IPL 2014 Match 21 prediction: In Dhoni's den, Chennai (57%) predicted to defeat Kolkata (43%)

By Shashi Mittal On May 01, 2014

Prediction methodology

Note: Starting match 14 onwards, we are using only the data of IPL 2014 to predict the outcome of the matches of the current series.

Prediction: Chennai (57%) predicted to defeat Kolkata (43%) (Match scorecard)

After completing its Arabian odyssey, the IPL finally moves to India, with the first match of the second leg to be held in Ranchi, between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders. Now Ranchi may be geographically close to Kolkata, but make no mistake, this is Dhoni's kingdom. The captain of Chennai honed his Cricketing skills in the DAV school which is in the neighborhood of where the match will be played. Moreover, Dhoni has never lost a match at his home ground, be it as the captain of the Indian team or as the skipper of Chennai.

No such historical niceties for Kolkata Knight Riders though. They are already reeling under the agonizing defeat in the super over in their previous match against Rajasthan. Now they will have to face the formidable Super Kings in Dhoni's den, and you can get a sense that the cards are stacked against them. Kolkata have a peculiar problem at hand - they have too many good overseas players, but they can play only four of them. This means that Chris Lynn will most likely have to sit out again. They haven't been able to include a player of the caliber of Ryan ten Doeschate in the final eleven of any of their previous matches. Perhaps they could have done a better job of bidding on players during the IPL auction. For now though, they will have to hope for the best with their current resources, and find a way to defeat Dhoni's men in their own backyard.

Cricmetric's current prediction success rate for IPL 2014: 11/20 (55%)