Calcutta: Knees heavily strapped, hair wet, sweat dripping all over his body — a visibly exhausted Shoaib Akhtar kept hurling down thunderbolts at a single stump next to the main square. Dusk was steadily settling over the Eden green on Monday but there was no stopping Shoaib as the lights began to glow.

At the other end, trainer Adrian Le Roux was struggling to stop the deliveries with a baseball glove in one hand. Shoaib’s fitness was being put to the severest of tests ahead of Kolkata Knight Riders’ key clash with Delhi DareDevils on Tuesday. Coach John Buchanan also dropped in for a while and had a word or two with the fast bowler.

It’s no secret that captain Sourav Ganguly is hell bent on playing the fast bowler in place of Umar Gul but Buchanan has adopted a wait and watch policy.

“Even a 90 per cent fit Shoaib is good enough to take on anyone in the world… I would say he’s not 100 per cent fit yet but the important thing is he’s feeling confident… We need to see how he pulls up in the morning,” said Buchanan.

Both teams have eight points from as many games but Knight Riders are ahead on the net run rate and placed fourth in the table. While the hosts are on a high having won their last two games, the Delhi DareDevils have lost their last three on the trot.

The reverses have no doubt put Virender Sehwag’s men under pressure after having had a dream start to the tournament. Their strength lies in the opening pair of Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir.

Sehwag has so far accumulated 287 runs at an enviable strike rate of 177.16, while Gambhir has also been in prime form (336 at strike rate 139.41). Shikhar Dhawan (209) has been the other success story in batting.

Not without reason Buchanan is already focusing on ways to restrict Sehwag’s flamboyance — get the basics right and don’t allow him too much width has been the coach’s message to the bowlers.

The bowling too can’t be dismissed as run of the mill though the likes of Mohammed Asif has proved to be expensive. Don’t forget Glenn McGrath is leading the attack and still has the capability to change the course of any match during his four overs.

Sourav is well aware of the opposition’s strengths. He realises both David Hussey and he will have to stand out with the bat if Knight Riders have to put up a decent total. A solid opening stand will also be vital and Salman Butt needs to prove he remains in fine nick after the home series against Bangladesh. Sourav’s return to form should prove inspirational for the hosts. He always believes in leading by example and there could not have been any better way to showcase his talent in the game’s shortest version.

Shah Rukh Khan will also be there! For Knight Riders it will be back to korbo, lorbo, jeetbo re and a chance to strengthen their chances of making the last four stage.

The weather forecast for Tuesday evening says there is a possibility of rain.

TEAMS

Kolkata Knight Riders (likely): Aakash Chopra, Salman Butt, Sourav Ganguly, David Hussey, Tatenda Taibu, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Murali Kartik, Wriddhiman Saha, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda, Umar Gul/ Shoaib Akhtar.

Delhi DareDevils (from): Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Shikhar Dhawan, AB de Villiers, Dinesh Karthik, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Shoaib Malik, Manoj Tiwary, Amit Mishra, Fervez Mahroof, Yao Mahesh, Pradeep Sangwan, Glenn McGrath, Mohammed Asif.

Umpires: Asad Rauf and Ian Howell. TV: A.V. Jayaprakash.

Match Referee: Talat Ali.

Match starts: 8pm.