IPL 7 CSK vs KKR, Highlights: Chennai Super Kings Crush Kolkata Knight Riders by 34 Runs in Rain-Curtailed Game

Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 34 runs in the first match of the Indian leg of IPL 7. Catch highlights here: (Scorecard | Commentary | Points table | Schedule)

 

00:46 (IST): Once again, it's an all-round performance from Chennai Super Kings that takes them to a convincing win over Kolkata Knight Riders in the first match of the Indian leg of IPL 2014. Captain MS Dhoni said at the match presentation that he was initially worried about the decision to bat first keeping the rain in mind. However, he was happy with the fact that Chennai have one of the most balanced sides in the tournament. Ravindra Jadeja was deservedly given the Man of the Match award for his spell of 4/12 (the best so far in this year's IPL) and also an unbeaten 17-run knock. That's it from us then!

 

00:28 (IST): Chennai Super Kings crush Kolkata Knight Riders by 34 runs in rain-curtailed match at Ranchi.

 

00:26 (IST): OUT! Yusuf Pathan lbw b Mohit Sharma 41. KKR 113/9 (16.5 overs). Mohit Sharma finishes with the purple cap.

00:25 (IST): OUT! Piyush Chawla c Du Plessis b Mohit Sharma 1. KKR 113/8 (16.4 overs).

00:22 (IST): Yusuf Pathan makes it interesting by getting three sixes in the 16th over but a single off the last delivery gets the ask to 39 runs off the last over. KKR 110/7 (17 overs).

 

00:19 (IST): OUT! Andre Russell b Mohit Sharma 1. KKR 91/7 (15 overs).

 

00:16 (IST): Ravindra Jadeja (4/12) has finished with the best figures in IPL 2014 so far.

 

00:10 (IST): WICKET! Timeout as Robin Uthappa departs for 47, caught behind by Dhoni off Jadeja! KKR 88/6 (13.4 overs).

 

00:07 (IST): Yusuf Pathan might have got 10 runs off the last two balls of Ashwin's spell but KKR still need 64 off 23!

 

23:57 (IST): WICKET! Suryakumar Yadav (8) is out, LBW Jadeja! KKR 65/5 (9.3 overs).

 

23:55 (IST): Uthappa (41*) fighting a lost cause here! KKR still need 85 runs to win off 48 balls with 6 wickets in hand.

 

23:40 (IST): WICKET! Shakib Al Hasan is gone courtesy a great catch from Mohit Sharma! Four down now and Kolkata Knight Riders look down and out in this chase of 149 (17 overs). The CSK cheer girls seem excited!

 

23:37 (IST): WICKET! Manish Pandey (1) is out, caught by McCullum off Jadeja! KKR 38/3 (5.1 overs).

 

23:35 (IST): WICKET! Jacques Kallis (4) is out, caught by Manhas off Ashwin! KKR 36/2 (4.4 overs).

 

23:29 (IST): Meanwhile, Uthappa goes about his business and gets six off Mohit Sharma! KKR 31/1 (3.4 overs).

 

23:24 (IST): OUT! What a mess! Gambhir (6) is run out after a confusion with Uthappa! KKR 19/1 (2.3 overs).

23:18 (IST): Ishwar Pandey bowling his first over for CSK today. And he's gone for three boundaries already. KKR 16/0 (1.5 overs) chasing 149 vs CSK (17 overs).

 

23:00 (IST): Chennai Super Kings post 148/3 (17 overs) vs Kolkata Knight Riders in rain-curtailed match at Ranchi.

 

22:55 (IST): Ravindra Jadeja survives after being adjudged LBW while facing Narine. It's a no-ball and a free hit! Only a single is taken off the next ball by Jadeja though.

 

22:49 (IST): OUT! Brendon McCullum c Yusuf Pathan b Andre Russell 56. CSK 119/3 (14.3 overs).

 

22:47 (IST): Dhoni breaks the shackles with a cracking straight-drive four off Andre Russell! CSK 119/2 (14.2 overs).

 

20:33 (IST): Brendon McCullum gets his third fifty for CSK with a six! CSK 101/2 (11.5 overs).

 

20:28 (IST): OUT! Suresh Raina c Suryakumar Yadav b Shakib Al Hasan 31. CSK 90/2 (10.4 overs).

 

20:21 (IST): 2 2 4 4 0 1. McCullum, who moves to 39 off 25 balls gets 13 off Vinay Kumar's over. CSK 72/1 (9 overs).

 

22:11 (IST): Raina is giving good support to McCullum, who gets a 6 to finish the 7th over. CSK 53/1 (7.1 overs).

 

22:00 (IST): Signs of another spell of rain at the ground in Ranchi as CSK reach 33/1 after 5 overs vs KKR. Suresh Raina and Brendon McCullum at the crease.

 

21:50 (IST): OUT! Dwayne Smith lbw b Shakib Al Hasan 16. CSK 20/1 (2.3 overs) vs KKR. Here's Sakshi Dhoni enjoying the weather at Ranchi with her friends.

 

21:48 (IST): Sunil Narine gives away 5 runs in his first over for KKR today. CSK 14/0 (2 overs).

21:44 (IST): Dwayne Smith sweeps Shakib Al Hasan for a four! And then takes a single! CSK 5/0 (0.4 overs) vs KKR.

 

21:30 (IST): Great news! We are all set to have a 17-overs-a-side game, which is expected to start at 9:40 pm IST.

 

21:13 (IST): Good news! Covers are coming off and we will have an inspection at 09:15 pm, overs will get deducted.

 

21:08 (IST): The news from the middle is that it is still drizzling at the ground in Ranchi.

 

20:43 (IST): The umpires are out on the ground to assess the outfield. Doesn't seem like it will take too long for the game to start. The rain has stopped.

 

20:30 (IST): The latest match can begin is at 11:10 pm IST in which case there will be a five-overs per side game. Still no word from the umpires or the ground staff as match stands delayed due to rain.

 

20:24 (IST): While the match is yet to start, did it surprise you why Mithun Manhas still finds his place in the Chennai Super Kings side despite the presence of other good players like Baba Aparajith, who deserve to be given a chance?

 

20:00 (IST): Match start will be delayed because of rain at the ground in Ranchi.

 

Playing XIs

Kolkata Knight Riders

Gautam Gambhir(captain), Jacques Kallis, Manish Pandey, Suryakumar Yadav, Shakib Al Hasan, Robin Uthappa(w), Yusuf Pathan, Vinay Kumar, Piyush Chawla, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell

Chennai Super Kings

Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni(w/captain), Faf du Plessis, Ravindra Jadeja, Mithun Manhas, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohit Sharma, Ben Hilfenhaus, Ishwar Pandey

 

19:34 (IST): Chennai Super Kings win toss and elect to bat first against Kolkata Knight Riders at Ranchi. Kolkata make two changes. Russell and Yusuf Pathan replace Morne Morkel and Bisla. Chennai unchanged. Dhoni said it is a 'good-looking' pitch and hoped that the rain would stay away during the match. Gambhir said nothing can ever compare to the feeling of being a parent.

18:54 (IST): If Chennai Super Kings win vs KKR today, it will be MS Dhoni's 100th win as captain in T20 matches.

 

17:30 (IST): Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir has been blessed with a baby girl. (Read more)

 

17:13 (IST): Have you been waiting for the India leg of Indian Premier League 2014 to begin all this while when matches were being held in the UAE? Your wait will be over today as the first match in India between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders kicks off in Ranchi. It will be interesting to see if KKR choose to play Chris Lynn once again, the guy who took the most incredible catch this year in the IPL so far.

 

As the Indian Premier League action shifts to India after a rendezvous in the UAE, the formidable Chennai Super Kings will seek to continue their winning momentum when they lock horns with Kolkata Knight Riders, who will be hoping for a reversal in fortunes in Ranchi on Friday.

Since being out-slugged by table-toppers Kings XI Punjab in their high-scoring opening game, two-time champions CSK brought their A game into play, which saw them winning the next four matches with ease. (Dwayne Smith inspires CSK to dominant win over SRH)

In contrast, the Knight Riders, who kicked off the seventh season of the cash-rich league with a bang, lost their way somewhat in the UAE, where the first-leg matches were held. With three defeats and two wins, the former champions will hope that their fortunes change for the better in their 'home' match.

As far as the two captains are concerned, Mahendra Singh Dhoni is always confidence personified and has been marshalling the CSK outfit from the inaugural edition, and with a lot of success too. His counterpart, Gautam Gambhir, after a miserable run of form that saw him being dismissed for three consecutive ducks, will be pleased with the 40-odd runs he made in his side's last game, though in a losing cause.

The left-handed Gambhir would like to have a similar outing and it would do his team a world of good if he can improve on the strike rate. Considering the thin batting line-up, Gambhir's presence is of paramount importance to KKR, and he would, as usual, expect veteran all-rounder Jacques Kallis to bring into play all his experience. (KKR's fans real secret to team's fate, says Gambhir)

 

Youngsters Manvinder Bisla, Manish Pandey and Suryakumar Yadav will have to put up a much better display if they are to tame the Super Kings.

 

Sunil Narine will again be the key man with the ball but the Knight Riders have been relying too much on the mystery spinner for breakthrough.

The West Indian needs more support from pace spearhead Morne Morkel, who can be devastating on his day, and men like Shakib Al Hasan and Piyush Chawla. Kallis, as usual, will be there to roll his arm over.

On the other hand, CSK will be high on confidence having posted four straight wins, their team often giving the impression of being one of the most balanced in the tournament. Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith are as formidable as one gets at the top of the order. Both had a good outing in their five-wicket win against Sunrisers Hyderabad and the pair could prove to be a thorn in KKR's flesh. (Dhoni the only leader in a team of captains, says McCullum)

In Suresh Raina, Faf du Plessis and Dhoni, CSK have got a middle-order that is just about perfect for this form of the game. Ravindra Jadeja is there to do the job with both bat and ball. Ben Hilfenhaus will lead the pace attack that Ishwar Pandey and Mohit Sharma, while Ravichandran Ashwin will be the key man in spin department. (IPL 7 Fixtures)

Teams (from):

Kolkata Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (c), Sunil Narine, Jacques Kallis, Robin Uthappa, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar, Morne Morkel, Piyush Chawla, Manish Pandey, Veer Pratap Singh, Chris Lynn, Andre Russell, SS Mandal, Pat Cummins, Debabrata Das, Suryakumar Yadav, Manvinder Bisla, Ryan ten Doeschate, Kuldeep Yadav

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (C), Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Ashish Nehra, Mohit Sharma, Samuel Badree, Ben Hilfenhaus, Matt Henry, B Aparajith, Mithun Manhas, Ishwar Pandey, Pawan Negi, Vijay Shankar, Ronit More, John Hastings.