KOLKATA: At the Eden Gardens on Thursday, Shah Rukh Khan's men resume the journey they undertook last season - to put the chaos behind them and claim their rightful place in the IPL.
With key changes in personnel and a new skipper in Gautam Gambhir last year, Kolkata had their best-ever finish in the tournament, but a last-four berth was still considered 'below par' for the most high-profile franchise.
If 'going all the way' is the belief they begin with, Kolkata will be grateful that they take on a Team Delhi that is dangerously depleted. With many players mopping up their international commitments before arriving for the big T20 bash in India, Delhi will be without the likes of Mahela Jayawardene, Kevin Pietersen and David Warner. New Zealander Ross Taylor is out with a broken arm. In contrast, Kolkata will miss only James Pattinson.
If this imbalance on the 'missing men' front encourages Gambhir and his troops, they will be sobered by the thought that in the game's shortest format, it doesn't take too many to turn a match on its head. While Virender Sehwag, who leads the Delhi outfit, is potentially a one-man army irrespective of his dip in form, Irfan Pathan is a man on an upsurge.
But, then, Team Kolkata don't just have the personnel from last year's 'turnaround' show, they have also strengthened their squad with impressive new acquisitions. Brendon McCullum, who had launched the team with that blistering 158 in the inaugural edition, is back and the top-order looks ominous. The Kiwi may well open with Jacques Kallis with Gambhir slipping up and down the order as per the situation.
South Africa's Morne Morkel, New Zealander Doug Bracewell, Umesh Yadav and Ajit Agarkar present appetising options for Delhi in the pace bowling department. With the pace department so well-stacked, Jharkhand sensation Varun Aaron, who is coming back from injury, may just have to wait. But Delhi do seem a trifle short on spin, a department that is teeming with talent in the Kolkata camp. If Shakib-al Hasan added real bite to their spin last year, the options have been further boosted by the induction of West Indian spinner Sunil Narine.
The hosts may well be tempted to present a slow turner, which surprised and felled a few visitors last year. But, then, they are increasingly acquiring an all-weather look about them.
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