IPL 2018, CSK vs KKR: Sam Billings guides hosts to five-wicket win

Chennai: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) marked their home return at the Chepauk Stadium in style after two years by beating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 5 wickets on Tuesday.

After being put to bat first, KKR posted a humongous 202-6 on board riding on Andre Russell’s knock of 88. But the home side came out all guns blazing in the second innings to chase down the total.

Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu got CSK off to a flyer but the opposition spinners made it hard for them to carry on the momentum with some quick wickets.

However, from there MS Dhoni and Sam Billings stitched a crucial fifty partnership to get the Yellow Brigade going. Billings in particular lead from the front with a stupendous half-century to keep the game alive.

Tom Curran dismissed his compatriot later on but by then the damage had already been done. With the win, CSK move to the top of the IPL table with two victories in a row.

CSK 186-5 after 19 overs:

WICKET! Billings has to depart but he has got the hosts back into the game. Full delivery by Curran and the batsman doesn't connect well. Uthappa has some ground to cover before taking a catch at long on.

CSK 103-3 after 12 overs:

WICKET! Short ball by Narine and Raina pounces at it. Gets a top edge, finding Vinay Kumar at long on.

CSK 86-2 after 9 overs:

WICKET! Huge relief for KKR, having sent both the set openers packing back to the pavilion. Kuldeep pitches it outside off and Rayudu looks to play against the turn over mid-wicket, only to hand subsitute Mavi a catch further on.

CSK 75-1 after 6 overs:

WICKET! Tom Curran gets his first IPL wicket. Short of a length delivery outside off and Watson smacks it hard. Finds Rinku Singh in the deep.

CSK 53-0 after 4 overs:

FIFTY UP! What a reply by the home side. Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu have taken the attack to the opposition and have target Piyush Chawla in particular.

1st innings: After being put to bat first by Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) posted a massive 200-6 on board at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Tuesday. The visitors smacked Deepak Chahar for 18 runs off the first over and made their intentions clear. KKR lost Sunil Narine early on but Chris Lynn and Robin Uthappa continued to score.

But CSK soon found a way back with wickets of Nitish Rana, Uthappa and Rinku Singh coming at a cost of only nine runs. However, Andre Russell had other plans. The big West Indian smacked an explosive 88-run knock, consisting of eleven sixes and one boundary. Skipper Dinesh Karthik also chipped in with an influential cameo.

KKR 167-6 after 18 overs:

LBW! Dinesh Karthik is trapped is front off an in-swinging yorker by Dinesh Karthik. Umpire raises his finger and Karthik opts for DRS. Reviews show ball hitting the leg stump.

KKR 157-5 after 17 overs:

50 partnership! KKR on a roll here. Andre Russell has lead from the front with the big shots while Karthik has played a supportive cameo.

KKR 87-4 after 9 overs:

RUN OUT! Double blow! Uthappa drives one towards cover. Is caught ball watching and has no sought of communication with Karthik at the other end.

WICKET! Soft dismissal. Length delivery angling down leg. Rana looks to help it along the way, but gets a faint edge which Dhoni latches onto.

KKR 64-2 after 6 overs:

BOWLED HIM! Lynn misses and Jadeja hits. The Australian gets a big gap between bat and pad and the ball crashes onto the leg stump.

KKR 20-1 after 2 overs:

WICKET! The idea to bring in a spinner early on pays off. Harbhajan tosses it up off-wide and Narine gets a big top edge while attempting to play a slog.

Preview:

Playing their first home game of the season after a two-year spot-fixing ban, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will an aim to treat their supporters once again as they face Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday.

The hosts already had a stunning start to their campaign by securing a thrilling one-wicket win over defending champs Mumbai Indians (MI) and would look to carry on their good run.

However, Kedar Jadhav and Faf du Plessis are set to miss the game due to injury. Dinesh Karthik-led KKR also picked up a win in their opening game against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and it would take something special for the two-time winners to stop the visiting team.

CSK’s spin troika of Harbhajan Singh, Ravindra Jadeja and Imran Tahir would look to cause troubles with the Chepauk wicket known to assist spinners. However, KKR spinners such as Sunil Narine, Kuldeep Yadav and Piyush Chawla would also fancy their chances.

Off the field, political groups have been opposing to host IPL games in the city as they demand formation of Cauvery Management Board, with a warning of disrupting proceedings.

Toss:

CSK have won the toss and elected to bowl. Here's a look at both the teams -

Squads:

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni(c), Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Harbhajan Singh, Dwayne Bravo, Shane Watson, Kedar Jadhav, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, KM Asif, Kanishk Seth, Lungi Ngidi, Dhruv Shorey, Murali Vijay, Sam Billings, Mark Wood, Kshitiz Sharma, Monu Kumar, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Imran Tahir, Karn Sharma, Shardul Thakur, N Jagadeesan.

Kolkata Knight Riders: Dinesh Karthik (c), Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, Andre Russell, Nitish Rana, Sunil Narine, Kuldeep Yadav, Piyush Chawla, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Mitchell Johnson, Shubman Gill, Vinay Kumar, Rinku Singh, Cameron Delport, Javon Searless, Apoorv Wankhade, Ishank Jaggi, Tom Curran.

When is the match?

The match is scheduled to start at 8 pm IST on Monday (April 10)

Where is the match?

The match will take place at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai

Live telecast and timings:

With Star India now acquiring the media rights from Sony Pictures Network India for the upcoming season, the matches will be telecast on various Star Sports channels.

Live streaming:

The matches can be viewed live on Hotstar.com or on the Hotstar app.