KKR VS LSG, IPL 2024 Match 28: HIGHLIGHTS

We are back for Kolkata's reply. Lucknow players make their way out on the field. Followed by Phil Salt and Sunil Narine who walk out to open for Kolkata. It is going to be Shamar Joseph to start with the new ball on his Indian T20 league debut.

… The Run Chase …

Right then, Kolkata need to get over a small hurdle here if they wish to post their first ever win against Lucknow in the Indian T20 League. Lucknow though have a promising balling attack and they will hope to make a positve impact in the Powerplay itself. Do join us for the second essay shortly, to find out who gets over the line here.

Mitchell Starc, the man of the moment is in for a chat. He starts by saying that it is always nice to contribute for the team and make an impact. Adds that they were brilliant throughout the innings. Mentions that it was a little bit more warmer than the last time they played here. Feels that the wicket was a bit two-paced. Some uneven bounce with the new ball. Praises Narine for his bowling as he hardly went for a boundary. Says that part of his role is to swing the ball, but on this deck you quickly learn that it is not the way to go. Hence he pulled his length back by the latter stages of his spell.

Incredible bowling performance by Kolkata. They were amazing as soon as they got that first breakthrough, they never allowed Lucknow to settle in. 6 bowlers were used by Shreyas Iyer and amongst those only Harshit Rana failed to pick a wicket. It was Mitchell Starc who lead the coloumn with his three-wicket haul. Sunil Narine proving to be vital in the middle overs, he kept things pretty tight.

After being put in to bat first, Lucknow certainly started positively by scoring 18 runs in 1.2 overs, but then they went on to lose two wickets inside the Powerplay. KL Rahul made sure he stuck around for long and kept the scoreboard ticking, although hardly found any able partner in the top 5 once Quinton de Kock departed. Ayush Badoni was the one who put his hand up, he got of to a start but eventually let the pressure get the better of him. Once again, the onus was on Nicholas Pooran to apply the finishing touches, but it can't always be one guy taking the team out of trouble. You cannot put all your eggs in one basket, and sooner or later, someone else needs to step their game in the middle-order for Lucknow, if they wish to reach new heights. Nonetheless, it was Pooran who turned out to be the highest scorer for the visitors.

Lucknow managed to score 35 runs in the final three over, but overall it was Kolkata who ruled the proceedings with the ball in hand. Lucknow will surely feel that they are 15-20 runs short on this batting paradise.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Arshad Khan, OUT! THE STUMPS ARE RATTLED! Bowls it full and straight at the stumps. Arshad Khan swings for the fences but fails to get any bat on it. The ball goes through him and crashes into the stumps. An excellent final over from Mitchell Starc as Lucknow finish on 161 for 7 in their 20 overs.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Krunal Pandya, LEG BYE! Short of a length, around off. Pandya pulls and misses. The ball rolls off his body into the off-side for an extra.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Arshad Khan, An outstanding yorker from Starc, just outside off. Another swing and miss from Arshad Khan. He gets an inside edge on it. A slight fumble from Salt allows the batters to cross for a run.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Arshad Khan, Pitched full, outside off. Arshad Khan swings and misses.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Arshad Khan, FOUR! Streaky but Arshad Khan will take it. Short and just outside off. The batter swings hard and gets a top edge that flies behind the keeper for a boundary.

Arshad Khan, the impact player sub for Lucknow, walks out to bat. He replaces Quinton de Kock.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Nicholas Pooran, OUT! EDGED AND GONE! Starc bowls it on a length and wider outside off. Pooran throws his bat at it but gets a thick edge through to the keeper for a simple catch. Phil Salt takes a regulation catch and Lucknow are six down!

Mitchell Starc (3-0-23-1) returns to bowl the final over of the innings.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Full-length, outside off. Pooran squirts it to deep third for a single to end the over.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Slower back of a length ball, outside off. Pooran is threw the shot early but fails to connect.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Goes full and wide, just inside the tramline. Pooran flays and misses. The batter has reviewed this for a WIDE. The replays show that it goes beneath the bat and it remains a fair delivery.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, FOUR! SMACKED! Short ball, around off. Pooran pulls it to the deep square leg region. The fielder gives the chase but fails to stop the boundary.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, WIDE! Bowls it too wide and way outside the tramline. He has to reload that one.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, FOUR! Streaky! Pace-off delivery, on a length, outside off. Pooran throws his hands at it and gets an outside edge that flies over short third and into the boundary.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, WIDE! Lands it full, outside the tramline. Pooran covers the line and lets it go. Wide signaled by the umpire.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Slower length ball, angling across the batter. Pooran slaps off the toe end toward short third.

Vaibhav Arora to Krunal Pandya, Low full toss on the pad. Pandya looks to flick it through the on-side but gets a leading edge that falls toward the mid-off region. Starc comes in from the boundary but fails to prevent the batters from taking two runs.

Vaibhav Arora to Nicholas Pooran, Full and wide outside off. Pooran drills it to the sweeper cover for one.

Vaibhav Arora to Nicholas Pooran, Full-length, tailing into the middle and leg. Pooran heaves but gets an inside edge that rolls through backward square leg. He comes for the second.

Vaibhav Arora to Nicholas Pooran, SIX MORE! BANG! Another slower bumper dug into the pitch, but angled down the leg. Pooran powers it over the long-leg boundary for half a dozen.

Vaibhav Arora to Nicholas Pooran, SIX! Up and Away! Short ball on the leg stump line. Pooran clears the front leg and hacks it over the deep square leg fielder for a biggie.

Vaibhav Arora to Krunal Pandya, Slower bumper, around off. Pandya pulls it to deep square leg for one.

Vaibhav Arora (2-0-16-1) is back into the attack. Also, Kolkata brings in their impact player. Rinku Singh replaces Varun Chakaravarthy.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Short of a length, going across the batter. Pooran cuts and misses. A top over from Harshit Rana. Just 8 runs off it.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, A sharp short ball, angling away from the batter. Pooran pulls but fails to connect.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Full-length delivery, slanting away. Pooran swings and misses.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, SIX! DISPATCHED! Slower length ball, outside off. Pooran drags it from outside off and smacks it over the deep mid-wicket fence for a massive hit.

हर्षित राणा to Krunal Pandya, Short of a good length, around off. Pandya lifts it on the up toward deep cover for a run.

हर्षित राणा to Nicholas Pooran, Slower length ball, outside off. Pooran slaps it to deep point for one.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Short and wide outside off, cut away to deep point for a run.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Krunal Pandya, Wrong'un, outside off. Pandya cuts it to deep backward point for a single.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Flatter on the leg peg. Pooran turns it through mid-wicket for a run.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Krunal Pandya, Shortish, outside off. Pandya carves it to deep point for a single.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Krunal Pandya, Tossed up on off. A forward defence from Pandya.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Flatter and quicker, outside off. Pooran reaches for it and cuts it through extra cover for one.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Pitches it up, full and outside off. Pooran leans forward and drives it down to long off for one.

Sunil Narine to Krunal Pandya, Flatter and quicker, outside off. Pooran reaches for it and cuts it through extra cover for one.

Strategic break! Lucknow have lost half their side now before the fifteen-over mark. Kolkata have kept picking wickets at regular intervals and have put the brakes on the scoring. Lucknow will hope for Nicholas Pooran to bat deep in the innings and take his side to a competitive score. The wicket is pretty good for batting but Kolkata have done an excellent job so far with the ball.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, OUT! CAUGHT! Ayush Badoni succumbs under pressure. He tries to push the score up but fails to do so. It is floated and full, around off. Ayush Badoni goes for the kill, with his dependable slog sweep, atlhough he does not connect well this time. It catches the outside edge and flies towards deep square leg. The hang time is a lot but distance isn't. Angkrish Raghuvanshi settles under it and takes a sharp catch. Krunal Pandya is the new man in.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Flatter one, around off. Pooran punches it past extra covers for one.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Fuller one, on the pads. Badoni flicks it into the leg side for one.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Pushed through quicker, full and around off. Badoni goes for the sweep but misses it complete. The ball sneaks through and pings him on the pads. Sunil Narine puts in an appeal but the umpire shows no interest. Shreyas Iyer then has a chat with the bowler and wicket-keeper, and eventually he does take the review for LBW. The UltraEdge though confirms that the bat is involved.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Three dots in a row to end the over. Full and on off. Pooran dabs it out but unable to find the gap here.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Quicker and shorter, wide of off. Nicholas Pooran throws the kitchen sink at it but misses.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Flatter one, on the stumps. Nicholas Pooran blocks it into the off side.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, WIDE! Varun Chakaravarthy errs in his line once again. Goes full, angling across the left-hander. Nicholas Pooran looks to chase it but misses. Wide given by the umpire.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Short ball, outside off. Badoni stands tall and cuts it to deep backward point for one.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, A single take now as Pooran drives this full ball down the park.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, WIDE! Varun Chakaravarthy stays away from the wheelhouse now. Fires it full, wide of off. It goes past the tramline. Wide called.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, SIX! KABOOM! Full toss, on middle. Pooran is not going to miss out on the freebies. He swings across the line and smacks it over the mid-wicket fence for a maximum. 100 is up for the visitors here.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Darted on the pads. Pooran stays back and flicks it through mid-wicket for one. He will retain the strike.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Flatter one, outside off. Pooran dabs it out to safety.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Goes full, outside off, slower through the air. Ayush Badoni comes across and tucks it through mid-wicket for one.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Shorter, outside off. Pooran cuts it through point for one.

Sunil Narine to Nicholas Pooran, Pitched up, outside off. Pooran works it into the off side off the inner half.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Fuller, on the pads, clipped to square leg for one.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, A googly, around off. Pooran ends up slicing it towards short third but it does not carry.

Nicholas Pooran has to play a vital role here for his team. Ayush Badoni needs to keep growing in this game, he has started well but he needs to end in a similar fashion as well.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Nicholas Pooran, Slower one, around off. Pooran blocks it watchfully.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Marcus Stoinis, OUT! CAUGHT! Good reflex shown by Phil Salt behind the stumps. Out of nowhere, Varun Chakaravarthy gets the better of Marcus Stoinis in no time. It is a googly, around off. Marcus Stoinis looks to clip it away but it catches the inside edge, bangs him in the pads, although the ball pops up and goes to the right of the keeper. Phil Salt reads it perfectly, makes a late shift to his right, dives to that side and takes a stunning catch to put Lucknow on the back foot here. So, two wickets have come in the last two overs. Nicholas Pooran comes in to bat now.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Quicker and flatter, on the pads. Badoni works it to mid on for one.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, SIX! KABOOM! Ayush Badoni is stepping up for his side here. It is tossed up, full and on middle. Ayush Badoni gets low and slogs it over the square leg fence for a maximum.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Floated and full, around off, pushed to mid off.

आंद्रे रसेल to Marcus Stoinis, Fuller this time, angled into the pads. Marcus Stoinis flicks it towards deep mid-wicket and takes two runs. This is good running. 16 runs and a wicket come from this over.

आंद्रे रसेल to Marcus Stoinis, FOUR! Short ball and punished once again. It is around off. Marcus Stoinis swivels on his back foot and pulls it along the ground this time through square leg for another boundary.

आंद्रे रसेल to Marcus Stoinis, A sharp bumper this time, outside off. Marcus Stoinis leaves it alone for the keeper.

आंद्रे रसेल to Marcus Stoinis, FOUR! Marcus Stoinis opens his account with a boundary. Back of a length, on middle. It sits up nicely for Stoinis. He goes through with the hook shot and pulls it towards deep square leg for four runs.

Marcus Stoinis is the new batter in.

आंद्रे रसेल to केएल राहुल, OUT! CAUGHT! Pressue, what is that says Russell. He has the last laugh here. Bangs in a short one, on middle and leg. KL Rahul wants to continue with the aggression and he thinks of riding the bounce with a smacking pull shot, but ends up hitting it straight down the throat of Ramandeep Singh in the deep who makes no mistake.

आंद्रे रसेल to केएल राहुल, SIX! BANG! Andre Russell under pressure instantly. What a shot to greet the West Indian player. It is a short ball, wide of off. KL Rahul hangs back and upper cuts it over the deep point  fence for a biggie.

Andre Russell comes into the attack now.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Wrong'un on middle. Badoni takes a huge forward stride and gets an inside edge onto the pad.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to केएल राहुल, Flat and quick outside off. Rahul cuts it past the backward point fielder for a single.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Fired in on the pad. Badoni turns it to short fine leg.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to केएल राहुल, Off-break on middle and leg. Rahul works it through mid-wicket for a run.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, Down the leg again, Badoni nudges it to long-leg for a single.

वरुण चक्रवर्ती to Ayush Badoni, FOUR! Easy Pickings! Drifted down the leg. Badoni helps it to fine leg region for four runs.

Strategic break! Lucknow were off to a flier, for sure. Their opening pair did manage to build a solid platform, atlhough Kolkata did manage to find a way to come back in the contest with two quick breakthroughs. Since then, Kolkata have managed to apply the breaks as well. The middle overs phase is going to be very crucial for Lucknow, they need to be calculative if they wish to post a challenging total of this deck.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Flat on middle and off. Badoni knocks it down the ground to long-on for a run.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Full on middle and leg, swept to deep square leg for a single.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Appeal but turned down! Narine bowls it full and at the stumps. Rahul gets low for the sweep but fails to connect and is pinned in front. The umpire is unmoved. KKR decide against the review and rightly so as it pitched outside the off-stump line.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Flat and quick on middle. Badoni turns it through square leg for one.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Off-break, around the middle. Rahul stays back and turns it through mid-wicket for one.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Flat and quick outside off. Rahul chops it to point.

हर्षित राणा to केएल राहुल, Full-length, around off. Rahul drives it along the carpet to wide long-on for a single.

हर्षित राणा to केएल राहुल, Pace-off again, on a length, outside off. Rahul carves it past the backward point fielder for a double.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Slower length ball, on off. Badoni waits and nudges it through square leg for a single.

हर्षित राणा to केएल राहुल, Pitched full, at the stumps. Rahul pushes it to mid-off for a quick single.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Full on the middle and leg. Badoni flicks it through square leg for a single.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Bangs it short, around the right shoulder. Badoni pulls and misses.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Drifted down the leg. Badoni turns it to short fine leg for one.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Shortish, on off. Rahul goes back and punches this to long-on for a run.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Off-break, turning into the batter. Rahul hangs back and drops it onto the pitch.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Flat again, outside off. Punched to long-off for a single.

Sunil Narine to केएल राहुल, Flatter, just outside off. Rahul steers it to backward point for a single.

Sunil Narine to Ayush Badoni, Tossed up around off. Badoni eases it to long-on for one.

हर्षित राणा to केएल राहुल, FOUR! Nicely done! Back of a length, around off. Rahul gets on top of the bounce and guides it between the short third and the backward point fielder for four runs.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Slower length ball on off. Badoni drops into the off-side and calls for a run.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Short of a good length, around off. Badoni skips down and guides it to the backward point.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, Back of a length, on off. Badoni tucks into the leg side.

हर्षित राणा to Ayush Badoni, FOUR! CLASSY! Full-length delivery, just outside off. Badoni leans into it and times this through the cover region for a stunning boundary.

हर्षित राणा to केएल राहुल, Hard-length, nipping back into the batter. Rahul comes forward and gets an inside edge onto his thigh pad. The ball rolls into the off-side for a run.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Ayush Badoni, Fuller this time, on fourth stump. Ayush Badoni stays back and defends it solidly into covers. A wicket-taking over from Starc comes to an end.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Ayush Badoni, Length ball, around off, blocked out watchfully.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Deepak Hooda, OUT! CAUGHT! WHAT A CATCH! Ramandeep Singh, take a bow. This wicket surely should be given to the fielder, but as far the rules are concerned, Mitchell Starc will be a happy man with this breakthrough. It is a length ball, angling across, outside off. Deepak Hooda goes after it, but only manages to slice it to the right of backward point. Ramandeep Singh flies to that side and takes a stunning catch to dismiss Deepak Hooda who was pushed up the order here. Ayush Badoni walks in at number 4.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, Good batting here. Length, outside off. KL Rahul pushes this towards deep point for a single. Mitchell Starc has given away 23 runs so far. Very unlike him.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, FOUR! Up and over! Incredible hit. Good length, angling across the right-hander. KL Rahul picks it up nicely and cunches it over covers for a one-bounce boundary.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, Back of a length, around middle, shaping back into the batter. KL Rahul hangs back and flicks it to square leg but straight to the fielder.

Will we see a change now? NO! Shreyas Iyer thinks Mitchell Starc is good to continue here.

Vaibhav Arora to Deepak Hooda, A couple of dots on the trot to end the over. It is on a length, outside off. Hooda wanted to work it into the off side, but it catches the inner half and rolls back towards the bowler.

Vaibhav Arora to Deepak Hooda, Full this time, outside off. Hooda strides across and blocks it into the off side for no run.

Vaibhav Arora to Deepak Hooda, FOUR! This should release some pressure for Hooda. A sharp bumper, slower one, on top of middle. Deepak Hooda shuffles across, gets some bat on it. The ball flies over the keeper and heads into the fine leg fence for four runs.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, Good length, around the hips. KL Rahul tucks it to square leg for a single.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, Fuller one, outside off. KL Rahul gets behind the line and defends it to covers.

Vaibhav Arora to Deepak Hooda, Vaibhav Arora serves a length ball, angling into the right-hander. Deepak Hooda stays back and clips it to square leg for one.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, FOUR! Cracking hit. KL Rahul surely spoils the over for Starc here. It is short, sliding down leg. KL Rahul swivels on his back foot and pulls it through the gap at square leg for four runs.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Deepak Hooda, Pitched up, full and on off. Hooda leans forward and unable to time his drive well. He works it to mid off only for a single.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, Good length, on top of off. KL Rahul hangs back and taps it to covers for a quick single.

मिचेल स्टार्क to केएल राहुल, WIDE! Mitchell Starc errs in his line this time and goes down the leg side. The umpire signals it as a wide.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Deepak Hooda, Back of a length, on the fourth stump. Second bouncer to him in the four deliveries that he has face. The player who has come back into the side is being tested here. Deepak Hooda dabs it towards short third and crosses.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Deepak Hooda, Two dots on the trot now! Once again same line and length. Making the most of the angle here Starc. Deepak Hooda with a tentative poke once again.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Deepak Hooda, Mitchell Starc starts his second over with a dot ball. A peach of a delivery as well. On a length, around off, angling across the right-hander. Deepak Hooda tentatively tries to defend it away but misses.

Vaibhav Arora to Deepak Hooda, A sharp bumper, on the body of the new batter. Deepak Hooda awkwardly defends it into the leg side from inside the crease and crosses for one to open his account.

Deepak Hooda walks in at number 3.

Vaibhav Arora to Quinton de Kock, OUT! CAUGHT! Vaibhav Arora after a horror start, and finally something to cheer about here. It is straighter one, full, outside off. Quinton de Kock eye's lit up after looking at the width on offer. He thinks about freeing his arms but only manages to get a thick outside edge. The ball flies to the left of backward point. Sunil Narine there moves to that side and completes the catch to get his team back in the contest.

Vaibhav Arora to Quinton de Kock, Second dot of this over! It is a length ball, around middle and leg. Quinton de Kock gets it towards point off the outside edge.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, An inswinging delivery now, full and on middle. KL Rahul pushes it to mid off and takes off to the other end for a quick single. Very good running here.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, SIX! Who needs a Free Hit says KL Rahul. It is pitched up, outside off. KL Rahul winds up and swings hard at it. He goes inside out and all the way over the covers fence. So, 8 runs have come in this over already off the two legal deliveries.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, DOT! KL Rahul could not make the most of the Free Hit. Vaibhav Arora nails the wide yorker this time, outside off. KL Rahul tries to reach out but fails to connect this time.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, NO BALL! It is a length ball, around off, blocked out. The umpire signals a no ball due to overstepping. Vaibhav Arora is yet to bowl a legal delivery in his spell. Free Hit coming up.

Vaibhav Arora to केएल राहुल, WIDE! Vaibhav Arora starts with a slower one, on a length, outside off. It shapes away and goes past the tramline. KL Rahul leaves it alone. It has been given as a wide. Although, Shreyas Iyer has take a review for the wide. The third umpire confirms that the ball is on top of the tramline and the on-field decision stands. Not the start the hosts were after.

Who will bowl from the other end? It is going to be Vaibhav Arora.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, Back of a length, on fifth stump. Quinton de Kock dabs it to backward point. There is a misfield there and the batters convert their single into a double. 10 runs then for Lucknow in the very first over.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, Make that 3 dots now! Good comeback by the Aussie seamer. Good length, in the channel. Quinton de Kock tries to go after it but gets beaten on the outside edge. Much better length this time, top of the stumps to beat the left-hander.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, Mitchell Starc steams in and dishes a full-length ball, around off, swinging away. Quinton de Kock taps it back to the bowler. Two dot balls in a row now. Mitchell Starc getting into his groove.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, Pitched up this time, around off. Quinton de Kock prods and blocks it to mid off.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, FOUR! EDGY! Woah, some outswing again and Quinton de Kock cashes in. It is on a length, outside off, shaping further away. Quinton de Kock reaches out for it, the ball flies down to deep third off the outside edge and races into the boundary.

मिचेल स्टार्क to Quinton de Kock, FOUR! SMACKED! Quinton de Kock needs no second invitation. A bit of swing on offer for Starc. It is full, around leg, swinging away a touch. Quinton de Kock leans forward, connects it with the middle of the bat and creams it down the ground for a boundary at long on.

All in readiness now as the teams and umpires make their way to the ground. KL Rahul and Quinton de Kock are the openers for LSG. It will be Mitchell Starc to start with the ball for KKR. Let's play…

KL Rahul, the captain of Lucknow is in for a chat. He starts by saying that looking at the pitch it looks like a good deck. He would've loved to bowl first as well here. The most important thing is to recover well, in a short span, because he believes they will turn up when they enter the field. Ends by saying there are a couple of changes. Devdutt Padikkal and Naveen-ul-Haq miss out, Deepak Hooda and Shamar Joseph make their way into the side and so does Mohsin Khan.

Shreyas Iyer, the skipper of Kolkata says he feels nostalgic and he is happy to be back home. States that the atmosphere is electric at Eden Gardens. Shares that the previous game pitch was a belter to bat and he expects a similar pitch today. Ends by sharing that Harshit Rana comes in to the XI while Rinku Singh will come in as the impact-sub.

Impact players nominated by Lucknow – Arshad Khan, Prerak Mankad, M. Siddharth, Amit Mishra, Krishnappa Gowtham.

Lucknow (Playing XI) – KL Rahul (C/ WK), Quinton de Kock, Deepak Hooda (In for Devdutt Padikkal), Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Krunal Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi, Shamar Joseph, Yash Thakur,  Mohsin Khan (In for Naveen-ul-Haq).

Impact players nominated by Kolkata – Suyash Sharma, Anukul Roy, Manish Pandey, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rinku Singh.

Kolkata (Playing XI) – Phil Salt (WK), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (C), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana (In for Rinku Singh), Varun Chakaravarthy.

TOSS – Both the captains are out there in the middle for the flip of the coin. Shreyas Iyer, the home skipper flips the coin. KL Rahul, the captain of Lucknow calls for heads but it falls as tails. Shreyas Iyer informs that they will BOWL first.

Shamar Joseph, the West Indian quick, has been handed over the cap in the Lucknow camp. He is set to make his debut today. 

Pitch Report: The experts share that it looks like a good batting wicket. Reckon that there will be plenty of runs on offer with short square boundaries and not a very big straight boundary either. They further add that the outfield is pretty quick and the batters who get in should try and make the most of it.  

Lucknow, on the flip side, are going strong in the completion and are currently at number four in the table. After winning a hat-trick of games, they suffered a dip against Delhi, losing by 6 wickets. Batting first, Lucknow made a decent score of 167 but were probably 15-20 runs short on a good batting track. KL Rahul got his side off to a quick start but wickets kept falling around him and he eventually was dismissed for 39. Lucknow were struggling at 94 for 7 when Ayush Badoni and Arshad Khan made an unbeaten 73-run stand to take their side to a competitive score. Badoni with 55 off 35 batted till the end and showed great composure. Defending their score, Lucknow bowlers failed to get wickets at crucial times and paid the price for it. Lucknow have a formidable side and will hope to get back into winning ways. Let's see who comes out on top in this exciting contest. Toss and team news in a bit. Stay tuned!

Hello and welcome to our coverage of Match 28 in the Indian T20 League. Kolkata are hosting Lucknow at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Both sides are coming off a loss and will want to get into winning ways quickly. The home side Kolkata are playing a game after a six-day gap. Their previous game was against Chennai which they lost by 7 wickets. Batting first, Kolkata could only manage 137 runs on a decent wicket. Only Shreyas Iyer and Sunil Narine made a few runs but the rest of the team struggled. The bowling also failed to contain the Chennai batting as the chasing team got the winning runs inside 18 overs. Kolkata have won three and lost just a solitary game so far and will look to get two more points in front of their home fans. 

…MATCHDAY…

The Indian T20 League is in full swing and the whole nation is following the action closely. We now await match number 28 where Kolkata clash against Lucknow at the iconic Eden Gardens. Both the teams find themselves in the upper half of the points table with Kolkata having the upper hand. They had a strong start to the season and won three consecutive games. They were dealt their first loss in their last game against Chennai. Their batting unit looked to be in trouble with Phil Salt, Venkatesh Iyer, and Rinku Singh failing to get to the double digits. Sunil Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi put up a good partnership and tried to stabilize the innings followed by a steady knock from Shreyas as well. However, after that, the batters lost wickets in quick succession and failed to get to a good score. In the bowling department, Vaibhav Arora managed to give them the opening breakthrough but after that, they failed to scalp wickets at important times and allowed big partnerships to be formed. They failed to defend the target and only Arora and Sunil Narine managed to get in the wickets column. Lucknow on the other hand, were on a great comeback by winning three games after their initial defeat, but faced another loss against Delhi in their most recent encounter. The batting department couldn't put up great scores. Quinton de Kock was sent back early followed by Devdutt Padikkal, Marcus Stoinis, and Nicholas Pooran in quick succession. KL Rahul played with great temperament but he too couldn't get to a big score. However, Ayush Badoni and Arshad Khan put up a great partnership towards the end and bailed them out of a tough spot. Their boost at the end provided a decent base for the bowling unit to try and defend the total. However, the opponents started to create pressure from the initial stages and Lucknow couldn't get a few wickets in timely intervals. Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Thakur, and Naveen-ul-Haq were the bowlers who got wickets and bowled economically but the others didn't give them the support needed. A lot of runs were leaked and that led to their opponents taking home those two points. With both teams on 6 points, this is a match where one team will gain a significant advantage over the other with a win. Will the hosts get a win or will there be another upset where the visitors exert dominance? We shall find out soon.