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Chennai vs Kolkata Live Commentary, Match 23, Indian Premier League, 2019, April 9, 2019

KKR 108/9 (20)
Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 7 wickets
CSK 111/3 (17.2)
Match over
Kolkata Knight Riders Inning Chennai Super Kings Inning
0.0 : 5 games, 4 wins and 1 loss is the scenario so far, for both the sides facing off tonight. It is Chennai who will be hosting Kolkata, in a clash of the table-toppers. Both head into this game with winning momentum on their side and it is difficult to choose a favorite here. Yes, the hosts can be termed as slight favorites as they are playing in familiar conditions but they will have to be at their best to beat the visitors. A win for the home team will see them go top of the table, whereas, a win
PITCH REPORT - Laxman Sivaramakrishnan is doing the pitch report and states that this pitch would be bowler friendly. Adds that it will turn and assist the spinners like it has been for most of this season. Further states that the surface looks dry with no moisture and the track isn't really that hard. Reckons that the ball will come slow off the wicket. Ends by saying that it would be better to chase as dew will be a big factor later in the night.
TOSS - Chennai win the toss and elect to bowl!
MS Dhoni says they will bowl first because of the dew factor at this venue. States that data and analytics play a vital part in match preparation, but it's also important to remember to stick to your own strengths. Informs that there are no changes to his side from the previous game.
Dinesh Karthik says he too wanted to bowl first as he thinks there will be dew, but no option now but to put runs on the board first up. Adds that bowling with the wet ball is a difficult skill to master, but they will have to try their best. Ends by saying that they too are unchanged.
Chennai XI (Unchanged) - Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (WK/C), Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Scott Kuggeleijn, Deepak Chahar, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir.
Kolkata XI (Also unchanged) - Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine, Robin Uthappa, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (WK/C), Shubman Gill, Andre Russell, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Harry Gurney, Prasidh Krishna.
We are all set to begin. The players and umpires are out in the middle. Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine will open the batting for Kolkata. Deepak Chahar to take the ball first up for the hosts. A slip in place for him. Here we go...
0.1 : D Chahar to C Lynn, A fuller length delivery on middle and leg, moving away slightly, Lynn clips this straight to the man at short fine leg.
0.2 : D Chahar to C Lynn, A little too straight in line, on middle and leg, Lynn tries to work it across the line but is caught on the pads. Thinks about taking the run, but then decides to abort as the bowler gets to it fast.
0.3 : D Chahar to C Lynn, Swing and a miss! Three dots in a row. Back of a length with a hint of shape away, around off, Chris Lynn looks to heave it over the leg side but misses.
0.4 : D Chahar to C Lynn, First run of the evening. Once again it's on middle and leg, a length ball, Lynn works it off the pads on the leg side. The batsmen this time cross over to complete a leg bye.
0.5 : D Chahar to S Narine, FOUR OVERTHROWS! A bit unfortunate, really. Can't do much about it. Narine taps this length ball towards mid-wicket and takes off. Rayudu there rushes to the ball, has a shy at the bowler's end but it goes off Narine's bat and away to the other side, all the way to the boundary.
0.6 : D Chahar to C Lynn, OUT! This is a big breakthrough for Chahar and Chennai. The dangerous Chris Lynn is out of here in the very first over of the game. This length ball is landed in line of the stumps, it skids off the deck and keeps slightly low, which becomes Lynn's undoing as he looks to go big across the line. He's struck flush in the front of the stumps on the pads and a loud appeal goes up. The umpire's finger follows and that's it for the Aussie.
Harbhajan Singh to bowl from the other end.
1.1 : H Singh to S Narine, Floated on off, Narine looks to go big but gets a bottom edge on this one. It goes towards the leg side.
1.2 : H Singh to S Narine, Tossed up outside off, Narine plays it between cover and point for a single.
1.3 : H Singh to R Uthappa, Flighted delivery on middle, Uthappa drives it towards mid on for a run.
1.4 : H Singh to S Narine, BEATEN! Tossed up outside off, Narine makes room and looks to cut but misses it.
1.5 : H Singh to S Narine, OUT! In the air... taken! Harbhajan Singh now strikes and both the openers are back in the hut inside the space of two overs. Dreadful start for the visitors. Narine continues to go after the off spinner. Steps down the track this time and looks to go over covers. The ball, however, turns a little, hits the toe-end and balloons towards the point region. Chahar from backward point and Rayudu from point are going for it. The former in the end calls for it and takes a good
Nitish Rana is the new batsman in.
1.6 : H Singh to R Uthappa, A dot to end another successful over for the hosts. This is flatter and on off, Uthappa keeps it out.
2.1 : D Chahar to N Rana, On a good length on off, Rana plays it to point.
2.2 : D Chahar to N Rana, Bowls a good length delivery on off, Rana stands tall and defends it off the back foot.
2.3 : D Chahar to N Rana, WIDE! Bowls it down the leg side, Rana looks to flick but misses it.
D Chahar to N Rana, OUT! No. 3 goes down now as Rana departs without troubling the scorers. Chahar gets his second in his second over. Another very good catch, this. It is slightly short and on middle, Rana looks to pull but it goes uppishly towards mid-wicket. Rayudu there dives forward and takes it inches above the ground. Kolkata slip further, they are in desperate need of a partnership.
Dinesh Karthik is the new batsman in.
2.4 : D Chahar to D Karthik, A little too wide outside off, the batter lets it be.
2.5 : D Chahar to D Karthik, BEATEN! A needless stroke though by Karthik. Length and outside off, DK lunges to defend a ball he could have left. Gets beaten.
2.6 : D Chahar to D Karthik, Another dot to end! Just a single and a wicket from this one. Length delivery and on off, Karthik is solid in defense.
Ravindra Jadeja is into the attack.
3.1 : R Jadeja to R Uthappa, Tossed up on off, Uthappa drives it towards mid off for a run.
3.2 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, Floated on off, Karthik plays it to point.
3.3 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, FOUR! EDGY! Kolkata won't mind though as they need runs at the moment. Tossed up on off, Karthik looks to defend but gets an outside edge which goes past the first slip fielder and to the third man fence.
3.4 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, Flighted delivery on off, Karthik cuts it towards point for a run.
3.5 : R Jadeja to R Uthappa, Full on middle, Robin drives it to mid on.
3.6 : R Jadeja to R Uthappa, Full on off, Uthappa drives it towards mid off for a run.
4.1 : D Chahar to R Uthappa, FOUR! Uppish but in the gap! A hit me delivery! Short and wide outside off, Uthappa stands tall and slaps it in the air but wide of the fielder at point and for a boundary.
4.2 : D Chahar to R Uthappa, FOUR! Consecutive boundaries! Runs starting to come now! Slightly short again and on middle, Uthappa picks the length early and pulls it over mid-wicket.
4.3 : D Chahar to R Uthappa, Another very good shot! Fuller in length and on middle, Uthappa strokes it back towards the bowler. Chahar there does well to get down and get a hand to it. Stops a run at least.
4.4 : D Chahar to R Uthappa, OUT! Another one bites the dust! Uthappa is the man walking back. He falls in the trap here. There was just one man out on the leg side and Uthappa picks him out. Another short one and on middle, Uthappa goes back and looks to pull. He had no intention to keep it down. He though does not get the distance. Jadhav at deep mid-wicket takes it with ease. A body blow this for the visitors as Uthappa is a very good player of spin and they needed him to stay out there on thi
Shubman Gill is the new batsman in.
4.5 : D Chahar to D Karthik, On a good length on middle, the skipper keeps it out.
4.6 : D Chahar to D Karthik, Again on a good length on off, the skipper defends it off the front foot. 8 runs and a wicket from this over.
5.1 : R Jadeja to S Gill, Tosses it up on off, Gill takes a few steps ahead and then strokes it down to long off for a single.
5.2 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, That sticks in the surface. Shortish and on off, it pitches and turns away. Karthik goes back and looks to hit it through the off side but due to the slowness he had to check his shot. It goes off the bottom to covers.
5.3 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, FOUR! This time, he not only cuts but also finds the gap. Short and outside off, this one skids through. Karthik goes back and slaps it past the diving cover fielder and into the fence.
5.4 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, Floated on off, Karthik defends it off the front foot.
5.5 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, Tossed up on middle, Dinesh defends it off the back foot.
5.6 : R Jadeja to D Karthik, Full on off, the skipper drives it to covers. It has been an excellent powerplay for Chennai. Kolkata are 29/4 after 6 overs.
Scott Kuggeleijn is on now.
6.1 : S Kuggeleijn to S Gill, On a good length on off, Gill keeps it out.
6.2 : S Kuggeleijn to S Gill, Length delivery on off, Gill keeps it out.
6.3 : S Kuggeleijn to S Gill, Full and outside off, Gill drives it towards mid off. The fielder goes for a direct hit at the bowler's end but misses it. The batsmen take a run.
6.4 : S Kuggeleijn to D Karthik, Length delivery on middle, Karthik flicks it through square leg. The batsmen get two runs. It was well timed by the skipper. It was a poor delivery from Scott Kuggeleijn.
6.5 : S Kuggeleijn to D Karthik, Scott really bent his back on that one! Bowls it slightly short and on off, this one skids through and bounces nicely on this slow surface. Karthik does well to play it by taking one hand off the handle. He defends it towards point.
6.6 : S Kuggeleijn to D Karthik, On a length on middle, Karthik flicks it towards mid-wicket for a run.
Harbhajan Singh is back.
7.1 : H Singh to D Karthik, Floated on middle, Dinesh keeps it out.
7.2 : H Singh to D Karthik, Tossed up on middle, Dinesh tucks it towards the leg side for a run.
7.3 : H Singh to S Gill, Flighted delivery on off, Gill defends it off the front foot.
7.4 : H Singh to S Gill, Full on off, Gill drives it to mid off.
7.5 : H Singh to S Gill, It was tossed up on middle, Gill flicks it towards square leg. The batsmen get two runs.
7.6 : H Singh to S Gill, Harbhajan slows it on the middle stump line, Gill flicks it towards square leg for a run. Just 4 runs off the Harbhajan Singh over.
Imran Tahir is on now.
8.1 : I Tahir to S Gill, Floated on middle stump, Gill drives it towards mid on for a run.
8.2 : I Tahir to D Karthik, Full and outside off, Karthik drives it through covers. The batsmen get two runs.
8.3 : I Tahir to D Karthik, FOUR! Very, very delicate this from Karthik. He plays the paddle sweep. Gets it very fine, between the legs of Dhoni and into the fine leg fence. A welcome boundary this.
8.4 : I Tahir to D Karthik, OUT! Tahir gets his revenge! He sends the Kolkata skipper packing! Half the side now back in the hut for the visitors. A sharp catch by Harbhajan. Chennai have been excellent in the field today. Tahir gives this a lot more air and bowls it full on middle. Karthik whips it powerfully towards mid-wicket. Singh there does really well to take it. Timely wicket as this partnership was just starting to build nicely for the visitors.
Strategic break. It has been a great passage of play where Chennai have taken the crux out of the Kolkata batting. The visitors are 44/5 and are on the verge of getting bowled out under 100 runs. Andre Russell will be crucial for Kolkata and he has to come to their rescue. Andre Russell is the new batsman in.
8.5 : I Tahir to A Russell, Floated on off, Russell defends it off the front foot.
8.6 : I Tahir to A Russell, Outside off, Russell lets it go. 7 runs and a wicket from the over.
Ravindra Jadeja is back into the attack.
9.1 : R Jadeja to S Gill, Short delivery on off, Gill cuts it towards point. The batsmen get two runs.
9.2 : R Jadeja to S Gill, Full on off, Gill drives it towards mid off for a run.
9.3 : R Jadeja to A Russell, Floated on off, Russell defends it off the back foot.
9.4 : R Jadeja to A Russell, Tossed up on off, Andre defends it off the back foot.
9.5 : R Jadeja to A Russell, Bowls a googly outside off, Russell looks to defend but gets beaten due to the turn on this one.
9.6 : R Jadeja to A Russell, Tossed up on off, Russell looks to defend but gets a leading edge towards the off side. Just 3 runs from the over.
10.1 : I Tahir to S Gill, OUT! STUMPED! Tahir gets another! Chennai now into the lower order and Kolkata haven't even crossed 50. The googly does the trick. It lands on leg stump, Gill looks to drive it down the ground but leaves a gap between bat and pad. The ball sneaks through, Gill then loses his balance and his back foot comes out of the crease. Dhoni behind collects the ball and whips the bails off.
0.0 : Piyush Chawla is the new batsman in.
10.2 : I Tahir to P Chawla, Floated on middle, Chawla defends it off the back foot.
10.3 : I Tahir to P Chawla, Full on off, Chawla drives it to covers.
10.4 : I Tahir to P Chawla, Floated on middle, Chawla sweeps it towards square leg for a run.
10.5 : I Tahir to A Russell, Full on off, Russell drives it towards mid off for a single.
A stumping appeal has been taken upstairs. Chennai do not seem that excited though.
10.6 : I Tahir to P Chawla, NOT OUT! Chawla is in! Hence, Dhoni was not that confident. It is the googly outside off, it pitches and then turns away. Chawla looks to drive but misses. Dhoni collects the ball and appeals but not in a very convincing manner. Tahir though is already celebrating. The umpire takes it upstairs but replays show that the batsman is safe.
Harbhajan Singh is back into the attack.
11.1 : H Singh to A Russell, Floated on middle, Russell flicks it to the leg side.
11.2 : H Singh to A Russell, SIX! That is out of here! This is easier for Russell, the ball turning in. He goes with the turn with a slog sweep and clears the mid-wicket fence. First of the game.
11.3 : H Singh to A Russell, Flighted delivery on middle, Russell flicks it towards square leg for a run.
11.4 : H Singh to P Chawla, Floated on off, Chawla defends it off the front foot.
11.5 : H Singh to P Chawla, Good delivery from Harbhajan. It is tossed up on off, Chawla looks to defend but gets an outside edge towards first slip. It falls short of the fielder.
11.6 : H Singh to P Chawla, Full on off, Chawla drives it to covers.
12.1 : I Tahir to A Russell, Flighted delivery on middle, Russell keeps it out.
12.2 : I Tahir to A Russell, In the air... that has gone into orbit, Harbhajan settles under it but DROPS it. How costly is this going to be? Russell, the man who has been in exceptional form, has been given a life. Tahir bowls this one slower and lands it on middle, it is the leg spinner. Russell looks to go against the turn and over mid-wicket. Only manages a top edge towards wide mid on. Harbhajan Singh never seemed comfortable under it and he spills it.
12.3 : I Tahir to A Russell, On the shorter side, AR pulls it through mid-wicket for a run.
12.4 : I Tahir to P Chawla, On the stumps, kept out.
12.5 : I Tahir to P Chawla, SIX! HUGE! What a shot from Chawla. Not only is it a maximum but it would also take some pressure off Russell. Piyush goes down on one knee and slog sweeps it over the mid-wicket fence.
12.6 : I Tahir to P Chawla, BEATEN! A googly to end the over on off, Chawla looks to drive but misses. So what could have been a successful over for the hosts has turned out to be a good one for the visitors. 7 from it.
Scott Kuggeleijn is back into the attack.
13.1 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, Bowls short on middle, Russell punches it to covers.
13.2 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, Bowls a good bouncer, Russell does well to duck under it.
13.3 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, Extraordinary stuff from Jadeja. It will go down as a DROP but too harsh to call that. A short ball on middle, Russell hoicks it towards the mid-wicket fence. Jadeja there runs to his right also a little backwards. He then sticks one hand up and then manages to push it back inside play. Saves 5 runs for his side.
13.4 : S Kuggeleijn to P Chawla, Length delivery on leg, Chawla flicks it towards square leg for a single.
13.5 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, FOUR! Powerful shot from Russell. Length delivery on middle, Russell lofts it over mid-wicket for a boundary. A much-needed boundary for Kolkata.
13.6 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, On a good length on middle, Russell defends it off the back foot and takes a quick single. 7 runs have come from the over.
14.1 : I Tahir to A Russell, Tossed up on middle, Russell defends it off the front foot.
14.2 : I Tahir to A Russell, Full on middle, Russell drives it straight towards Tahir.
14.3 : I Tahir to A Russell, FOUR! Do not try to stop that, it would have taken your hand off. What power. Dances down the track and takes it on the full. He smashes it past Tahir and that went to the fence in a jiffy.
14.4 : I Tahir to A Russell, Excellent bowling! Slows it up does Tahir and bowls it outside off. It is the tempter. He wanted Russell to go big. The big man though resists and lets it be.
Review time. Dhoni is seen talking to Tahir and laughing as he signals the 'T'. Maybe just wants to appease his bowler. Let's see. The ball could be doing too much.
14.5 : I Tahir to A Russell, NOT OUT! It is doing too much! Dhoni knew about it and hence, had a smile when Tahir was asking him to review. Chennai lose their only review. Once again this is nicely bowled. Slower through the air on the leg stump, this one pitches and turns away. Russell looks to play with a closed face of the bat but misses. The ball hits him on the pads. Tahir makes a loud shout but the umpire shakes his head. The leggie feels he has got his man and wants Dhoni to review. The Ch
14.6 : I Tahir to A Russell, A single and that will end Tahir's spell tonight. He finishes with figures of 4-0-21-2. Russell does well to negotiate his last ball nicely as he pushes it to long off for a single.
Harbhajan Singh is back into the attack.
15.1 : H Singh to A Russell, It was tossed up on middle, Russell flicks it towards mid-wicket for a single.
15.2 : H Singh to P Chawla, Tossed up on off, Chawla plays it on the front foot.
15.3 : H Singh to P Chawla, OUT! Harbhajan gets his second. Not clever batting this from Chawla. He has Russell at the other end but instead of giving him the strike, he decides to be the hero. Steps out way too early. Singh spots that and slows it up wide outside off. Chawla looks to reach it but fails to do so. Dhoni makes no mistake behind.
Strategic break. Andre Russell has managed to stay for Kolkata and will look to go for big shots in the death overs. Chennai has restricted them but have dropped a simple catch of Andre Russell. Harbhajan has been the culprit. Kolkata are 76/7 and will look to get atleast 120-130 to put up a fight. Kuldeep Yadav is the new batsman in.
A run out appeal. Not sure why, because Kuldeep is miles out. Possibly the umpires want to see whether Harbhajan had the ball in his hand while knocking the stumps over. Let's see now...
15.4 : H Singh to K Yadav, OUT! RUN OUT! Yes, he has dislodged the bails cleanly. Two in two for the hosts. Kuldeep bags a golden duck. A crazy mix-up there. This is tossed up on off, the ball pitches and then turns away. Kuldeep looks to defend but only manages an outside edge towards short third man. Russell wants a run but Yadav is ball-watching. He eventually has to go for it. By that time though, Rayudu picks the ball up and throws it to the bowler. The throw is not a good one. Singh though
Prasidh Krishna to bat next.
15.5 : H Singh to A Russell, Short on middle, Russell pulls it to mid-wicket.
15.6 : H Singh to A Russell, Full toss on middle, Russell lofts it over mid-wicket for a single.
Ravindra Jadeja is back on.
16.1 : R Jadeja to A Russell, Jadeja fires it wide outside off, it turns away even more. Wided.
R Jadeja to A Russell, Misfield and a single! Chennai won't mind though as Russell is off strike. Short and outside off, AR cuts it towards point. The fielder there fumbles and a run is taken.
16.2 : R Jadeja to P Krishna, On the stumps, blocked.
16.3 : R Jadeja to P Krishna, OUT! No. 9 goes down and Chennai have three more balls to wrap this up with Russell stranded at the non-striker's end. A soft dismissal this. It is full and on the pads. Krishna flicks it but does not keep it down. It goes straight to Singh at short mid-wicket who makes no mistake this time.
Harry Gurney is the last man in. Two slips in place for him.
16.4 : R Jadeja to H Gurney, Fires it on the stumps, Gurney blocks it out. 2 more balls to play out.
16.5 : R Jadeja to H Gurney, One more, as he is again solid in defense.
16.6 : R Jadeja to H Gurney, Plays this one out too! Three overs to go and you would probably feel Russell would face most of the deliveries now. This is slower through the air on middle, Gurney blocks it out.
Scott Kuggeleijn is back into the attack.
17.1 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, FOUR! That is exactly what Russell has to do in the next 17 balls. The slower one on middle, Russell waits for it and hits it in the gap in the mid-wicket region for a boundary. Ideal start to the over.
0.0 : A strange field placement here by Dhoni. He has brought another fielder on the leg side from the off side and placed him at the deep mid-wicket region. Just the long off out on the off side.
17.2 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, DROPPED! It was bowled short and outside off, Russell smashes it towards point, Watson there drops a tough catch to his left and he saves a certain boundary. It goes through him. The batsmen get two runs.
17.3 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, Good bowling! Bowls it on the body of Russell. He pulls it to deep square leg but does not take the run.
17.4 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, Dances around in his crease to disturb the line of the bowler. Scott is affected as he bowls it down the leg side. Wided.
S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, On the shorter side, Russell pulls it but does not get the timing, it goes all along the ground to deep mid-wicket. Once again no run.
17.5 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, A single this time! Back of a length on off, Russell chops it towards covers for a run. Gurney has one ball to keep out.
17.6 : S Kuggeleijn to H Gurney, He does play it out! A harmless delivery though that one. It is short and outside off, Gurney guides it down to third man but the batsmen do not run. A good over this, 8 from it.
Deepak Chahar to bowl out.
18.1 : D Chahar to A Russell, Another dot! Once again, the timing is not there. Length and on middle, Russell hits it flat and on the bounce to long on.
18.2 : D Chahar to A Russell, Not off the middle again! Full and outside off, Russell throws the kitchen sink at it but it goes off the inner half towards short fine leg.
18.3 : D Chahar to A Russell, SIX! Once again it is not off the middle but such is the power of the man that it carries all the way. Length and on middle, Russell swings, it is not off the middle. Jadeja at long on for a second thought he has a chance but the ball clears him. Need a few more. Also, replays show Jadeja was slightly inside the ropes. Had he been at the ropes, it could have been a catch.
18.4 : D Chahar to A Russell, Very full, difficult for a batsman to get under it. Russell smashes it to long off and does not run.
18.5 : D Chahar to A Russell, Good change in pace there. It is short and outside off, it is the slower one. Russell looks to upper cut but misses. One ball to go, will he take a single now or will he go for the biggie?
18.6 : D Chahar to A Russell, He goes for the biggie but just does not connect. In the process, he seems to have hurt himself. He had really swung hard there. Short and outside off, Russell looks to hit it out of the park but misses. He then catches hold of his shoulder. He is fine to continue though. An excellent over, however, from Chahar. He bowled 6 balls to Russell and went for only 6 runs.
19.1 : S Kuggeleijn to H Gurney, Gurney does what Kolkata would be hoping of him. He gets a single by hitting it towards sweeper cover. 5 balls to go, can Russell produce some magic?
19.2 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, He does not on the first ball he faces in this over. It is short and on the body, Russell swings but it goes off the inner half towards deep square leg. No runs taken.
19.3 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, SIX! He has picked the bones out of that one but seems to be in a lot of pain as he clutches his palm. This is short and on the body, Russell sends it sailing over the mid-wicket fence. 3 balls to go, 2 more?
19.4 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, FOUR! Hammered! The fielder actually does well to get a hand to it. Short and on the body, Russell pulls it hard towards deep square leg. The fielder there runs to his left and looks to push it back in but the force is a lot and he fails to do so. 10 from the last two balls.
19.5 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, A dot! Gold dust at this stage! A low full toss outside off, Russell gets it off the lower part of the bat towards covers.
19.6 : S Kuggeleijn to A Russell, FOUR! Fifty for Russell, once again he is the hero with the bat for Kolkata. His 7th in this League. Ends the innings with a boundary. 15 from the last over. This is a length ball and on off, Russell clobbers it past the bowler. The fielder at long off runs to his right, dives but fails to stop it. KOLKATA END WITH 108/9!
The pattern for Kolkata continues, once again it is Russell who comes to the fore after their batting line-up fails. This time however, I ain't sure if this is going to be enough and it is surely the hosts which will be the happier of the two sides at the break.
Chennai won the toss and elected to field and were off to the perfect start as Chahar struck in the very first over. Kolkata just never recovered after that and kept losing wickets at regular intervals. At 47 for 6 it seemed 100 would be a problem, Russell however, held one end up and has given their bowlers something to bowl at with a fifty.
For the home side, Chahar was the star as he picked a three-fer. Harbhajan and Tahir too had a couple each to their name. Scott is the only bowler who finished wicketless. All-in-all an excellent effort from them.
Deepak Chahar is caught for a little chat. He says it's quite hot out there. States that he has been practicing with the wet ball, so is glad it paid off in this game. Adds that he knew given the home conditions for his side, he would have to work on his variations, so prepared himself early and well for the challenge.
Now then, Chennai should chase this down quite easily. Kolkata though have a good bowling line-up but they will really have to bowl out of their skins here. Is there an upset on the cards or will Chennai go top?
0.0 : We are back for the chase. The players and umpires are out in the middle. Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis will open the batting for Chennai. Piyush Chawla is handed the ball first up. Will spin get them that early breakthrough? Let's find out...
0.1 : P Chawla to S Watson, FOUR! A boundary to begin things for Shane Watson and Chennai. Too full and outside off, no room for the ball to turn. Watson drills this through the left of mid off and finds the fence.
0.2 : P Chawla to S Watson, Loopy leg break outside off, Watson gets low and drags the slog through mid-wicket. There are two men out in the deep, who cut it off and keep the batsmen down to two.
0.3 : P Chawla to S Watson, Quicker, flatter and straighter outside off, The Australian tries to cut it away but fails to make connection.
0.4 : P Chawla to S Watson, Off the leading edge but just short of the bowler. Tossed up on middle and off, quite slow through the air, Watson closes the face early to flick and the ball pops up off the leading edge in the bowler's direction.
0.5 : P Chawla to S Watson, SIX! Powerful batting from Shane Watson here. Just muscles this away. A half-tracker in line of the stumps, Watson goes back and pulls it deep into the mid-wicket stands.
0.6 : P Chawla to S Watson, Dot ball to finish, but this has been an expensive opening over from Piyush Chawla. 12 runs off it. Flat and short outside off, Shane Watson looks to cut again but gets it off the inside edge onto his pads.
Prasidh Krishna to bowl from the other end.
1.1 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Starts off with a length ball outside off, du Plessis pushes it towards cover.
1.2 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Play and a miss! Back of a length ball outside off, du Plessis tries to play at it but fails to connect.
1.3 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Excellent delivery! Hint of extra bounce on it as well as Krishna bowls it short outside off. Faf goes to punch it but the extra bounce does him in as the ball goes to the keeper.
1.4 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Length ball outside off, du Plessis cuts it to point and takes a run.
1.5 : P Krishna to S Watson, Another length ball outside off, Watson guides it through point to third man and changes strike.
1.6 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Ends with a full ball angling in on the pads, Watson goes for the flick but fails to connect and gets hit on the pads.
Sunil Narine into the attack now.
2.1 : S Narine to S Watson, FOUR! Watson seems in a hurry here. Starts off with a length ball outside off, du Plesses pushes it towards cover.
2.2 : S Narine to S Watson, OUT! That's a soft dismissal. Really soft. Kolkata have been handed a big boost in the form of Watson's wicket. Should have been put away, but instead it goes straight into the fielder's hands. Short and on the stumps, Shane sticks back and pulls it aerially straight to Chawla at square leg. Can Kolkata capitalize from here with a wicket or two more?
Suresh Raina in next at no.3.
2.3 : S Narine to S Raina, Off spinner on off and turning away, Raina cuts it to point.
2.4 : S Narine to S Raina, SIX! All the way. Raina into the act now. Chennai want to finish it as soon as possible. Narine bowls it full and on the pads, Raina lofts it straight and over the bowler to the long on fence. Gets off the mark with a six.
2.5 : S Narine to S Raina, Short and on middle, Raina pulls it to mid-wicket for a single.
2.6 : S Narine to du Plessis, Ends with a flighted ball outside off, Faf defends it out. 11 runs from the over but an important wicket of Watson from it.
3.1 : P Krishna to S Raina, Good length delivery on middle stump, Raina moves inside the line and clips it through backward square leg for a couple of runs.
3.2 : P Krishna to S Raina, Shaping away from a good length, on middle and off, Raina stays inside the crease and defends it with the full face of the bat.
3.3 : P Krishna to S Raina, Behind a good length, in line of the stumps, the left-hander tries to help it away on the leg side by moving inside the line again, but cops a blow around the hips on this occasion.
3.4 : P Krishna to S Raina, FOUR! Had boundary written all over it from the moment it left the bat. Raina backed away early seeing the ball landed fuller, made some room for himself and lofted it over covers to send it across the boundary line.
3.5 : P Krishna to S Raina, Sensibly done. The Chennai no.3 just opens the face and runs it down to third man to rotate strike.
3.6 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Angling in on leg stump, slightly short in length, du Plessis tries to work it on the leg side. It goes off the inner half and off the thigh pad. The batsmen cross over.
4.1 : S Narine to du Plessis, Tossed up outside off and turning in a little, Faf flicks it to square leg and takes a run.
4.2 : S Narine to S Raina, Bowls it fuller on off, Raina keeps it out.
4.3 : S Narine to S Raina, Gives it a little flight and pitches it on middle, Raina goes for the pull but mistimes it towards mid on. The fielder there misfields as the ball goes past him but no run taken.
4.4 : S Narine to S Raina, Short ball on middle, Raina pulls it straight to mid on.
4.5 : S Narine to S Raina, That's smart work both by the batsman as well as the bowler. Narine sees Raina dancing down the track so bowls it down the leg side. Raina reads the line early so gets his back leg in the way so that he does not get stumped.
4.6 : S Narine to S Raina, The ball is way wide on the leg side but the batsman still goes after it. The Umpire signals a wide.
S Narine to S Raina, OUT! Take a bow, Piyush Chawla. Pretty sure most people wouldn't have thought he'd get this, but he has. Amazing catch. It's nicely floated up on off, a lot of flight on it, Raina looks to go big downtown. Gets plenty of height, but not enough distance. Chawla from mid on runs behind and takes it wonderfully as it comes over his shoulders.
Ambati Rayudu is the new man in.
5.1 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, Good length delivery just outside off, a hint of shape away, Rayudu taps it down with soft hands on the off side.
5.2 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, Some extra bounce for Krishna. Serves it outside off on a length, it takes off and zips through. Rayudu is almost undone as he gets beaten past the outside edge.
5.3 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, In the channel outside off, left alone by the batsman.
5.4 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, No ball! Free Hit coming up. Krishna oversteps as he bowls it on a back of a length outside off, Rayudu defends.
P Krishna to A Rayudu, FOUR! Makes very good use of the Free Hit. This is a length ball on off and it's right in Rayudu's zone. He stands inside the crease and heaves it over mid-wicket for a boundary.
5.5 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat.
5.6 : P Krishna to A Rayudu, Hangs on the back foot to this shorter length ball and dabs it down in front of point.
Kuldeep Yadav to roll his arm over.
6.1 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Tossed up on off stump, Faf is well forward in defense.
6.2 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Bowls it flatter on off, du Plessis pushes it to mid off and takes a run.
6.3 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Slower through the air this time and pitching on off, Rayudu flicks it to square leg and takes a single.
6.4 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Tossed up on off, du Plessis drives it through covers and changes strike.
6.5 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Flighted on middle, Rayudu works it down the leg side.
6.6 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Loud appeal for lbw by Dinesh Karthik but it is clearly outside off. Kuldeep bowls it outside off and turning in, Rayudu goes for a forward defense but plays down the wrong line as he is hit on the pads. But lucky for him as the impact is outside off.
Piyush Chawla is called back on to bowl.
7.1 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Really slow, loopy and full on middle and leg, Faf paddle scoops it fine down the leg side. No real pace on the ball, so it won't go away either. The batsmen take a couple.
7.2 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Fine delivery! Completely foxed Faf on that occasion. Chawla lands it a bit short on off, bowls it really slow through the air. It sticks off the surface and turns away, making the batsman be in two minds. He gets beaten in the end.
7.3 : P Chawla to du Plessis, The flipper, fuller outside off, the Protea gets low to sweep but misses.
7.4 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Shifts his weight on the back foot and forces the punch to mid off.
7.5 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Brings out the slog sweep and places it through mid-wicket. There's a fielder out in the deep, so just the one for the batsmen.
7.6 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, Flighted delivery, spinning away from around off, Rayudu comes ahead and meets it with a straight blade.
8.1 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Tossed up ball way outside off, du Plessis slaps it through covers for a run.
8.2 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Fuller on middle, Rayudu drives it to long off and changes strike.
8.3 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Flatter on leg stump line, du Plessis moves away and plays it to mid off.
8.4 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Slower through the air, Faf drives it to mid on.
8.5 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Flighted on off, Faf drives it to mid off and takes a run.
8.6 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Ends the over bowling short and outside off, Rayudu guides it to point. Just the 3 runs from this over.
Strategic break. Kolkata have a couple of wickets, but Chennai clearly ahead at the moment. They need 60 in 66 balls. Tough task still lies ahead, and if a wicket or two falls in quick succession, you never know. Anything can happen. Also, Harry Gurney is brought into the bowling attack.
9.1 : H Gurney to du Plessis, Gurneys starts off with a length ball outside off, Faf goes on the back foot and plays it to mid-wicket for a run.
9.2 : H Gurney to A Rayudu, Fuller in length this time, Rayudu guides it to point.
9.3 : H Gurney to A Rayudu, Short and on middle, Ambati pulls it to mid-wicket and rotates strike.
9.4 : H Gurney to du Plessis, Slower one this time, pitching on off, du Plessis punches it to off side and takes a run.
9.5 : H Gurney to A Rayudu, FOUR! Too much width on offer and that's always going to be punished. Short and wide outside off, Rayudu cuts it hard, past the diving point fielder and finds the fence.
9.6 : H Gurney to A Rayudu, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. The batsmen have run through for a single. 8 runs from Gurney's first.
10.1 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Flatter through the air, Rayudu punches it to cover.
10.2 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Fuller this time and Rayudu again drives it to cover.
10.3 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, He has found that fielder for the third time in this over. Kuldeep bowls it full and on off, Rayudu pushes it to the cover fielder.
10.4 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Flatter on the pads, Ambati drives it towards the mid off region. They pick up a single.
10.5 : K Yadav to du Plessis, FOUR! Struck it firmly. Important boundary for Faf and Chennai, he breaks the shackles with this shot. Full and darted around off, du Plessis kneels down and hammers the slog sweep through mid-wicket, beating Russell in the deep who tries to run to his right and stop it.
10.6 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Floated on off, Faf pushes it to covers and takes a run.
Sunil Narine is called back on to bowl.
11.1 : S Narine to du Plessis, Tossed up delivery on off, Faf drives it to long on and takes a run.
11.2 : S Narine to A Rayudu, Mix up in the middle but luckily no trouble there. Narine bowls it slower through the air, on the pads, Rayudu flicks it behind square leg and takes off. Faf was halfway down the track and stopped in the middle as both the batsmen were caught up in between the pitch but they finally complete the run.
11.3 : S Narine to du Plessis, Floated on middle, Faf drives it through the covers for a run.
11.4 : S Narine to A Rayudu, Tossed up on the pads, Rayudu flicks it behind square leg and takes a run.
11.5 : S Narine to du Plessis, Flighted ball outside off, du Plessis punches it to the off side and takes a single.
11.6 : S Narine to A Rayudu, Ends up with a full ball going down but Rayudu moves away and plays it on the leg side.
Piyush Chawla is back.
12.1 : P Chawla to du Plessis, The slider on the pads, it is worked through square leg for a single.
12.2 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, This is eased down to long off for a single.
12.3 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Flatter and outside off, Faf looks to cut but due to the slowness of the surface, he mistimes it to covers. A single.
12.4 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, Played that very late! The googly and it comes back in from outside off, Rayudu waits for it and then guides it square on the off side for a single.
12.5 : P Chawla to du Plessis, The leggie on the off stump, it is kept out.
12.6 : P Chawla to du Plessis, This is worked through square leg for a single. 5 singles from this over.
Kuldeep Yadav is back on.
13.1 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Floated ball going away, Faf punches it back to the bowler.
13.2 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Excellent running there. Faf pushes this full ball through the covers and completes an easy brace.
13.3 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Floated outside off, du Plessis pushes it to covers and takes a run.
13.4 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Flatter delivery on middle, pushed back to the bowler.
13.5 : K Yadav to A Rayudu, Floated on off, Rayudu goes on the back foot and cuts it to covers. One run taken.
13.6 : K Yadav to du Plessis, Flicks away this last ball to mid-wicket. It was tossed up on middle but du Plessis was in no mood to take a run.
The strategic break has been signaled!
14.1 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, DROPPED! A good effort by Krishna but that should have been taken! Kolkata need wickets, the created an opportunity here but don't hang on. This is floated outside off, Rayudu looks to go over covers but ends up slicing it towards sweeper cover. The fielder there runs in and looks to take it with a slide but can't hang on.
14.2 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, This is on the pads, Rayudu works it through mid-wicket.
14.3 : P Chawla to du Plessis, Faf now pushes it through covers and takes one.
14.4 : P Chawla to A Rayudu, OUT! Caught! This time Chawla gets his man. Rayudu patient innings comes to an end. This is tossed up and around middle, it is the leg spinner. Rayudu looks to slog sweep it but only manages a top edge towards covers where Rana takes it with ease.
Kedar Jadhav is the new man in.
14.5 : P Chawla to K Jadhav, FOUR! What a shot! The googly outside off, Jadhav goes against the spin, lofts it over covers and into the fence.
14.6 : P Chawla to K Jadhav, Floats it up on off, it is kept out.
Prasidh Krishna is back on.
15.1 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Good length ball on the stumps, Faf defends it with soft hands towards point and gets to the other end.
15.2 : P Krishna to K Jadhav, Back of a length on off and middle, Kedar pulls it just wide of deep mid-wicket. Kedar looks for two but Faf is happy with just one.
15.3 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Good shot! Back of a length ball outside off, Faf slaps it wide of deep cover and gets a brace.
15.4 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Fuller on off, Faf strokes it wide of deep cover again and gets another brace.
15.5 : P Krishna to du Plessis, On the stumps, Faf taps it back to the bowler.
15.6 : P Krishna to du Plessis, Good length ball outside off, Faf strokes it through point. They show good aggression and run quickly which allows them to get another couple. 8 runs off the over. Only 16 runs required off the final 4 overs.
Harry Gurney returns to the attack.
16.1 : H Gurney to K Jadhav, Length delivery angling in on off, from around the wicket, Jadhav stays right behind the line and defends it out.
16.2 : H Gurney to K Jadhav, Back of a length, angling in again on off, Jadhav looks to put bat on ball but is caught around the body.
16.3 : H Gurney to K Jadhav, No ball! For overstepping. Quick single taken here. He taps it in front of him and both batsmen cross over. Free Hit coming up...
H Gurney to du Plessis, FOUR! Excellent. Chennai almost home now. This boundary should make the home camp will feel much easier. Full toss on off stump, du Plessis lofts it over covers and places it well in the gap. Nobody out there, so it's a boundary.
16.4 : H Gurney to du Plessis, FOUR! Two in two. Chennai just one hit away from victory now. It's a short ball angling down, Faf just uses the pace and helps the pull down to fine leg. Finds the fence without any trouble.
16.5 : H Gurney to du Plessis, Switches to over the wicket. It's fuller and on the stumps, Faf slogs it off the inner half through to deep mid-wicket and crosses over.
16.6 : H Gurney to K Jadhav, Back to around the wicket. A full ball on middle and leg, Jadhav wrists it aerially through the gap in the square leg area and keeps strike with a single. Just 4 needed off the final 3 overs.
This could be the last over of the game.
Sunil Narine to bowl now.
17.1 : S Narine to K Jadhav, Quicker, shorter and around off, Kedar pushes it towards the covers and jogs across to the other end.
17.2 : S Narine to du Plessis, Stifled appeal for a leg before, turned down. Spinning in from outside off, du Plessis goes back to play at it but is caught high on the thigh pad.
17.3 : S Narine to du Plessis, FIVE WIDES! And that's game over. CHENNAI WIN BY 7 WICKETS! Easy enough for the home side, it has done it in a cool fashion. The off break spinning down leg, goes too far and beats both du Plessis and Karthik behind the stumps. Races away to the fine leg fence for a boundary.
Another comfortable win for Chennai in the season and they go top of the table with this win. The target wasn't a big one to chase down, even on this slow and turning wicket. The dew did help, and the hosts' batsmen got across the line without much trouble. Watson and du Plessis got off to a good start, before the former departed. Faf stayed right through till the end, making a decent stand with Raina first, and then adding two solid stands with Rayudu and Jadhav to allow his team to earn maximu
Kolkata needed wickets early and they needed plenty of it. Had they got a few more in and around the Powerplay, it would have been more interesting. That never happened, and the Chennai batsmen did their job well. Especially du Plessis, who made sure to hold one end, settle in and see that there was no sign of real danger at any time. Earlier in the evening, Kolkata were rolled over again as the hosts bowled well with Chahar leading the line with a 3-fer. Had it not been for Russell's fifty, thi
Kolkata skipper, Dinesh Karthik, says they did not have enough runs on the board. Mentions that it is difficult to set a score, especially with dew and a few other reasons playing on the back of your mind. States that it is not easy after losing 4 wickets in the Powerplay. Credits the way Andre Russell bowled. Mentions that he liked the character shown by the boys. Ends by saying that he is happy with how they have performed and he is delighted as a captain but he is hoping they can forget this
Chennai skipper, MS Dhoni, says he has been here for a very long time, a lot of good things have happened for him and he has a special connection with the fans. Mentions that losing Dwayne Bravo makes it difficult for them to pick the right combination. Admits that he does not enjoy playing on such wickets as it is very slow and not easy to bat first. States that Harbhajan Singh and Imran Tahir are like wine, they are getting better with age. Further adds that the wicket suit them but on differe
Man of the Match, Deepak Chahar, says he knew they would play a lot of matches in Chennai, so he prepared well for the conditions and the long season. States that MS Dhoni spends a lot of time with him in the dressing room and generally as well, which has helped him. Ends by saying that since Dwayne Bravo isn't fit, he gets more of an opportunity in the death overs, so is relishing the challenge.
Chennai go to the summit of the table, two points clear of their opponents tonight with this win. They're continuing on from where they left off in the last campaign. Kolkata stumbled in this contest, but will forget about this soon and move on to the next challenge. Anyway, the Indian T20 League action continues on Wednesday as Mumbai host Punjab at 2000 local (1430 GMT). Do join in for that one. Cheers!