KKR chase a playoffs miracle that barely fits their campaign

Languishing in the eighth spot with 11 points, there's an outside chance KKR might sneak through to the playoffs with even one win in their last two. Which, in itself, feels a bit farcical given the season they've had ft. losing ruts, untimely injuries and an inability to make the most of the Powerplay, both with bat and ball.

The aim, of course, is to win both, win them big and see what destiny has in store. But for that, they need their ace card, Varun Chakaravarthy, fit and firing. The 34-year-old spinner, who missed the RCB match and bowled with a "sore foot" against GT in the last match, trained on match eve before the MI fixture, but it was a short, sharp session behind one of the makeshift sightscreens at Eden Gardens, away from the media glare. Notably, he was limping while entering and exiting the field, suggesting that a full recovery remains a distant prospect.

KKR aren't alone in dealing with uncertainty though, with MI having their own fitness cloud to navigate through. Their captain didn't travel to Dharamsala due to back issues, instead spending hours training in Mumbai, which made it a conversation in itself, as it often happens with teams that are losing. But Hardik Pandya batted and bowled in MI's high-intensity training session two days before the match in Kolkata, and is likely to slot back in.

There's little at stake for the already-eliminated MI but it's not the same for Pandya, who has been a shadow of himself in the IPL since switching franchises in 2024. And with potential captains and allrounders looking over his shoulder, a night of substance at the Eden Gardens wouldn't hurt.

When: Match 65, IPL 2026, 20 May 2026 at 7:30 PM local

Where: Eden Gardens, Kolkata

What to expect: Sweaty cricketers and a few empty seats in the stands for this mid-week fixture. The pitch is likely to be the one used for the KKR-RR match earlier this season, when Varun Chakaravarthy's Player of the Match performance (3 for 14) on a dry surface had helped the hosts snap out of their losing streak. The surface, which is located towards one side of the square, will also bring in skewed dimensions into play, with about 12 meters offset between the sides.

Weather wise, it's very, very hot and humid in Kolkata, and temperatures are set to be around 32 degrees around match start.

Head to head: KKR 11 - 25 MI

Team Watch

Kolkata Knight Riders

Injuries/unavailability: Varun was seen limping in and out of his light practice session. Matheesha Pathirana, who pulled up after bowling eight balls on his KKR debut, didn't show up for any of the two practice sessions in the leadup to this match.

Tactics & matchups: Sunil Narine could be opening the bowling, with a favourable match-up to boast against Rohit Sharma (10 dismissals).

If Pathirana doesn't play, KKR might go for Blessing Muzarabani, who last featured in a match on April 2. Vaibhav Arora, who had a busy practice session, could also get a look-in but his numbers against MI batters don't argue his case.

Probable XII: Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(wk), Cameron Green, Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakaravarthy, Saurabh Dubey, Kartik Tyagi, Blessing Muzarabani/Vaibhav Arora

Mumbai Indians

Injuries/unavailability: Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav are both in Kolkata and both had one intense training session at the Eden Gardens. Both are expected to be back. Quinton de Kock (tendon injury) and Raj Bawa (ligament tear) have been ruled out of the season.

Tactics & matchups: Bumrah against any batter in the world is a favourable match-up on most days of the week, but he particularly has a good record bowling to Rinku Singh, KKR's middle-overs engine.

AM Ghazanfar, who missed out in Dharamsala, could come back into the mix if the Kolkata pitch is as dry as it was for the RR match earlier this season.

Probable XII:Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton(wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Naman Dhir, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Will Jacks, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Raghu Sharma, AM Ghazanfar

Did you know?

- KKR have only dropped 9 catches, the least by any side, and their catching efficiency is 86.9% is the best by any team this season.

- Angkrish Raghuvanshi has the best average against pacers among batters to face 100+ balls in this IPL season.

- Not once in 12 innings this season have both KKR openers survived the Powerplay.

What they said:

"When people talk about one family, the atmosphere is always like that. All the captains have different tactics. I, actually, enjoyed playing under everyone. So, I wouldn't say it was disturbing" - Naman Dhir on playing under three MI captains this season.

"I feel like I can do more, contribute more to the KKR side like I do for my team at the domestic level" - Anukul Roy reflects on his season so far