Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live blog of this evening's Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter between Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab. Stay tuned for live commentary, updates, reactions and more!
◙ Mandeep Singh with a good cameo which will give him much needed confidence going forward and a stroke-filled fifty on return for Miller, but Kings XI was never really in the chase once it lost its openers Rahul and Gayle as early as the fifth over. How costly was that error in the field which led to the reprieve of Andre Russell in KKR's innings? KKR added 55 in the last three overs which swung the momentum its way. KXIP added 38 in its last three, in the end losing by 28 runs. KXIP 194/4 after 20 overs.
◙ Mayank and Miller are involved in a fifty-plus stand and have brought out the big strokes but the asking rate continue to be too high. Mayank has crafted his way to his fifth IPL fifty. Kings XI requires 86 runs from 30 balls. KXIP 133/3 after 10 overs
◙ Narine bowling his first over, Punjab yet to break the shackles. David Miller is the big-hitter here , it will be interesting to see how Mayank constructs his innings. Does he go for the big shots or farm the strike and let Miller take care of the fours and sixes? KXIP 77/3 after 10 overs
◙ What a night Dre Russ is having. He can do no wrong, ladies and gents! After getting rid of Gayle, Russell removes Sarfraz to cripple the opposition top-order. The onus is now on David Miller and Mayank Agarwal. KKR 61/3 after 8 overs
◙ The two wickets early in the chase have thwarted Punjab's momentum. Smart change in bowling from Karthik; Russell's one over in the Powerplay earned him the wicket of Gayle. And players have gathered in the middle, there seems to be some confusion over the boundary called by the umpire. Russell missed the ball in the lights and it ran away to the fence. KXIP 51/2 after 6 overs
BIG MOMENT IN THE MATCH: Andre Russell ends Gayle's stay in the middle; one aggressive shot too many from the Jamaican and Russell's purple run with ball and bat continues.
◙ Agarwal getting the better of state team-mate Prasidh. Three boundaries off the right-arm seamer's second over release the pressure created by the early dismissal of Rahul. Ferguson, meanwhile, continues to impress in his first spell; however, a boundary and a six from Gayle — he is now two short of 300 sixes in IPL — spoiled what was turning out to be a brilliant second over. KXIP 36/0 after 4 overs.
◙ Gayle makes his intentions clear, helps a short and wide delivery over third-man for six before top-edging a boundary to the same region. Prasidh feeling the heat. Lockie Ferguson, from the other end, gets rid of KL Rahul as his string of poor form continues. Mayank Agarwal is the new man in. KXIP 12/1 after 2 overs
Chris Gayle and KL Rahul to get the chase underway; Prasidh Krishna with the new ball.
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Nitish Rana and Robin Uthappa forced Punjab on the backfoot with quick-fire half-centuries and Andre Russell brought the Kings to their knees with some mindboggling power-hitting, smashing five sixes and three boundaries during his 16-ball 48. None of the Punjab bowlers came close to challenging the KKR batsmen as they finished on 218/4. Kings XI will be banking on a Gayle special if it is to chase down this total!
LAST FOUR OVERS, PUNJAB GAVE AWAY 65 RUNS
◙ Oh Dear! Shami cleans up Russell, only for the umpire to give it a no-ball. Three fielders inside the circle, and an inch-perfect yorker from Shami goes to waste. Ashwin is livid but you have to toe the rules and Punjab finds itself at the receiving end of it this time! And Russell makes them pay and how — 47 runs off the 18th and 19th over sees KKR cruise past 200. Russell is all over Punjab! KKR 200/3 after 19 overs.
◙ Viljoen errs down the leg side after five good deliveries and Uthappa tucks it fine for a boundary which takes him to a fifty. KKR 153/3 after 16 overs.
◙ Rana's blitzkrieg comes to an end. He tries to muscle Varun out of the stadium but only managed to mistime his shot high in the air, which was well taken by a running Mayank Agarwal from long off. He departs for 63 off 34 balls (2x4s, 7x6s). In comes Andre Russell. KKR 146/3 after 14.3 overs.
◙ Mandeep Singh, right-arm medium, comes into the attack and is straightway put under the pump. Rana is dealing in sixes at the moment, two maximums in a row and a boundary piling further misery on Punjab, which is fast running out of options here. Rana reaches his seventh IPL fifty with a four to fine leg off Viljoen and celebrates with a huge maximum off the next delivery. KKR 146/2 after 14 overs.
◙ Rana has taken Ashwin to the cleaners; the wheels are coming off the KXIP skipper's bowling as he goes for two sixes in his last over. Rana now has four sixes in his innings of 35. A bad day in the office for Ashwin as he finishes with figures of 4-0-47-0. KKR 108/2 after 12 overs
◙ Rana and Uthappa have added 42 for the third wicket. Both are getting into their strides and with Ashwin and Varun leaking runs, Punjab has plenty to ponder. Ashwin has conceded 31 from his three; Varun 34 from two. A wicket at this stage may prompt Karthik to send hard-hitting all-rounder Russell at 4. That said, Rana in particular has got stuck into the bowling. KKR 89/2 after 10 overs
◙ The first over hammering at the hands of Narine has dented Varun's confidence, who concedes nine off his second over including two fours. With the likes of Russell, Shubman Gill and Dinesh Karthik still waiting in the ranks, Rana and Uthappa can afford to take the odd risk. The Knights are cruising at more than nine runs an over. KKR 73/2 after 8 overs
KKR Projected Score: 183 @ Current RR | 145 @ 6 RPO | 169 runs @ 8 RPO
◙ Ashwin has tried out five different bowlers, including himself, inside the Powerplay and while they might have been expensive, they have got him two wickets too. Uthappa and Rana have taken KKR past 50 at the end of six overs. KKR 53/2 after 6 overs
◙ Lynn hammers two boundaries off Shami's second over but the pace spearhead has his revenge, as Lynn is caught by Miller trying one attacking shot too many. He could have had a second but for a tough dropped chance of Narine off his own bowling. Hardus Viljoen, bowling first change, removes Narine with a back-of-a-length ball. The Carribean spinner gets a top-edge which is pouched safely by keeper KL Rahul. Nitish Rana and Robin Uthappa are the two batsmen in the middle. KKR 42/2 after 4 overs
◙ A wayward start from Shami, errs in line with the first two deliveries before getting one to tail in from a short of length, cramping Lynn for room. A stifled appeal for Lbw is turned down. Tidy end to the over. Debutant Varun Chakravarthy shares the new ball, and a loopy, full-length delivery to Narine disappears over long-off. The southpaw then hammers a boundary and follows it up with two back-to-back sixes to collect 25 runs off his first over. KKR 26/0 after 2 overs.
Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine to open for KKR, Mohammed Shami with the new ball.
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TOSS UPDATE: Ashwin wins the toss and Kings XI will bowl first
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Chris Lynn, Nitish Rana, Robin Uthappa, Dinesh Karthik(w/c), Shubman Gill, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Prasidh Krishna
Kings XI Punjab (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul(w), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Sarfaraz Khan, David Miller, Mandeep Singh, Hardus Viljoen, Ravichandran Ashwin(c), Varun Chakravarthy, Mohammed Shami, Andrew Tye
So, 53 per cent of those who voted feel Russell will outshine West Indies Chris Gayle in the SIXATHON!
PITCH REPORT: Michael Clarke: "I think this looks better than the other night. Bit of pace and bounce for the quicks."
Varun Chakravarthy , who is all set to make his IPL debut tonight, had set his base price at Rs. 20 lakhs, but sparked a bidding war between five franchises and went for a whopping 8.4 crore in the 2019 IPL auctions| C.V. Varun, the mystery spinner with 'nine different deliveries'
We are just minutes away from the toss. Kings XI skipper Ashwin and KKR captain Dinesh Karthik can be seen warming up.
Meanwhile, some good news for Indian fans!
Prasidh Krishna (Kolkata Knight Riders): "It is tough bowling to Andre Russell. His mishits too go for a six. Everytime I bowl to him, I am glad that both of us are on the same side."
Sam Curran (Kings XI Punjab): "It's my first big tournament and the travel has been quite intense. We travel to Chandigarh via Delhi, so that stop-over makes things difficult at times. Resting your body is very important, hopefully the boys are ready for tonight's encounter."
◙ Some good news for Kings XI Punjab! Explosive middle-order batsman David Miller and last year's purple cap winner Andrew Tye have reached the team and are in contention for tonight's game.
◙ "When the Indian Premier League began in 2008, it was a unique concept for most of us. Before this, you would not even have imagined that players from different countries could play in the same team" ↪ Irfan Pathan goes down IPL memory lane
As we warm up to tonight's encounter at the Eden Gardens, here's a ready reckoner on Mankading and the man the dismissal is named after| Explainer: What is ‘Mankading’?
Universe Boss is FOUR shy of a triple hundred of sixes in the IPL. Will he achieve the landmark at his previous home ground, Eden Gardens? Head over to our Twitter page and have a say| 300 or NOT?
◙ KKR pace ace Lockie Ferguson is hopeful of finding some chinks in the armour of big-hitting KXIP batsman Chris Gayle . Will he? | KKR’s Ferguson looking for chinks in Gayle’s armour
◙ Ravichandran Ashwin-led Kings XI will hope to shift the focus from the Mankading controversy with a winning performance against KKR. Ashwin’s action was heavily criticised by RR’s brand ambassador Shane Warne, who also questioned those who found nothing wrong with it.
Here's what IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla had to say about it| 'Dhoni, Kohli had decided against Mankading'
Ravichandran Ashwin ‘Mankanding’ Jos Buttler has not only triggered a debate over the spirit of cricket, but has also pointed to the cut-throat competition and high stakes involved in the Indian Premier League. Will any KKR non-striker fall prey to the wily off-spinner tonight?
Y.B. Sarangi previews tonight's encounter from Kolkata.
FOLLOW: 2019 IPL FULL COVERAGE
Ashwin under spotlight in KKR, Kings XI clash
Ravichandran Ashwin ‘Mankanding’ Jos Buttler has not only triggered a debate over the spirit of cricket, but has also pointed to the cut-throat competition and high stakes involved in the Indian Premier League.
For a franchise that has managed to be the semifinalist once and runner-up once, Kings XI Punjab's desperation to grab a respectable finish is understandable.
KXIP will get on to the Eden Gardens with the same killer instinct, which enabled it to disturb Rajasthan Royals' promising run chase in its backyard, in its next meeting with Kolkata Knight Riders here on Wednesday.
READ| Ashwin has no regrets in 'mankading' Buttler
KXIP's biggest strength is its captain Ashwin — a fiercely competitive and a thoroughly astute cricketer — who showed glimpses of his leadership skills a year ago and displayed it fully in the match against RR.
A hands-on skipper, Ashwin knows how to mobilise his resources well and do everything within the rules to thrive in the survival-of-the-fittest race.
While an in-form Chris Gayle and young Sarfaraz Khan inspire confidence, the availability of hugely talented Karnataka duo of K.L. Rahul and Mayank Agarwal and Punjab captain Mandeep Singh ensures enough firepower in the batting line-up.
ALSO READ| Explainer: What is ‘Mankading’?
By fielding five full-time bowlers and rotating them nicely in crunch situations against RR, Ashwin displayed his team’s capability to stifle the opposition.
KXIP will have to raise its game again against KKR, which is on a high after securing a sensational victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in its first outing.
Match winner Andre Russell unleashing his muscle power early has given KKR a lot of confidence. Even without Russell, the host has enough personnel — including Chris Lynn, Nitish Rana, captain Dinesh Karthik and Shubman Gill – to put up a formidable total.
KKR’s enviable bowling department, studded with spinners like Kuldeep Yadav, Piyush Chawla and Sunil Narine, will stand the team in good stead. Narine, who had hurt his finger during KKR’s fielding against SRH, bowling at the nets on Tuesday must be a feel-good factor for the home side.
KKR has some advantage due to the presence of a few all-rounders, who may play crucial roles in the fixture.
The match will be streamed live on Hotstar
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