Knight Riders begins afresh post-Gambhir era

KKR management decided to appoint seasoned campaigner Dinesh Karthik as skipper for the 11th edition.

He will have his task cut out. It will be a litmus test first up for Karthik and his charges against RCB who once again look very strong on paper. Kohli and Co. finished at the bottom of the pile last time. The batting department in particular looks to be one of the best in the league. Led by the mercurial Kohli, RCB boast of proven IPL stars like AB De Villiers, Brendon McCullum, Corey Anderson and Quinton De Kock. 

RCB has always been weak when it comes to its bowling unit. This time though, with the likes of Yuzvendra Chahal, Umesh Yadav, Washington Sundar and Tim Southee, it has looked to plug the gap. 

As for the host, Mitchell Johnson will look to fill the void of Mitchell Starc as will England all-rounder Tom Curran. The purple brigade will once again pin their hopes of destructive batsman Chris Lynn to deliver the goods at the top of the order. 

Besides Lynn, vice-captain Robin Uthappa will also have a lot of expectations riding on him like captain Karthik. KKR, unlike RCB, has always been strong in the bowling department. It has wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Piyush Chawla and the ever-effective Sunil Narine to bank on. In the pace department, Johnson will be assisted by R Vinay Kumar, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, and all-rounder Andre Russell. 

KKR vs RCB @ 8 pm on Star Sports 1, HD 1