Calcutta/Hyderabad: The Kolkata Knight Riders will have revenge on their minds when they take on Somerset in their opening group match of the Champions League Twenty20, on Sunday.

During their last encounter, on Wednesday, which was a qualifying match for the main event, the Knight Riders lost to Somerset but they still managed to make the main tournament on the basis of a better net run rate.

But come Sunday, the Shah Rukh Khan-co-owned franchise will try to settle scores with the English County, who, in the qualifiers, had managed to beat the high-profile side by 11 runs.

The Knight Riders are expected to have their regular captain Gautam Gambhir back in the mix. He missed the qualifiers after failing to recover fully from the after-effects of concussion, suffered during a fall in the last Test against England, at The Oval.

The Knight Riders management has left it to Gambhir to take a decision. It was learnt that the opener will get in touch with his neurologist before taking a final call.

Coach Dav Whatmore, however, is hopeful that Gambhir will receive the go ahead to play the match. “He has looked good at nets for the past couple of days. Hopefully…” Dav said.

Led by South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis in Gambhir’s absence, the Knight Riders had a difficult time on the field as none of their batsmen managed to convert the good starts.

While Ryan ten Doeschate and Manoj Tiwary showed spark, big names such as Yusuf Pathan and Kallis failed with the bat. Manvinder Bisla, too, couldn’t do much and that put pressure on the middle and late-order.

Among the bowlers, Australian speedster Brett Lee and youngster Jaydev Unadkat claimed a couple of wickets, but they were not threatening enough to take the team to victory in qualifying matches.

Spinners Iqbal Abdulla, Shakib-al Hasan along with part-timer Pathan, too, failed to impress and could not claim a single wicket. That remains a worry.

The onus would now be on Kallis and Gambhir, if he is fit to play, to inspire the team if they hope to avenge their loss at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.

Somerset, on the other hand, have played as a team and beautifully crafted their way into the main tournament with performances that has improved with each match.

After edging out the Auckland Aces in their first qualifier last Tuesday, Somerset came up with a splendid show against the Knight Riders. Their batsmen Peter Trego (70) and Roelof van der Merwe are in form and that will bolster Somerset’s chances.

Somerset also exploited the wicket better than the Knight Riders, in their last meeting, as Van der Merwe came back to claim two wickets and, aided by Max Waller who took two for 23, set up the win.

Fellow spinners Arul Suppiah, Murali Kartik and medium-pacer Trego also accounted for a wicket each to help the team’s cause. Captain Alfonso Thomas will expect another brilliant performance from his boys.