Mumbai Mar 31 PTI Kolkata Knight Riders are expected to continue with their risk-taking approach despite mixed returns when they take on Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League here on Friday KKR head into Fridays game at the back of a three-wicket loss against RCB though managed to make the game close after a below-par total Punjab began their campaign with a win but they would expecting a better bowling effort after conceding more than 200 runs in their first game South Africa speedster Kagiso Rabada is expected to play after completing his three-day quarantine and that will give a big boost to the Punjab attack Batting at the Wankhede where the track is relatively fresh has not been easy as seen in the two games played at the venue so farIt may be early days in the two-month long IPL but the toss is already playing a significant role in the games outcome with dew coming into picture in the second half of the game Kolkatas openers Ajinkya Rahane and the attacking Venkatesh Iyer perished cheaply against RCB and the duo would be looking to provide a strong start to the teamWhile skipper Shreyas Iyer who has been in good form despite the failure against RCB would be an important cog in the wheel but would need support from the likes of Nitish RanaFor left-handed Rana consistency would be the key Apart from the duo the responsibility in the middle order needs to be shouldered by Sam Billings Sheldon Jackson and the big-hitting Andre Russell The KKR line-up has batters who can tear into any attack and the management would hope that they all fire in unison against Punjab On the bowling front pacer Umesh Yadav was splendid in both the games with the new ball Experienced Kiwi bowler Tim Southee who replaced Shivam Mavi and picked up three wickets too has a key role to play upfrontThe concern for Kolkata would be the form of spinner Varun Chakaravarthy who needs to hit the straps quicklyFor Punjab a lot would rest on how their top three skipper Mayank Agarwal flamboyant Shikhar Dhawan and Sri Lankan Bhanuka Rajapaksa who played a match-winning cameo against RCB perform While head coach Anil Kumble would expect more contributions from the middle order the likes of Odean Smith and Shahrukh Khan proved their mettle when they steered the side home against RCB and would be keen to be among the runs againIt remains to be seen if Under-19 World Cup star Raj Bawa who failed on IPL debut gets another chancePunjab bowlers came up against a marauding Faf Du Plessis in the first game and the likes of Sandeep Sharma Arshdeep Singh and Odean Smith would need to up their game against KKRThe eight overs from spin duo of Rahul Chahar and Harpreet Brar could also make a difference in the gameTeams From Kolkata Knight Riders Aaron Finch Abhijeet Tomar Ajinkya Rahane Baba Indrajith Nitish Rana Pratham Singh Rinku Singh Shreyas Iyer Ashok Sharma Pat Cummins Rasikh Dar Shivam Mavi Tim Southee Umesh Yadav Varun Chakaravarthy Aman Khan Andre Russell Anukul Roy Chamika Karunaratne Mohammed Nabi Ramesh Kumar Sunil Narine Venkatesh Iyer Sam Billings Sheldon JacksonPunjab Kings Shikhar Dhawan Mayank Agarwal Arshdeep Singh Kagiso Rabada Jonny Bairstow Rahul Chahar Harpreet Brar Shahrukh Khan Prabhsimran Singh Jitesh Sharma Ishan Porel Liam Livingstone Odean Smith Sandeep Sharma Raj Angad Bawa Rishi Dhawan Prerak Mankad Vaibhav Arora Writtick Chatterjee Baltej Dhanda Ansh Patel Nathan Ellis Atharva Taide Bhanuka Rajapaksa Benny Howell Match starts at 730 PM PTI NRB BS BS

Ahmedabad Feb 25 PTI Goa have ensured three points against Mumbai with a huge 164-run first innings lead as skipper Prithvi Shaw once again frittered away a good start on the second day of the group D Ranji Trophy match here on Friday After Mumbai were all out for 163 on the first day Goa batted well enough to score 327 in their first innings riding on 96-run eighth wicket stand between Eknath Kerkar 71 and seamer Lakshay Garg 59 For Mumbai left-arm spinner Shams Mulani got 6 for 107 Once they had taken the lead past 150-run mark Mumbai came back to score 57 for one in the second innings with Shaw smashing 44 off 47 balls with six fours and a six However left-arm spinner Darshan Mishal got one to go straight and had the Mumbai skipper leg before with Akarshit Gomel 13 and veteran Dhawal Kulkarni at the crease Mumbai who got three points against Saurashtra in the first game would now like to score big on the third day and try for an outright win by posting a chaseable target for Goa to get full points from this fixture With only one team from each group qualifying for the next stage even losing or dropping points in one game can prove to be costly Chirags 235 propels Saurashtra past 500 Odisha in trouble All-rounder Chirag Janis 235 off 373 balls with 33 fours and four sixes took Saurashtra to a mammoth 501 in their first innings and by stumps on the second day they reduced Odisha to 52 for 3 with their skipper and new CSK recruit Subhranshu Senapati at the crease Saurashtra need an outright win from this game as they got only one point from their first game and now require six to stay in contention and beat Mumbai to finish on top of group D Brief Scores Mumbai 163 and 571 Prithvi Shaw 44 vs Goa 327 Eknath Kerkar 71 Lakshay Garg 59 Shamas Mulani 6107 Saurashtra 501 Chirag Jani 235 Sheldon Jackson 75 Arpit Vasavada 61 Jayanta Behera 4148 vs Odisha 523 Debasish Samantray 20 PTI KHS KHS SSC SSC