Calcutta: Pride is at stake for Kolkata Knight Riders. That is what Sourav Ganguly’s men will be playing for when they take on Kings XI Punjab in their last IPL match at the Eden on Sunday.

The Knights Riders have managed only 11 points from their 13 matches so far and the inaugural IPL is over for them. The fact that four out of five wins for the hosts have come against bottom-placed Bangalore Royal Challengers and Deccan Chargers also does not augur too well for the Knights. So a win against Kings XI Punjab would definitely boost the morale for the Shah Rukh Khan-owned team.

“It will be nice to knock off one of the semi-finalists. Our pride is at stake,” acknowledged Knight Riders’ coach John Buchanan.

For the local players, this is the last chance for them to rub shoulders with the likes of David Hussey, Shoaib Akhtar, Salman Butt and Umar Gul this season. And the Laxmi Ratan Shuklas, Wriddhiman Sahas and Debabrata Das’ do not want to let this chance go. They want to sign off on a high note on Sunday.

Buchanan also seemed pleased with local lads. “Shukla, Das, Saha performed very well. They will form the nucleus of the team from next season.”

In their away match against the Punjab side, the late rally from Hussey and Saha, though exciting, was not enough to bring home the ship and the top-order’s failure in that match would still be haunting the Knights. The top-order batting, in fact, has been a major hurdle for the Calcutta team and coach Buchanan didn’t hide his disappointment. “We lacked the ability at the top,” he said and added that a new opening combination was in store on Sunday.

Debabrata Das, in fact, batted after Salman Butt during nets on Saturday.

The Punjab side, having already ensured themselves a berth in the last four, would want to maintain the winning streak in their penultimate match. The Preity Zinta-owned side are presently placed second on the table, below Rajasthan Royals, with 18 points from 13 matches. The Yuvraj Singh-led side landed late in the city on Saturday and did not practice.

Shaun Marsh, the flamboyant left-hander, has been the main contributor for the Kings XI and has scored 438 runs at an average of 73. He has lent solidity at the top of the order and the Knights will have their task cut out.

Shoaib Akhtar, the cynosure of all eyes whenever he walks out on the cricket field, had his right knee heavily bandaged during practice on Saturday. “Shoaib’s condition is being monitored,” Buchanan said.

The Knight Riders’ coach, however, promised that there will be changes in the playing XI on Sunday. “Lot of things didn’t go well for us this season, ranging from player issues…to travel and training. It has forced us to look at what we are at the moment and what we have done so far,” Buchanan said.

The coach was also optimistic that from next season the franchises will get players who will be able to play the entire series and the IPL will get support from other boards.

TEAMS

Kolkata Knight Riders (likely): Salman Butt, Debabrata Das, Sourav Ganguly, David Hussey, Tatenda Taibu, Ajit Agarkar, Wriddhiman Saha, Ashok Dinda, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ishant Sharma, Umar Gul/Shoaib Akhtar.

Kings XI Punjab (likely): Yuvraj Singh, Mahela Jayawardene, Shaun Marsh, James Hopes, Luke Pomersbach, Irfan Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Uday Kaul, Sreesanth, V. R. V. Singh, Tanmay Srivastava.

Match starts: 8 pm.