The race for playoffs is over, the battle to remain in the top 2, 2 teams will become an obstacle in the way of KKR.

New Delhi. The Kolkata Knight Riders team, which has shown amazing performance so far in this season of the Indian Premier League, first secured a place in the playoffs. The team achieved this success on the basis of its victory against Mumbai Indians on Saturday. Now Kolkata aims to remain in the top 2. In this matter two teams seem to be giving tough competition. After consistently being on top in the initial matches, the trailing Rajasthan Royals and the record breaking score team are also eyeing the top spot.

Kolkata Knight Riders team has till now maintained the top position on the basis of its excellent play. This team has reached the playoffs for the first time by scoring 18 points but still a small mistake can spoil its hopes of remaining on top in the playoffs. Kolkata has two matches left while second-ranked Rajasthan has three matches left. Sunrisers Hyderabad is at number three and still has to play two matches. In such a situation, reversal in the marks table is possible.

Kolkata will face competition from 2 teams
At present, even though Kolkata team is on top in the points table, it is under threat from the bottom two teams. If the team captained by Shreyas Iyer loses in the next two matches and Rajasthan wins its two matches, then it will reach the top with 20 points. On the other hand, if Hyderabad registers big wins in both its remaining matches, then it can reach second place on the basis of better net run rate.

What is the benefit of being on top in the playoffs?
According to the format of IPL, the top 4 teams in the points table after the league matches make it to the playoffs. In this also, the team which ranks first and second gets one more match to reach the finals than the team ranked third and fourth. The first and second ranked teams play the qualifiers. The one who wins goes straight to the finals while the losing team gets a chance to play the third and fourth ranked winning teams. By winning here the team makes it to the finals.