Two teams with contrasting fortunes in their opening games will lock horns in the IPL as Royal Challengers Bangalore host Kings XI Punjab at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Friday (18:30).

The Virat Kohli led Royal Challengers were dealt a four-wicket loss in their campaign opener against the Kolkata Knight Riders while Kings XI made short work of the Delhi Daredevils in their opening match.

The two outfits are among the three existing franchises to have never won the IPL and will be aiming to get their name on the trophy this year.

TALKING POINTS

BANGALORE’S HOME RECORD

Of the seven matches they played at home in 2017, the Royal Challengers managed to win just one. Their poor record at Benglaluru will be in focus as they play in front of their home fans this season.

The hosts will be banking on their star-laden top-order where the likes of Brendon McCullum, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers will be raring to go. It is in the middle-order and the bowling department where Kohli’s men look a little thin. Therefore, the pressure will be on the big boys to deliver.

KINGS XI LOOKING DANGEROUS

Having only retained one player in Axar Patel ahead of the 2018 auction, Kings XI have hit the reset button under the leadership of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

They started off brilliantly at home as KL Rahul’s fastest fifty in IPL put the Daredevils to the sword in Mohali. Ashwin and his men will be looking to carry that momentum into the Royal Challengers’ den where the pitch has aided the slower bowlers historically.

PLAYERS IN FOCUS

Former Royal Challengers crowd-favourite Chris Gayle will be in the opposing dugout come Friday. The swashbuckling Jamaican did not feature in Kings XI’s opening victory but he will be desperate to show his former employers what they missed out on by not retaining him for 2018.

Whether he gets the nod to feature in the playing XI remains to be seen but Bengaluru could be set for a ‘Gayle-storm’ if the left-hander is given the go ahead. The visitors will also be banking on Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s spin which was lethal in the win over Delhi.

Just 17, the Afghan spinner has it all when it comes to variations and could prove to be the find of the season.

For Bangalore, leg-spinner in Yuzvendra Chahal will be in focus after a listless performance in the defeat to Kolkata. He has an excellent record at the Chinnaswamy Stadium and will be the man to watch out for.

LIKELY LINE-UPS

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Brendon McCullum, Quinton de Kock (wk), Virat Kohli (C), AB de Villiers, Mandeep Singh, Sarfraz Khan, Chris Woakes, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Umesh Yadav

Kings XI Punjab: KL Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, Karun Nair, Yuvraj Singh, Manoj Tiwary, Marcus Stoinis, Ravichandran Ashwin (C), Axar Patel, Andrew Tye, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Mohit Sharma