Jharkhand vs Kerala Match Prediction

As many as 19 matches will be played in the first round as Ranji Trophy 2022-23 season kicks off from Tuesday, December 13. Jharkhand's clash against Kerala will be one of them. The match will be played at JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi. The match will commence from 9:30 AM IST.

Bet on Ranji Trophy

In the 2021-22 season, Jharkhand reached the quarter-final stage where Bengal defeated them on the basis of first innings lead. Kerala, on the other hand, won two of their three Elite Group A matches but failed to qualify for the knockout rounds. In the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, Kerala lost to Jammu and Kashmir in the preliminary quarter-final. Jharkhand also lost in the same round to Karnataka. Both the teams will look to regroup and give their best in the new season of Ranji Trophy now.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Chance of Winning

Jharkhand is the better poised team to win the encounter. Kerala have the likes of Basil Thampi, Jalaj Saxena and Sachin Baby and will be led by star wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson. But Jharkhand also boast of a star-studded lineup. Ishan Kishan is expected to turn up for them alongside Shahbaz Nadeem, Saurabh Tiwary and in-form Virat Singh. Kerala have won three of their last five matches against Jharkhand. However, the latter are expected to benefit while playing in home conditions. Jharkhand's batting unit is also looking much stronger than that of Kerala's. Kerala have won two of their last five matches, whereas, Jharkhand have triumphed thrice in their last five Ranji Trophy games.

There is very little to choose between the two sides as far as their chances of winning are concerned as Melbet has handed almost similar odds for both teams. While Kerala’s odds of 1.8 hands them an implied probability of 55.56%, Jharkand are not too far behind with odds of 1.9. What that means is that the implied probability of Jharkhand to exact an upset in the game is 52.63%

Our Prediction

Jharkhand will most likely make a better use of the home conditions and have an upper hand against Kerala. Jharkhand batters Virat Singh and Utkarsh Singh have shown great form recently and also experienced spinner Shahbaz Nadeem is most likely to give a tough time to the Kerala batters. The momentum also is in favour of Jharkhand who have won three of their last four Ranji Trophy matches. Kerala, on the other hand, lack batting depth and they would be relying heavily on the experience of Sanju Samson and Sachin Baby. Kerala have won three of their last five Ranji Trophy matches but the two sides last faced each other in the format in 2018 and so the past records would hardly carry any weight.

Jharkhand to win - 1.9 (Melbet)
Kerala to win - 1.8 (Melbet)

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Jharkhand vs Kerala Prediction & Betting Tips 2022

Having been placed in Elite Group H in last season’s Ranji Trophy, Jharkhand found themselves facing the likes of Chhattisgarh, Delhi and Tamil Nadu. Their problems were compounded when they were soundly defeated by Chhattisgarh in the opener by eight wickets. However, they fought back well against a Delhi side, that included Nitish Rana, Lalit Yadav, and Ishant Sharma, taking the first innings lead. They were able to set Delhi a target of 334 in the fourth innings and managed to seal a close 15 run win after Dhruv Shorey scored an impressive 136.

In the final group game, which had the feeling of a winner take all, Jharkhand were outscored in the first innings leaving them on the brink of elimination. However, after wrapping up TN for a mere 152 in the second innings, they were able to go through courtesy of a two wicket win. After sweeping past Nagaland in the pre quarter final, where they scored 880 in the first innings, they were finally ousted by Bengal who scored 773 in the first innings in a drawn game.

Kerala, too, were placed in a tough group alongside former champions Gujarat and would be champions Madhya Pradesh with Meghalaya acting as the last team. As expected they got past Meghalaya by an innings and 166 runs before sealing a well fought win against Gujarat by eight wickets. In a winner take all game against Madhya Pradesh, a Yash Dubey 289 was followed by a Rajat Patidar 142 as MP piled on 585 in the first innings. In response, Ponnam Rahul (136) and Sachin Baby (114) could only help their side make it to 432 as the game ended in a draw.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Toss Prediction

The JSCA International Stadium Complex did not host any match in the previous season, but it hosted as many as three matches in the 2019-20 season. In the first match, Assam won the toss and elected to bat first but they lost the match by an innings and 67 runs. In the second match, the home team won the toss and elected to bat first but ended up losing the match by an innings and 27 runs. Jharkhand elected to bat first in the third match as well. They won the match this time against Uttarakhand by six wickets.

Weather Report

The weather in Ranchi, Sikkim is expected to be Sunny on Tuesday (December 13). The temperature is expected to hover around 27 degree Celsius. 47 percent humidity and wind speed of 10 kmph is the forecast. Weather conditions on Day 2, 3 and 4 are also expected to be the same.

Jharkhand Player List

Jharkhand predicted squad:Saurabh Tiwary (C), Aayush Bhardwaj, Kumar Suraj, Bal Krishna, Virat Singh, Pankaj Kumar, Sushant Mishra, Kumar Deobrat, Vikash Vishal, Sahil Raj, Ashish Kumar, Anukul Roy, Nazim Siddiqui, Kumar Kushagra, Manishi, Shahbaz Nadeem, Utkarsh Singh, Rahul Shukla, Raunak Kumar

Jharkhand Predicted Playing XI:

Kumar Deobrat	Batter
Nazim Siddiqui	Batter
Utkarsh Singh	All-rounder
Saurabh Tiwary	Batter
Virat Singh	Batter
Kumar Kushagra	Wicket-keeper batter
Anukul Roy	All-rounder
Shahbaz Nadeem	Bowler
Rahul Shukla	Bowler
Sushant Mishra	Bowler
Ashish Kumar	Bowler

Jharkhand Team Form

Kumar Kushagra and Virat Singh were the leading run-scorer for Jharkhand in the previous Ranji Trophy season. The former scored 439 runs in four matches at an average of 62.71, while the latter piled up 391 runs at an average of 55.85 in five matches. Saurabh Tiwary and Ishan Kishan also chipped in with 244 and 252 runs respectively. Ishan Kishan, who scored an ODI double hundred on December 10, is not part of India's Test squad for Bangladesh series and it remains to be seen if he features in the first match for Jharkhand. Shahbaz Nadeem picked 25 wickets in five matches at an average of 24.96. He will again lead the bowling unit which also have a young and exciting left-arm pacer in Sushant Mishra.

Kerala Player List

Kerala squad:

Sanju Samson (c), Nedumankuzhy Basil, Basil Thampi, Akshay Chandran, Fazil Fanoos, Vathsal Govind, Jalaj Saxena, Sijomon Joseph, Krishna Prasad, Rohan Kunnummal, MD Nidheesh, Rohan Prem, Ponnan Rahul, Shoun Roger, Suresh Sachin (wk), Vaisakh Chandran, Sachin Baby

Kerala Predicted XI

Sanju Samson (c)	Batsman and Wicket-keeper
Rohan Kunnummal	Batsman
Rohan Prem	Batsman
Sachin Baby	Batsman
Rohan Kunnummal	Batsman
Jalaj Saxena	All-rounder
Akshay Chandran	All-rounder
Sijomon Joseph	Bowler
Nedumankuzhy Basil	Bowler
MD Nidheesh	Bowler
Basil Thampi	Bowler

Kerala Team Form

Rohan Kunnummal was the leading run-scorer for his team last season. He smashed 417 runs in three matches at an average of 139. He is in the team alongside Ponnan Rahul (334 runs at an average of 83.50)who was the second-highest run-scorer for the team. Sachin Baby had also chipped in with handy 285 runs at an average of 71.25. With Sanju Samson also in the lineup it would be interesting to see how Kerala fares in Ranchi. The bowling unit is expected to again revolve around Jalaj Saxena and Basil Thampi who picked 13 and 11 wickets respectively in the previous season.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Head to Head

Jharkhand and Kerala have played five Ranji Trophy matches against each other between 2008 and 2017. Kerala have won three including the last one, Whereas, Jharkhand have won one. The 2014 encounter ended in a draw.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Betting Odds

Jharkhand to win

Jharkhand will enter the match as the favourites because of the home conditions and the current form of their players. Jharkhand batters Virat Singh and Utkarsh Singh played some really impressive knocks in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and also experienced spinner Shahbaz Nadeem is most likely to give a tough time to the Kerala batters. The momentum also is in favour of Jharkhand who have won three of their last four Ranji Trophy matches. The Sanju Samson-led side, on the other hand, lack batting depth and they would be relying heavily on the experience of Sanju Samson and Sachin Baby.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Top Team Batters

Rohan Kunnummal to be Kerala's top batter

Kerala's leading run-scorer in the 2021-22 season, Rohan Kunnummal is expected to deliver against a very potent Jharkhand side. The 24-year-old was the leading run-scorer for Kerala in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2022-23. He amassed 414 runs in seven matches at an average of 103.50. He hit two hundreds and a fifty in the tournament. Overall, the right-hand batter has played six first-class matches and scored 769 runs at an average of 96.12. He has smashed four hundreds and three fifties already in his short red-ball cricket career. The talented batter also boasts of a List A and T20 batting average of 55.15 and 33.18 respectively.

Virat Singh to be Jharkhand's top batter

Young Virat Singh scored 391 runs in five matches at an average of 55.85 in the Ranji Trophy 2021-22 season and he would be hoping to deliver in a similar fashion this time again. The 25-year-old was also the leading run-scorer for his team in the recently-concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. He scored 390 runs in eight matches at an average of 55.71. He hit a couple of hundred and a fifty each during his stellar campaign in the 50-over competition. His current form makes him the firm favourite to score big against Kerala. Overall, the southpaw has played 36 first-class matches and scored 1909 runs at an average of 34.08. The Bihar-born cricketer has seven hundreds and four fifties to his name in first-class cricket. Virat scored 15 and 16 runs when he last played a Ranji Trophy match against Kerala in 2017.

Jharkhand vs Kerala Top Team Bowlers

Shahbaz Nadeem to be Jharkhand's top bowler

Highly experienced left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem picked 25 wickets (including 3 five-wicket hauls) in the previous Ranji Trophy season. The 33-year-old India international will be threatening as ever and Kerala batters are sure to show a lot of caution against the vastly experienced campaigner. In 124 first-class matches, he has picked 474 wickets including 22 five-wicket hauls. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy he picked eight wickets in eight matches and was Jharkhand's second-leading wicket-taker.

Basil Thampi to be Kerala's top bowler

The star Kerala pacer picked 11 wickets at an average of 28.63 in three matches during Ranji Trophy 2021-22. He was the second-highest wicket-taker for his side after Jalaj Saxena who picked 13 wickets. The 29-year-old did not feature in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, however, he was part of the preceding Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He picked six wickets in seven matches at an economy of 7.64 in the elite 20-over domestic tournament. Overall, he has featured in 40 first-class matches and picked 92 wickets at an average of 29.58. Onus will be on him to deliver for Kerala against a strong Jharkhand batting unit.