IPL match today, KKR vs LSG: Team prediction, head-to-head, pitch report, Kolkata weather update

Out of form and short on ideas, Kolkata Knight Riders are set to consider sweeping changes as they hunt for their first win of the IPL 2026 season against a confident Lucknow Super Giants at Eden Gardens on Thursday.

Much of the spotlight will be on Mohammed Shami, who is coming off a brilliant 2/9 spell against Sunrisers Hyderabad, dismissing Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head — the same pair that had troubled KKR earlier. With helpful conditions expected, Shami’s seam movement could once again expose KKR’s fragile top order.

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KKR were rattled early in their previous outing as well, slipping to 16/2 before rain forced a washout against Punjab Kings. Weather could remain a factor, though the late start is likely to limit disruption.

Beyond Shami, LSG’s bowling depth — including Prince Yadav and mystery spinner Digvesh Rathi — adds to the challenge. Their powerplay dominance has already been evident, reducing opponents to 26/4 on two occasions this season.

KKR’s batting remains a concern, with the Ajinkya Rahane–Finn Allen opening pair yet to click consistently. A reshuffle could be on the cards, while the form of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy with the ball is another worry.

LSG, meanwhile, will draw confidence from Rishabh Pant’s composed unbeaten 68 in the last game, supported by the experience of Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram at the top.

KKR vs LSG Head-to-Head

• Total matches played: 6
• Kolkata Knight Riders: 2
• Lucknow Super Giants: 4

KKR vs LSG: Pitch Report

The match is likely to be played on the same surface used for the PBKS-KKR clash. In recent times, tracks at Eden Gardens have largely favoured batters, and that trend is unlikely to change. However, weather could once again play a role.

Conditions were overcast on the eve of the game, with rain forecast around sunset on matchday. The meteorological department has issued an orange alert for both Wednesday and Thursday, indicating a strong possibility of rain interruptions.

KKR vs LSG: Predicted XIs

Kolkata Knight Riders predicted XI: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi

Impact Sub: Blessing Muzarabani

Lucknow Super Giants predicted XI: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant (wk, capt), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, M Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Rathi

Impact Sub: Prince Yadav

KKR vs LSG: Kolkata Weather Update

There is a yellow alert for thunderstorms in the morning, with periods of rain expected early in the day and considerable cloud cover throughout. The maximum temperature is likely to be around 33°C. The good news is that skies are expected to clear by night, with the temperature dropping to around 23°C.

Rain is forecast until around noon, with the chance of precipitation decreasing from 49% at 12 PM to 0% by the time of the toss at 7 PM. As of now, there is no rain expected during match hours tonight.

KKR vs LSG: Live Streaming details

The KKR vs LSG clash will be held at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, with the match set to begin at 7:30 PM IST. The game will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network, while live streaming will be available on JioHotstar.

KKR vs LSG squads

Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik, Cameron Green, Finn Allen, Matheesha Pathirana, Tejasvi Singh, Kartik Tyagi, Prashant Solanki, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Sarthak Ranjan, Daksh Kamra, Rachin Ravindra, Blessing Muzarabani, Saurabh Dubey and Navdeep Saini.

Lucknow Super Giants: Rhabh Pant (c), Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke, Mukul Choudhary, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Josh Inglis, Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahamad, Arshin Kulkarni, Ayush Badoni, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, M. Siddharth, Digvesh Singh, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav, Arjun Tendulkar, Anrich Nortje, Naman Tiwari, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan.