Kolkata Knight Riders will have Shah Rukh Khan by their side when they take on the Mumbai Indians at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Saturday. The fixture will be the final match of the league stage. The two teams currently sit at the top two of the points table with Mumbai Indians leading Kolkata Knight Riders.
Shah Rukh Khan has shown his presence in only one game this season which was KKR’s opening game of the season against Gujarat Lions at Rajkot. The match saw the visitors dominate completely and snap victory by a 10 wickets all courtesy to Chris Lynn power hitting which saw the side overhaul the target of 184-run in 14.5 overs.
“He came for the opening game in Rajkot. We had a really good result in that match. Hopefully, he will bring that luck in the last game as well,” said Venky Mysore, the team CEO, at a promotional golf event organised by KKR here on Thursday.
Shah Rukh Khan has always been keenly involved in the IPL process, inspiring his team to do well. His star power attracts more enthusiasm from the KKR fans.
The superstar would be happy that his side has already qualified for the playoffs but will also hope that the second position in the points table remains cemented with a win in the final match. A top two finish would mean KKR would directly make it to the qualifiers.
However, things won’t go completely wrong even if KKR lose on Saturday. But, the side which currently has with 16 points will have to expect Kings XI Punjab to lose any one of their remaining two games.
“We have pretty much qualified for the playoffs though there is one game to go,” said coach Jacques Kallis.
Kolkata Knight Riders have committed a few blunders in the latter stages. The 14 runs loss against Kings XI Punjab was the latest of them. Playing at Mohali, Gambhir and his men managed just 153/6 after being asked to chase 168 runs target by the home side. The loss meant KKR could not make themselves immune from the ongoing point table race.
“We got off to a great start and the platform has been well set throughout the season. But that happens. In T20 cricket, you don’t win all matches. There are hard totals that you chase down, easy totals that you can’t chase down. We will take some valuable lessons going into the next game,” said Kallis.