KKR vs GT, IPL 2025: Why have Quinton de Kock and Anrich Nortje been dropped by Kolkata Knight Riders?
Kolkata: KKR's Quinton de Kock during a practice session ahead of the IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Gujarat Titans, at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. (PTI Photo/Swapan Mahapatra)
Kolkata Knight Riders
captain
Ajinkya Rahane
won the toss and chose to bowl first against
Gujarat Titans
in match 39 of
IPL 2025
at Eden Gardens on Monday, bringing in
Rahmanullah Gurbaz
and
Moeen Ali
as replacements for Quinton de Kock and Anrich Nortje.
"The pitch looks on the drier side, and when we bowl we want to see how it is behaving. It is a chasing ground. We spoke after the last game. The players are working very hard. There is a motivation to go up the ladder. I am positive about all players. Not too worried about middle-order," said Rahane after winning the toss.
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KKR, seventh in the
IPL
points table, have been forced into making the changes following their embarrassing 95 all out show against Punjab Kings last week.
De Kock, former South Africa wicketkeeper-batter, has been dropped for Gurbaz. This is Afghanistani youngster's first match of the season.
After the 95 run show, they've reinforced their batting further with all-rounder Moeen Ali coming in for Anrich Nortje.
'I take the blame': Ajinkya Rahane after KKR's defeat to Punjab Kings
Gujarat Titans, the IPL 2022 champions, currently lead the points table with five wins from seven matches. GT also hold a 2-1 advantage in head-to-head encounters against KKR.
GT captain Shubman Gill commented on the match conditions: "Don't think there will be any dew. So it should be a good game. The way we have been bowling has been great. We have been contributing with wickets. The skill set that he (Rashid Khan, GT vice-captain) brings with his bowling has been great."
Gully To Glory: Ramandeep Singh's journey from Chandigarh to Team India via KKR
Kolkata Knight Riders XI:
Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, and Varun Chakaravarthy.
Impact Subs: Manish Pandey, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rovman Powell, Luvnith Sisodia, and Anukul Roy.
Gujarat Titans XI:
Shubman Gill, B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler, Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Washington Sundar, Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna.
Impact Subs: Ishant Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Anuj Rawat, Karim Janat, and Arshad Khan.
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