The Indian Premier League has reached its last round of group stage encounters. Almost every team has at least played 13 games in the season with the remaining last one set to be played this week. Delhi Capitals, Chennai Super Kings, and Royal Challengers Bangalore have already secured their berths in the playoffs. There is only one spot left to fight for as Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians are the last two contestants left in the race. Here is What Things KKR Can Do To Ensure Their Playoff Qualification.
Both the teams have 12 points in 13 games with 6 wins each in IPL 2021 so far. However, Eoin Morgan’s KKR is leading the points table because of their solid Net Run Rate (+0.294), which puts them in the 4th spot for now. Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians have kept themselves alive in the playoff race with a decisive win against Rajasthan Royals in their last IPL encounter. However, the defending champions have a negative NRR of (-0.048), which puts them in 5th place on the IPL 2021 points table.
The battle for the 4th spot is going to be an interesting contest as fans await a blockbuster last week of IPL 2021. KKR have their faith in their own hand as Mumbai’s future depends upon the failure of their rivals.
Three Things KKR Can Do To Ensure Qualification
1) Win Against RR
KKR just have to do one thing to make it to the playoff, which is to win against Rajasthan Royals in their final match of the group stage. If Eoin Morgan and Co. manage to get the better of RR on Wednesday, then they will surely ensure their place in the playoffs. It won’t matter if Mumbai wins against SRH on Friday as KKR surpasses the Mumbai-based side in NRR.
2) Play Their Best XI
It’s a do-or-a-die game for KKR and skipper Eoin Morgan will have to make his best decisions if he wants to ensure a place in the knock-out stage. We have previously seen KKR play only 4 bowlers instead of playing 5 proper bowlers. Such decisions should be avoided as RR has enough potential to inflict an upset over KKR in their final match of the season.
3) Avoid A Big Loss
If KKR finds themselves in a difficult situation against RR, they should just try to avoid a big loss in the last game. This might be a help for them if Mumbai also falls short against SRH. KKR will qualify because of better NRR.
Also read: Twitterati: MI Beat RR To Keep Their Playoff Hopes Alive
