisers have done so far, which wouldn't be such a simple task as they will face a quality side that is further boosted by the return of Mustafizur Rahman - their hero from last season.

Mumbai Indians' two innings with the bat so far have been pretty similar - a good start, followed by a heap of wickets and then Nitish Rana and Hardik Pandya coming to the team's rescue. Buttler, who has looked in ominous form, hasn't been able to make a sizeable contribution yet and has been at the wrong end of two bad umpiring decisions. He will be eager to make a big impact at the top, as would Rohit, who is yet to hit the straps, with poor umpiring denying him that opportunity in the last match. The likes of Parthiv Patel, Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya have flattered to deceive, and MI will be hoping that they come good soon.

RPS VS DD

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Steve Smith's replacement of MS Dhoni as skipper of the Rising Pune Supergiant a day before the auction didn't go down too well with most of the franchise loyalists. However, a home game win led by the Smith's valiant unbeaten 84 won fans over. Whether or not his brief plea in Marathi and sporting a traditional Puneri outfit that asked the fans to come out and support their side, played a part in it is anyone's guess. Smith and Dhoni were seen having chats during the games and all seemed to be forgotten, with cricket taking precedence.

RCB VS KXIP

Royal Challengers Bangalore (From): Chris Gayle, Shane Watson(c), Mandeep Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Stuart Binny, Vishnu Vinod(w), Pawan Negi, Iqbal Abdulla, Tymal Mills, Yuzvendra Chahal, Billy Stanlake, Samuel Badree, Sreenath Aravind, Harshal Patel, Adam Milne, Aniket Choudhary, Travis Head, Sarfaraz Khan, Sachin Baby, Avesh Khan, Tabraiz Shamsi, Praveen Dubey, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli

Kings XI Punjab (From): Hashim Amla, Manan Vohra, Wriddhiman Saha(w), Axar Patel, Glenn Maxwell(c), David Miller, Marcus Stoinis, Swapnil Singh, Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma, T Natarajan, Darren Sammy, Shaun Marsh, Eoin Morgan, Ishant Sharma, Rinku Singh, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Anureet Singh, Nikhil Naik, KC Cariappa, Armaan Jaffer, Pardeep Sahu, Varun Aaron, Matt Henry, Rahul Tewatia

For a city that has grown up on the stories of its glorious cricket history of 1940s and 1950s, the callings of Twenty20 were still relatively unknown for Indore. Hosting Kings XI Punjab for the first time, the locals had happily sworn their support to the opposition in the opening game, that had in its rank MS Dhoni. However, by the time the match ended, Glenn Maxwell happened the way the 'Big Show' loves to happen. It was a brief blitz, studded with four sixes, but enough to lethe feeling still lingering at the Holkar Stadium.