Beleaguered KKR in the dock

Having slipped to the sixth place after Rajasthan Royals’ stunning two-run victory over Deccan Chargers last night, the Knight Riders now face a win-or-perish situation in their semifinal aspiration.

In contrast, the Delhi outfit, second behind leaders Mumbai Indians, have no such worries as four consecutive wins have virtually assured them a place in the semifinals.

For the local side, it has been a story of one step forward and two steps backward. Their loss to bottom-placed Kings XI Punjab at home jeopardised their semifinal aspirations and skipper Sourav Ganguly will have an unenviable task to lift the team morale ahead of Wednesday’s match.

With five more matches to go, Knights cannot afford to lose at the moment and it will be interesting to see how the side copes up with the situation with the big challenges lying ahead. The KKR think-tank is struggling to find the right combination of the side and stumper Wriddhiman Saha — nursing a sore left thumb — is not a certainty for the match.

Ganguly rested New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum in their last match but the in-form opener is likely to be picked in their must-win match against the Delhi outfit that will put the team think-tank in a difficult situation.

Chris Gayle in explosive form means that Ganguly may have to drop middle-order batsman David Hussey, who too is in good knick. Ganguly also may take risk of omitting medium-pace all-rounder Angelo Mathews or strike bowler Shane Bond.