That's a wrap for our coverage of the IPL 2026 clash between KKR and PBKS. A point each today, with very little action possible before the downpour. Do join us tomorrow as we head to Guwahati for a clash between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Mumbai Indians (MI).

Stay tuned to NDTV Sports for all the live and latest sports updates. Goodnight!

Punjab Kings take top spot in the table, for now. They remain unbeaten in IPL 2026, with 2 wins and a no-result from 3 games. A spectacular powerplay bowling effort in the 3.4 overs today, led by Xavier Bartlett.

First point on the board for KKR. Had a 20-over match taken place, they would've had to put in a great performance to get any points after finding themselves at 25/2 when play stopped. Problems aplenty for the Knight Riders camp. 

For now, they go above Shubman Gill-led Gujarat Titans and Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2026 points table.

The match has been abandoned due to rain! Official confirmation from the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane and PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer have a long chat with the umpires, after which the two skippers shake hands. 1 point each!

If a 5 over match gets underway, Punjab Kings could get a higher target than what KKR manage to post. This is because their target will be adjusted by the DLS method. The downside for KKR is that they've lost two early wickets, which would bring down a potential DLS-adjusted target.

CAB president Sourav Ganguly is out to inspect the wet outfield. The wet patches are still visible, particularly on one side near the boundary. Most of the covers have been taken off.

The groundstaff at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata are at work. Some covers are being removed. The umpires are out to inspect the conditions. Let's see if the groundstaff can get the field ready. It's a race against time. Remember, the match needs to restart by 11:14 PM IST, which is just 35 minutes from now.

The rain has stopped in Kolkata! The covers are still on. Let's see how long it takes for the ground to get ready. We are just about 45 minutes away from the cut-off time for a 5-over match to start. 

According to AccuWeather, there is an Orange Alert in Kolkata, with thunderstorms potentially on the cards. Any further play tonight is extremely unlikely at the moment. As per reports, the match could be called off soon.

As per reports, the rain at Eden Gardens in Kolkata is lighter but still ongoing. With just about an hour to go till the cut-off time, the chances of a match are reducing by the minute. 

With further play today looking more and more unlikely, let's take a look at who KKR and PBKS face in their next matches. KKR stay in Kolkata to take on Lucknow Super Giants on Thursday (April 9). Rain could prove to be a factor on that day too. On the other hand, PBKS go back to their home in Mullanpur to take on Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday (April 11).

According to reports, rain at Eden Gardens is still steady. Some puddles even are forming over the covers, clearly indicating that even if the rain stops, it will likely take a fair bit of time to clear the ground and get it ready for action. 

Possibly, we are staring at an abandoned fixture.

Whether play resumes or not, KKR's headaches are only set to increase after today. The middle-order and bowling were concerns already for the side, but Finn Allen and Cameron Green's failures, coupled with Ajinkya Rahane's struggles in the previous game, would concern the team about their strongest department. 

If today's match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings gets called off, both teams will get a point each. That would see Punjab Kings move to the top of the table on 3 points (2 wins, 1 no-result) and KKR open their account after consecutive losses.

"I'm going to whisper this: KKR would be wanting for the rain to continue," says Kevin Pietersen. Kolkata Knight Riders have lost both of their opening games this season, and are not exactly in a good position in this game.

The cut-off time for a 5-over match is 11:14 PM IST. That is still nearly two hours away. Let's hope the rain stops and we manage to get some action eventually. According to reports, the match needs to end by 11:40 PM IST.

"The worst is still to come, I'm hearing. It is still very wet and windy, so I'm not sure by when we'll be able to clear this up," says England great Kevin Pietersen, who is at the stadium as part of the official commentary panel. 

Overs will be deducted from 9:10 PM IST. With the rain still persistent, we could see quite a few overs be reduced. If the match does resume, KKR would be at a huge deficit, having already played 3.4 overs and scored just 25 runs.

Not good news. The rain is only getting heavier in Kolkata. The wind has picked up and the rain is persistent. Play stopped more than 1 hour ago, and it seems unlikely that it'll resume soon.

According to reports, it is still raining in Kolkata. The entire ground remains covered. We are past the inspection time now. Let's hope the weather eases and we get an official update soon.

According to reports, the rain has intensified in Kolkata. An inspection should take place any moment now, but there won't be much to ponder upon if the downpour is still ongoing.

According to reports, an inspection will take place at 8:45 PM IST. A drizzle is still on at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The entire ground is covered and the stadium has excellent drainage, so play should get underway shortly after rain stops.

According to reports, the rain has returned at the Eden Gardens, and so have the covers. This would be frustrating for the fans present at the ground.

Rain seems to have stopped in Kolkata, and the covers are slowly being taken off at the Eden Gardens. Play has been halted for around 30 minutes, so we could still be on for a full game.

Kolkata Knight Riders owner and Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan is in attendance today at the Eden Gardens, but he has had to witness a sorry start for his team. Visuals show SRK in an intense conversation with KKR CEO Venky Mysore.

The rain doesn't appear to be extremely heavy. Let's hope it doesn't last for much longer. The good news is that the entire ground is covered at the Eden Gardens, not just the pitch area. 

The rain is here! It was in the forecast and the downpour's finally here. Maybe it'll give KKR a chance to take a breather and get things back on track. Punjab Kings were totally on top, and they'll hope this rain goes away soon!

KKR 25/2 (3.4)

Luck favours KKR, and they needed this. Raghuvanshi looking to nudge it down the ground and pick up a single, but some poor fielding sees the overthrow go for 4. 5 crucial runs against Bartlett, who is bowling a stunning spell!

KKR 25/2 (3.3)

OUT! Another one for Bartlett! Cameron Green departs! He gets a thick outside edge and picks up 4 on the first ball, but gets caught behind on the final ball of the over. Very similar dismissal to Allen's.

The Rs 25.20 crore man fails again. KKR are 2 down after 2 overs!

KKR 16/1 (2)

GONE! Massive wicket for PBKS! Xavier Bartlett was swinging it brilliantly, Finn Allen played and missed a couple of times. He had a lucky escape as a scoop attempt landed safely. But he departs on the fourth ball, soft edge and caught behind.

KKR 12/1 (1.4)

Finn Allen picks up his first boundary now! Very full from Arshdeep, swinging away from the leg-stump, Allen gets his bat down in time and the inside edge goes between his legs and for 4 through fine-leg.

KKR 12/0 (1)

We are LIVE! Arshdeep Singh opening the bowling, Ajinkya Rahane and Finn Allen get off the mark first ball, and then Rahane caresses it past the slip cordon and picks up a boundary.

KKR 6/0 (0.3)

With KKR batting first, their openers will have a lot of pressure on them to provide a good start. Finn Allen has played great cameos so far, but he will hope to bat beyond the powerplay today. Rahane will hope to tackle his weakness against spin, with the threat of Chahal in the opposition.

Punjab Kings XI vs KKR: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Cooper Connolly, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Priyansh Arya will almost certainly be the Impact Player.

Kolkata Knight Riders XI vs PBKS: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi.

Blessing Muzarabani is likely to be the Impact Player if KKR's batting holds up well.

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane wins the toss and opt to bat! Bit of a surprising call, particularly given the overcast conditions.

Interestingly, NO Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy for KKR tonight! They both miss out. Chakravarthy is injured, confirms Rahane. Narine also misses out due to sickness.

Visuals coming in: The KKR camp have just handed a cap to 33-year-old pacer Navdeep Saini, who was brought in as Harshit Rana's replacement earlier in the season. That's a sign that either Vaibhav Arora or Kartik Tyagi may not play, or Blessing Muzarabani may be left out to make way for Rovman Powell.

Saini has played 2 Tests, 8 ODIs and 11 T20Is for India, but his last international appearance came nearly 5 years ago.

Punjab Kings could opt to play an additional spinner, given the clear weakness of many KKR batters against spin. Such a move could see Harpreet Brar replace Vijaykumar Vyshak in PBKS' playing XI.

With their middle-order struggling, Kolkata Knight Riders could bring in either local powerhitter Tejasvi Dahiya or West Indies brute Rovman Powell. If Dahiya comes in, Ramandeep Singh or Anukul Roy could make way. If Powell comes in, Blessing Muzarabani may have to be dropped, which could see either Saurabh Dubey or Umran Malik get a game.

Cameron Green is expected to stay in the playing XI despite not bowling at the moment.

Great news! There is still no rain at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Let's hope the skies stay clear right through. We are just about 20 minutes away from toss time.

A major positive for Punjab Kings in their opening two games of IPL 2026 has been the bowling of star leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The 35-year-old has looked sharp so far, keeping things tight through the middle overs, taking 3 wickets at an economy-rate of just 7.00. PBKS will hope this isn't a flash in the pan, but a genuine sign that the Rs 18 crore buy is returning to his best form.

A lot of eyes will undoubtedly be on Cameron Green, who was bought for Rs 25.20 crore by KKR in the IPL 2026 auction. Green has not had a great start to his KKR career, getting run out in a comedy of errors in the previous game.

Even if he's not bowling, the Kolkata fans will be hoping that Green comes good with the bat for the first time.

According to reports, the covers at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata are coming off, with rain yet to hit. Let's hope this weather continues and we are able to have a full match.

Punjab Kings have made a polar opposite start to Kolkata Knight Riders. Led by KKR's former captain Shreyas Iyer, the 2025 finalists have continued to impress, with their new signings like Cooper Connolly coming to the fore with clutch knocks. 

Kolkata Knight Riders seem to have problems aplenty. The absence of Harshit Rana and Matheesha Pathirana has left their pace bowling expectedly weakened. But KKR's main spin threat, Varun Chakravarthy, has had a poor start to the season.

KKR's middle-order problems are also concerning, with Rinku Singh not firing on all cylinders and the likes of Ramandeep Singh and Anukul Roy failing to impress so far.

As of now, there hasn't been a significant downpour in Kolkata. However, rain is very likely accoridng to weather reports. We are just over 1 hour away from toss time. The match is scheduled to start at 7:30 PM IST.

According to AccuWeather, thunderstorms could be about to hit Kolkata in the coming hours, which could play spoilsport later tonight. There is close to 50% rain predicted between 6 PM and 9 PM.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash between Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings! We are in Kolkata today, at the iconic Eden Gardens. 

Stay tuned to NDTV Sports for all the live and latest sports updates.