Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will host Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Match 15 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the Eden Gardens on Thursday, April 9. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side will be playing their third home match of the tournament, looking for their first win of the season in front of their home crowd.
After the victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Rishabh Pant’s team will enter the match with momentum. Meanwhile, Kolkata Knight Riders’ previous match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) was abandoned due to rain at the home ground. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side started the tournament with consecutive defeats.
kkr vs lsg team news
Kolkata Knight Riders is struggling with a weak bowling attack. The management will rely heavily on Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Ajinkya Rahane to stabilize the top-order. Cameron Green needs to regain his form after struggling in the opening three games of the season.
Rishabh Pant will lead the team after the recent dominant win, where Mohammed Shami showed exceptional form with the new ball. Nicholas Pooran remains a major threat for KKR given his incredible record against the franchise.
IPL 2026, Match 15: KKR Playing XI vs LSG
Openers: Ajinkya Rahane, Finn Allen
To ensure an aggressive start, Kolkata Knight Riders will likely open with Ajinkya Rahane and Finn Allen. Allen’s strike rate in three matches is 229, in which he has hit 11 fours and four sixes so far. Rahane scored 67 runs in the opening match of the season but after failing in the next matches, he needs more consistency.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi has recently scored consecutive half-centuries while handling the responsibility of wicketkeeping. Cameron Green and Rinku Singh provide firepower in the middle order to counter the LSG bowlers.
Sunil Narine can be used as a floater in the lineup. The left-handed batsman is capable of changing matches with both bat and ball in the middle overs.
Bowlers: Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakraborty, Blessing Muzarabani
Blessing Muzarabani had taken four wickets for 41 runs in his previous innings. The economy rate of Vaibhav Arora and Varun Chakraborty is high. The team needs early successes from Muzarabani to stop the batting lineup of Lucknow Super Giants.
Playing XI of Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicketkeeper), Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakraborty, Blessing Muzarabani. 12th player: Karthik Tyagi
IPL 2026, Match 15: LSG Playing XI vs KKR
Openers: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh
Lucknow Super Giants are expected to open with Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh to maximize the powerplay. Markram scored 45 runs in the last game. Marsh has scored 49 runs in three matches at a strike rate of 122.5.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Rishabh Pant, Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Mukul Chaudhary
Rishabh Pant, who opened in the first match, will bat at number three. He scored a match-winning unbeaten half-century against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Nicholas Pooran remains a key batsman, having scored two half-centuries at a strike rate of 220 against KKR last season.
Abdul Samad and Mukul Chaudhary will provide lower-order support to finish the innings. If there is a collapse while batting first then the team can use Shahbaz Ahmed as an impact player.
Bowlers: Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Rathi, Manimaran Siddharth
Mohammed Shami will lead the pace attack after a spell of 2/9 in the last match. Prince Yadav has performed consistently and has taken two wickets in each of his last two matches. Avesh Khan, Digvesh Rathi and Manimaran Siddharth will retain their places in the playing eleven.
Playing XI of Lucknow Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (captain) (wicketkeeper), Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Ayush Mhatre, Manimaran Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Rathi, Prince Yadav. 12th player: Ayush Badoni
KKR vs LSG: Complete impressive players list
Blessing Muzarabani was included as an impact player for KKR in the rain-interrupted match against Punjab Kings. If the team bats first then Kartik Tyagi or Muzarabani can be included in the list of impact players. If KKR needs to strengthen its batting, Rovman Powell is another aggressive overseas option.
For LSG, Ayush Badoni remains the first choice as an impact player to strengthen the batting. Anrich Nortje is another reliable option for additional bowling if the top order scores well early in the match.
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