Indian Premier League on Sky Sports Cricket - today's action
Watch Kolkata Knight Riders v Rajasthan Royals from 2pm on Sky Sports Cricket
Wednesday 23 May 2018 14:36, UK
Here is what is in store in the Indian Premier League today...
Today's Game
Live Indian Premier League
It is now or never for Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals as they face off at Eden Gardens in the IPL Eliminator.
What's at stake?
A place in Qualifier 2 against Sunrisers Hyderabad! After finishing third and fourth respectively in the IPL table, KKR and Rajasthan have not had too much time to enjoy being in the play-offs. Three games separate them from the IPL trophy and the equation is simple: win or go home.
Kolkata have the home advantage courtesy of finishing ahead of the Royals and they will be hoping for a repeat of the sides' meeting at Eden Gardens in the group stage as they cruised to a six-wicket win.
Ones to watch
Shubman Gill was one of the stars of India's Under-19 World Cup success earlier in the year and his efforts out in New Zealand undoubtedly played a big part in persuading KKR to bring him in.
It hasn't been the easiest of tournaments for him as he has been moved up and down the order from game to game but an unbeaten 57 against CSK showed just what the 18-year-old batsman is capable of.
In the build-up to this year's competition, pundits pointed to Rajasthan's lack of spin-bowling options as the major weakness in their squad. However, the victory over RCB on Saturday that ultimately secured them a top-four finish was won by the spinners.
Krishnappa Gowtham and Ish Sodhi took a wicket each but 24-year-old leggie Shreyas Gopal was the standout. He took 4-16 from his four overs to take his tally for the tournament to 10 wickets in just nine matches. He is also useful with the bat down the order.
Which England players could feature?
Tom Curran is the sole Englishman in KKR's ranks but has found himself out of favour in recent times while Rajasthan have lost last year's MVP Ben Stokes and one of the stars of this year's tournament, Jos Buttler, both of whom are back in England preparing for Thursday's first Test at Lord's against Pakistan.
That could leave Jofra Archer as the solitary 'England' representative in the match. The Barbados-born fast bowler holds a British passport but won't be available to play for England until 2022 under ECB rules.
Who's in the Sky Sports studio?
Former England batsman James Taylor and ex-South Africa paceman Morne Morkel are reunited in the studio as they join Matt Floyd to analyse and assess the action in Kolkata.
Sky Sports will continue to show every IPL game live, so fans from all over can enjoy the best of Indian cricket.
