Kolkata Knight Riders will be without young batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi for their final league-stage fixture against Delhi Capitals at Eden Gardens on Sunday, May 24. The 21-year-old sustained a concussion late during the first innings of KKRโs last outing against Mumbai Indians and was subsequently ruled out of the contest. Tejasvi Dahiya came in as his concussion replacement during the match.
With Raghuvanshi unavailable, KKR promoted Manish Pandey to number three in the chase. The experienced batter responded with a composed 45 off 33 deliveries, playing a key role in the sideโs four-wicket victory.
Meanwhile, Raghuvanshi has been one of Kolkataโs standout performers this season and currently leads the teamโs run-scoring charts. The youngster has amassed 422 runs in 12 innings, at a strike rate of 146.52. However, the franchise will not be able to include him in the playing XI against Delhi due to ICC concussion protocols.
According to the ICCโs concussion substitute regulations, any player diagnosed with a concussion during a match must undergo a mandatory seven-day stand-down period before returning to competitive action. As a result, Raghuvanshi is set to miss the decisive clash that could determine Kolkataโs playoff hopes.
KKRโs qualification scenario
Despite winning six out of the last seven games, KKRโs path to the playoffs is still complicated. They need Rajasthan Royals to lose their final league game against Mumbai Indians and then win their final match against Delhi. In case Punjab Kings win their match against Lucknow Super Giants, KKR might also need to improve their Net Run Rate vs Delhi.ย
Thus, if all these things go in their favour, the three-time champions will once again make it to the playoffs. The odds are currently against their favour, but it was worse when the Ajinkya Rahane-led side lost five out of the first six games. Since then, they have rebuilt themselves and the stars seem to be aligning.ย
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