Kolkata hold edge over struggling Bangalore

KOLKATA: Royal Challengers Bangalore need an intervention. After three losses and a washout, Daniel Vettori's team needs to start winning again else they face a swift exit from the title race. On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders with three strong wins and two narrow losses need to do more of what they've been doing, and all should be well at the Eden Gardens.

The Kolkata template in IPL 4 has been to restrict the opposition to a manageable target with a heavy dose of slow bowling, and chasing it down with ease. Bangalore will need good performances from batsmen who play spin well. They also need to field better.

MINI-BATTLES

Zaheer Khan vs Jacques Kallis: Kallis has fallen twice in a row trying to hook. Zaheer is the master of deception and accuracy. Expect an intense contest between the two.

Brett Lee vs Chris Gayle: Gayle hasn't been in the best form. He's also coming to the IPL with the mental baggage of the tiff he's had with the West Indies board and being demonised by his public for choosing club over country. Lee too hasn't had a great time so far, with two wickets in three games. Which of these two will prevail?

QUOTE HANGER

"I think our players have performed with the bat and the ball. The one area which we are weak is our fielding. We could have won our last two or three games if we fielded properly." -- Ray Jennings, Bangalore coach

"I feel the table is open. You have seen big teams losing to teams that we have never thought of. KKR lost their last game which is going to be an advantage for us. If we beat them tomorrow it will be really good for us to go forward." -- Zaheer Khan, Bangalore pacer

"We have chased twice and lost twice. Those run chases in future can be approached in a slightly different way. We are always trying to improve the formation of the team in terms of the personnel and the batting order that would best suit for chasing a total." -- Dav Whatmore, Kolkata coach

STRENGTHS

Gayle's arrival will boost Bangalore. Kolkata's spin attack of Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan and Iqbal Abdullah has picked wickets consistently as has Laksmipathy Balaji with his pace changes.

WEAKNESSES

Fielding remains a worry for Bangalore. They've dropped catches, let balls slip through legs and have deserved the losses that have come their way.

INJURIES AND PLAYER AVAILABILITIES

Chris Gayle is expected to take the field for Bangalore. Kolkata's Yusuf Pathan, who had an injured ankle in the loss against Kochi, is being monitored and a decision on him will be taken on Friday morning.

FORM RECORD

Kolkata: L-W-W-W-L

Bangalore: W-L-L-L-NR

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD

Played 6, Kolkata won 3, Bangalore won 3.

VENUE AND PITCH

The Eden has produced one low-scorer after another. The first four innings produced scores of 150+. In the next, Rajasthan were bowled out for 81, after which Kochi successfully defended 132. More of the same is likely. Meanwhile, the local public which was in a mood to boycott the Ganguly-less team, has returned to the Eden slowly with Gambhir's men posting three wins in a row to jump to the top of the table -- something they haven't done in the IPL.

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