It is one of the most storied rivalries in the history of the IPL. Two cricket-crazy cities, two beloved franchises, one epic contest. It is the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) versus the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) — the fixture that is all set to get IPL 2022 underway on Saturday evening.
Despite being one of IPL’s original face-offs, the KKR-CSK story has been heavily one-sided. KKR have only managed to win eight out of 26 matches against the men in yellow, with CSK pocketing 17 victories and one match ending in a no result. Recent numbers show seven wins for CSK in their last eight games against KKR, including, of course, last year’s triumph in the final in Dubai.
Nobody has taken more wickets in KKR-CSK fixtures than Sunil Narine TT archives
In terms of individual numbers, two out of the three top scorers in this fixture — Suresh Raina (610 runs) and Faf du Plessis (423 runs) — will not be playing on Saturday, while Mahendra Singh Dhoni (442 runs) could be a doubt as he transitions into a player-mentor role for his franchise. Two men who should play in the 2022 curtain-raiser are Sunil Narine, who has picked up the most wickets for KKR against CSK (with 20), and Ravindra Jadeja who holds the corresponding honour for CSK with 16 KKR scalps to his name.
Before two of the IPL heavyweights take the field, My Kolkata would like to refresh your memories by revisiting three key moments from KKR-CSK clashes over the years.
KKR become champions in the Lions’ den
Heading into the 2012 IPL final at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Dhoni’s CSK were on the verge of history. Looking for a hat-trick of IPL titles, they were the firm favourties against a buoyant KKR side that had never been in a final before. KKR’s mission seemed even more herculean after CSK put up an imposing 192 on the board, with crucial contributions from Raina, Murali Vijay and Michael Hussey. After losing skipper Gautam Gambhir early, Manvinder Bisla and Jacques Kallis steadied the ship for KKR, inching ever closer to a remarkable comeback. But both batters fell swinging for the fences and it was left to Shakib Al Hasan and Manoj Tiwary to see KKR over the line. In the last over against death specialist Dwayne Bravo, with nine runs required to claim a maiden championship, it was Tiwary who wrote himself into KKR folklore by hitting consecutive boundaries through square leg and ending CSK’s stranglehold on the IPL crown. The Knights had not only slayed the best team in the competition, they had done it in the Lion’s own den.
A clinical performance at Eden
Robin Uthappa was instrumental in KKR’s convincing win over CSK at the Eden Gardens in 2014 TT archives
If Brendon McCullum and Co. are looking for the ideal template of what a match against CSK should be like, they cannot do much better than cast their minds back to 2014 at the Eden Gardens, when soon-to-be champions KKR swept aside a lacklustre CSK to register a thumping eight-wicket win with 12 balls to spare. Batting first, CSK had huffed and puffed their way to 154, with a valiant 65 from Raina. In the second innings, the pitch seemed to be far more amenable to the batters’ wishes. Robin Uthappa’s scintillating 67 off 39 gave KKR the perfect platform, while a quickfire 46 from Shakib sealed the deal.
A homecoming to remember for CSK
Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo celebrate after the former won a nail-biting match for CSK against KKR in 2018 BCCI
KKR were the first visiting team to play in Chennai following the two-year suspension of CSK that ended in 2018. With little regard for the occasion, KKR went out and put up a mammoth 202 on the board, courtesy Andre Russell’s beast-mode knock of 88 in 36 balls. Shane Watson started well for CSK, who are not the greatest chasers in the competition. Sam Billings did the heavy lifting through his 56 at the end. As the match went down to the wire, veteran Vinay Kumar had the job of keeping Jadeja in check, but erred in length on the penultimate ball of the match. A half-tracker from Kumar was smacked by Jadeja into the stands to make it a dream homecoming for CSK.