That's all we have for you today but do join us for the double headers on Saturday.
◘ Four - That's the game and Kolkata keeps its hopes alive as it beats Kings XI Punjab by seven wickets. Fantastic batting from Shubman Gill who played a key role as he made an unbeaten 65 to guide his team through.
◘ SIX - Dinesh Karthik swings hard and he connects it beautifully as the ball flies over the deep square leg boundary.
◘ Shubman Gill is playing a gem of a knock and a pull to the mid-wicket boundary has brought the equation to run-a-ball now. Kolkata needs 18 off 18.
◘ Kolkata needs 27 off 24 balls and with both Shubman Gill and Dinesh Karthik at crease, this should be Kolkata's game.
◘ WICKET - Huge wicket and the big-hitting Andre Russell has to walk back. Mohammed Shami does it with a bouncer, Russell goes for the pull and hits it straight down the throat of the fielder at deep.
◘ Andre Russell is dropped at long off by Mayank Agarwal off the bowling of Andrew Tye and to rub salt into the wounds, the ball goes through the hands and lands directly on the boundary cushion for a six. Kolkata Knight Riders is motoring towards 184. Thirty-nine runs needed off 36 balls now.
◘ Shubman Gill opens the face and finds the gap between short third man and backward point, to reach his fourth IPL fifty. He has continued from where he left off against Mumbai Indians.
◘ Andre Russell walks in and he is off the mark with a boundary.
◘ WICKET - R Ashwin strikes and he removes the well-set Robin Uthappa who fails to clear long-off. A couple of quick wickets will change the complexion of the match.
◘ Kolkata is in a very strong position as after Lynn's fireworks, Uthappa has found his feet and Gill is playing the role of an anchor. With Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik still to come, KKR is favourite to win the encounter from here. KKR needs 94 in 66 deliveries.
◘ SIX - Robin Uthappa has found a liking to Muruguan Ashwin as he first smacks him for a six and then carts the spinner for a boundary. Kolkata is moving nicely as after nine overs, KKR 90/1.
◘ Robin Uthappa is the new man in and he is due for a big knock.
◘ WICKET - Andrew Tye provides the breakthrough as the dangerous Chris Lynn departs. Lynn tries to play a big shot but ends up taking a top edge and Tye settles under the skier.
◘ Fifty up for KKR - Chris Lynn and Shubman Gill have given Kolkata a fine start and the fifty is up in 5.1 overs. Ashwin has brought himself into the attack but he was whacked for a six by Chris Lynn. Both batsmen are looking good.
◘ FOUR - What a shot! Lynn makes room and slaps it through the covers and then follows it up with a brutal hit down the ground.
◘ FOUR - Immaculate timing from Shubman Gill as he goes deep into his crease and flicks it through the leg side for a boundary.
◘ SIX - What a shot from Chris Lynn as he makes room and whacks a back of length delivery over the deep mid-wicket for a maximum.
◘ Excellent first over from Mohammed Shami as he gives just three runs. Both openers are off the mark and Kolkata needs a good start to gun down the total.
◘ We are back for the chase as Shubman Gill and Chris Lynn are out there in the middle and it will be Mohammed Shami who will start the proceedings for Punjab. Kolkata chase 184 to keep its campaign hopes alive.
◘ FOUR - That's brilliant batting from Sam Curran and his unbeaten 55 off 24 deliveries powers Punjab to 183 for the loss of six wickets. Just when Kolkata were picking wickets, Curran came out all guns blazing and played a blinder of an innings to give Punjab bowlers a very good score to defend. Will be back for the chase shortly.
◘ Fifty for Sam Curran - Sensational batting from Sam Curran and he has played a gem of a cameo.
◘ SIX - Slower delivery and Curran gets right underneath it and sends it soaring high into the crowd.
◘ FOUR - Full delivery but there was width on offer and Curran slaps it wide of long-off for a boundary.
◘ Final over and Punjab has crossed the 160-run mark. How much can it garner in the final over remains to be seen.
◘ FOUR - Full delivery and Curran drills it over the mid-off for a boundary.
◘ FOUR - Beautiful shot from Curran as he shuffles across and he paddles a length delivery over the short fine leg boundary.
◘ Andre Tye is the new batsman and he is off the strike straightaway. Punjab needs Curran to take more of the strike.
◘ WICKET - Andre Russell strikes and he cleans up Punjab skipper R. Ashwin. Ashwin promoted himself up the order but fails to make an impact as he departs for a duck.
◘ The 150 is up for Punjab and with another two overs to go, Punjab will aim at least 170 and that should be a competitive total.
◘ WICKET - Mandeep Singh departs for 25 and Kolkata have picked a wicket just at the right time. Mandeep fails to clear mid-off and Robin Uthappa doesn't make any mistake.
◘ Dropped! Sam Curran mistimes a shot, goes high in the air but Rinku Singh drops a sitter.
◘ SIX - Great connection as Sam Curran pulls Sunil Narine over the deep mid-wicket boundary for a maximum.
◘ FOUR - Release shot from Sam Curran as he drives a full delivery through the covers for a boundary. Punjab needs more of these.
◘ Andre Russell is back into the attack.
◘ SIX - Top shot from Mandeep Singh as he smacks Piyush Chawla right over the bowler's head for a maximum.
◘ Sam Curran and Mandeep Singh have a job in their hands and they need two big overs to get back the lost momentum.
◘ WICKET - Punjab lose a wicket against the run of play and it's Mayank Agarwal who has to depart. Agarwal nudges one to the mid-wicket, calls for two, Mandeep Singh responds but Agarwal was slow and had to put a dive but he didn't and pays the price.
◘ The 100 comes up for Kings XI Punjab - thanks to Nicholas Pooran's 48 but Mayank Agarwal is playing an important innings. He needs to continue.
◘ Mayank Agarwal is the new man in and he gets off the mark straightaway.
◘ WICKET - Nitish Rana provides the breakthrough as he removes the dangerous Nicholas Pooran, who falls for a well-made 48. It was slightly slower from Rana, Pooran goes deep into his crease and pulls it but hits it straight into the hands of the fielder at deep mid-wicket.
◘ SIX - Half tracker from Chawla and Pooran smacks it high and handsomely over the deep mid-wicket boundary and the ball sails into the crowd.
◘ FOUR - Mayank Agarwal smashed it hard and Piyush Chawla ducks for cover as the ball rockets away to the long-off boundary.
◘ SIX - Nicholas Pooran welcomes Piyush Chawla with a six and he picks the googly and launches it over long-off for a maximum.
◘ Not a great start from Andre Russell as he gives away 13 runs in his first over and Dinesh Karthik is really not happy.
◘ SIX - Back of length delivery from Andre Russell and Pooran smacks it over long-off for yet another maximum.
◘ SIX - Gurney bowls a back of hand delivery and Pooran is quick to pick the bones out it as he smacks it high over long-on for a maximum.
◘ FOUR - Short and wide and Pooran with a short arm jab pulls it through the mid-wicket for a boundary.
◘ Nicholas Pooran is the new man in.
◘ WICKET - Huge wicket as Sandeep Warrier has removed the dangerous Chris Gayle. Knuckle ball, it was short, Gayle goes for the pull but hits it straight down the throat of Shubman Gill at backward square leg.
◘ Both Gayle and Mayank haven't taken any chances against Narine as they play a quiet over. There isn't much turn but Narine has managed to tie down both batsmen in his first over.
◘ Spin into the attack and it will be Sunil Narine.
◘ FOUR - Mayank Agarwal is off the mark with a boundary as Warrier offers width and Mayank plays a late cut through the backward point for a boundary.
◘ WICKET - Brilliant from Sandeep Warrier as he deceived Rahul with a slower one as Rahul goes through with the flick shot but checks at the last minute and spoons an easy catch to mid-wicket. Maiden IPL wicket for Warrier.
◘ Top over from Harry Gurney as he mixed his deliveries well and foxed Gayle with his slower ones. Just three runs from the over.
FOUR - Excellent shot from Gayle and this time he drives it on the up and the ball races through the covers for a boundary.
◘ FOUR - Length delivery, width on offer and Gayle caresses it through the point for a boundary.
◘ Both Rahul and Gayle are off their marks with singles and this has been good bowling by Warrier. Hitting the right lengths and keeping the channel tight.
◘ Chris Gayle and KL Rahul are out there in the middle and it will be Sandeep Warrier who will start proceedings with the ball.
◘ Alright we are all set to go in what will be a crucial encounter for both teams, especially for Kings XI Punjab who have a negative run rate.
Playing XIs:
Kings XI Punjab : K.L. Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Nicholas Pooran, Ravichandran Ashwin (cap), Sam Curran, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Murugan Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh and Andrew Tye.
Kolkata Knight Riders : Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Shubman Gill, Robin Uthappa, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (wk/cap), Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Piyush Chawla, Sandeep Warrier and Harry Gurney.
Team updates: KKR is playing the same team while KXIP has Sam Curran and Andrew Tye in for Mujeeb Ur Rehman and David Miller.
Toss update: Dinesh Karthik wins toss and Kolkata Knight Riders will bowl first.
We will have the toss in a while from now. The pitch seems to have little grass on it and the seamers would be excited to have a bowl on it.
It is all or nothing for both the teams and with everything to play for, it is going to be a cracker of a contest.
Kolkata Knight Riders is placed sixth with 10 points in 12 matches while Kings XI Punjab is one rung below, seventh, with same number of points in as many matches. Both the teams need to win their last two matches and will go on 14 points, with the net run-rate coming into play later and with other results going these teams' way one of these teams would hope to sneak into the playoffs.
We have our correspondent Rakesh Rao previewing the game.
KXIP vs KKR
After blowing away the advantage of starting their Indian Premier League campaigns well, Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders now find themselves looking for a desperate win to stay alive in the race for the playoffs.
Needing to win both their remaining matches, these teams are clutching at the ‘positives’ from the string of losses. Notwithstanding some individual performances, their collective failures, some of them on the threshold of victory, has left them in an exasperated state.
Locked at 10 points, both have charted a similar course. KXIP won four of its first six matches and thereafter, just one out of the next six.
KKR won four of the five matches, lost six in a row before regaining some confidence with the conquest of Mumbai Indians.
After Friday’s face-off, KXIP will clash with Chennai Super Kings, while KKR takes on host Mumbai Indians, in the doubleheader on Sunday.
Read: IPL Playoffs and final to begin at 7:30pm
Self-doubts
Self-doubt has hurt these teams in varying degrees. Some of the on-field decisions of the rival skippers — Tamil Nadu teammates R. Ashwin and Dinesh Karthik — have backfired. Both teams have struggled with their ‘death-over’ bowling.
KXIP’s poor reserve-strength stood exposed once injuries hit the team. Barring K.L. Rahul, Chris Gayle and Mayank Agarwal in batting and Ashwin, Mohammad Shami and M. Ashwin in bowling, Kings XI clearly is looking at non-performing assets.
Allrounder Sam Curran, whose sensational hat-trick against Delhi Capitals here brought him praise from all quarters, Ankit Rajpoot, Andrew Tye, Hardus Viljoen and, more recently, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman have all proved ineffective, by turns. Mandeep Singh, the ‘finisher’, was dropped for the last match.
Sarfaraz Khan, who last played against RCB on April 13, has made way for an additional bowler in the playing XI. In five outings, Nicholas Pooran, too, has not done justice to his reputation.
KKR is saddled with problems, in spite of Andre Russell’s all-round contribution (486 runs and 10 wickets). Surprisingly, it took too long for the think-tank to promote the just-turned-31 Jamaican game-changer in the batting order.
Also read: Being called superhero makes me happy, says Avengers fan Russell
Bowling woes
Two other overseas players, Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine have played to expectations. Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, Robin Uthappa and Piyush Chawla have all had their moments. But, the team has paid heavily for lacking quality bowling options.
If KXIP draws confidence from playing at home, KKR has reasons to feel rejuvenated after its comprehensive win over MI.
It’s a battle for survival for the contestants.
The match will start at 8pm and live streaming is on Hotstar.
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