Last Updated on 11 months ago by Charbel Coorey

IPL 2021 Match 18: RR vs KKR Dream11 Prediction Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | RR vs KKR Dream11 Prediction Today | Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Key Players | Mumbai Pitch Report

After losing their respective games, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals will go head to head in a crucial match to mark the 18th match of IPL 2021.

Royals were asked to bat first in their previous but failed to get the best of the start. Siraj struck early to knock Buttler and Vohra off. After that Samson did a Samson – yes you guessed it right – he dismissed himself yet again. Dube and Tewatia came to the rescue after that and the Royals ended up with 177 from their 20 overs.

While defending, the 11 Royals on the field were turned into mere spectators by Young Padikkal and his Master Kohli. The Classic Opening Duo gave a proper hammering to the Royals and won the game by 10 wickets. Now, the challenge is amplified for the Royals, who will be without Jofra Archer for the entire tournament. So, they will be desperate for their top order to perform to take pressure off their bowlers.

Now coming to Kolkata Knight Riders. Although they lost the match against CSK, and there can be a lot of debate on their bowling performance, their lower-middle order was simply magnificent. After being 31-5 in the powerplay itself, they got to 202 in 19.1 overs courtesy of a brilliant batting display from Russell (54 off 22 balls), Dinesh Karthik (40 off 24 balls), and Pat Cummins who won hearts for his breathtaking 66 off 34 balls.

Both the teams have fallen slightly off the radar in the last few games but Kolkata has the momentum on their side because of their finish in the last game, and they will like to make most of it.

Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

Kolkata Knight Riders

• Shubman Gill – Gill got out without troubling the scorers in the previous match. Against Royals, he has 131 runs with an average of 32.8 from 5 innings. He will be a good pick in all leagues and differential choice of C/VC in GL. Can he finally produce a big score?
• Nitish Rana– Rana has 102 runs from 6 innings vs RR at an average of 20.4.  While batting in the first innings, his average goes down to 11.5.  He has played a lot at Wankhede and that will be an added advantage with him.
• Rahul Tripathi – Tripathi has 39 runs from 1 innings against Royals. The lack of sheer pace in the Royals attack makes Tripathi a handy pick for this match. He was part of Royals camp earlier, after a break-through IPL season with Rising Pune Supergiants, Royals did not make full use of his ability.
• Eoin Morgan –  Morgan has got his best record against the Royals. In 5 innings, he has 243 runs with an average of 81. The onus will be on Captain Morgan to perform or else it will be too late for his side. Try him in Grand Leagues. 
• Dinesh Karthik– Kartik has 352 runs from 14 innings vs RR at an average of 29.3. His average goes up to 42.8 while batting first. 
• Andre Russell– Russell was destructive against CSK. Against Royals, he has 6 wickets and 168 runs from 8 innings at an average of 28. Definitely a key player today.
• Pat Cummins – Pat Cummins has 5 wickets from 2 innings against the Royals. The Royals have lost plenty of powerplay wickets this season, so watch out for Cummins. He took 4/34 against them in IPL 2020.
• Sunil Narine – Narine has 136 runs at an average of 17 along with 10 wickets vs RR. 
• Prasidh Krishna has 5 wickets from 4 innings against the Royals.
• Varun Chakravarty has 4 scalps from 2 innings against the Royals.
• Kamlesh Nagarkoti has 3 wickets from 2 innings in opposition to the Royals. He comes from Rajasthan and will be up against his state-based Franchise which will bring the best out of him. This also makes him a good option to have in Grand leagues.

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Rajasthan Royals

• Jos Buttler – Jos Buttler has 240 runs from 8 innings vs KKR at an average of 34.3. His average goes up to 50 while batting first. Buttler will be up against his National Captain. 
• Sanju Samson – Samson has 334 runs from 14 innings vs KKR at an average of 23.9. Honestly, we looked a bit disappointed after throwing his wicket away and he might take more responsibility when he steps into the park today.
• Chris Morris – Morris has 15 wickets and 44 runs against KKR. He will be a good choice of C/VC and can be paired with Gill/Buttler as C/VC in one of your teams.
• David Miller – Miller has 199 runs at an average of 24.9 from 11 innings. He has a better record while batting second against KKR.
• Riyan Parag – Riyan has 48 runs from 3 innings in opposition to KKR. He has bowled in some innings against them but he is yet to take a wicket. He will be a good pick in Grand leagues with his All-Rounder Value and the fact he’s looked good with the bat this season.
• Rahul Tewatia has 9 wickets and 61 runs at an average of 20.3 vs KKR.
• Mustafizur Rahman has 2 wickets from 3 innings against KKR.
• Chetan Sakariya has taken the most wickets for RR this season (6 in 4 matches).

Stats and Facts

• Overall Played 22 | KKR Won 12 |RR Won 10
• Rajasthan Royals have dominated against KKR for batting first.
• Shreyas Gopal has 6 wickets from 5 matches against KKR.
• Shivam Dube has not played against KKR so far.

Predicted Playing XI

Rajasthan Royals: 1. Jos Buttler, 2. Manan Vohra/Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3. Sanju Samson (c & wk), 4. Shivam Dube, 5. David Miller, 6. Riyan Parag, 7. Rahul Tewatia, 8. Chris Morris, 9. Shreyas Gopal, 10. Chetan Sakariya, 11. Mustafizur Rahman/Andrew Tye

Kolkata Knight Riders: 1. Nitish Rana, 2. Shubman Gill, 3. Rahul Tripathi, 4. Eoin Morgan (c), 5. Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6. Sunil Narine, 7. Andre Russell, 8. Pat Cummins, 9. Kamlesh Nagarkoti, 10. Varun Chakravarthy, 11. Prasidh Krishna

Wankhede Mumbai Pitch Report

This is Simon Doull Pitch Report from RCB vs RR Encounter.

“Pitch No 7. This was the pitch used for Match 2 and 4 this season and we have had 816 runs scored. It’s an absolute belter. It’s the 2011 World Cup pitch as well. Groundsmen Ramesh and the team have done a great job. Nice covering grass, good sound too. Tap tap tap (tests the surface with his knuckles). Nice and hard. The ball comes through nicely. The quicks have had some success, been a bit of swing and movement. On pitches, on either side (6 and 8) we’ve had some turn as well. As it’s drying out through the tournament we may see some turn. There’s a nice breeze blowing across that may keep the dew away. Hope it stays away. 185-190. Put them on the board and you may be able to defend it.”

Fantasy Nuts need to check which deck is being used before the toss.

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Dream11 Prediction

Option 1:

Option 2:

Match Prediction

As we have mentioned earlier, KKR has the momentum on their side and they will have the upper hand going into this contest. KKR to Win.

Written by Shekhar Singh. Follow Shekhar on Twitter today.

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