KXIP vs KKR, IPL 2018: Knight Riders beat Kings XI by 31 runs to move into top-4

Punjab's opponents, Kolkata Knight Riders, too have blown hot and cold. They desperately need to win on Saturday to stay in the knockout hunt. The twin loss to Mumbai Indians must be hurting them badly. The last one has dented their net run rate as they continued to look clueless against Mumbai Indians.

Purple cap holder Andrew Tye has been exceptional with his intelligent variations. Ankit Rajpoot has been sharp. Stoinis is also contributing well, while the spinners Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Axar Patel and Ashwin are doing a fantastic job. All they need is bit more cushion from their batsmen.

The duo of Rahul and Gayle has scored almost 900 runs between them. They need more support, especially from the middle order. Except for Marcus Stoinis, who has been assigned the role of finisher, others have struggled. The likes of Mayank Agrawal, Yuvraj Singh, Aaron Finch and Manoj Tiwary need to raise the bar.