Kolkata Knight Riders play their last home match of IPL 2024 at Eden Gardens on Saturday.

Besides the cricket, the fate of the match hangs on the balance of two halves.

If the first half sees a spell of rain, the evening game at the Eden — where the in-form Knights take on a bottom-of-the-table Mumbai Indians — looks safe.

If it does not rain till Saturday afternoon, a spell of thundershowers is “very likely” in the evening or at night, a Met official said on Friday.

The match is scheduled to start at 7.30pm.

It is that time of the year when squalls, some of them Nor’westers, have played spoilsport at many an IPL game at the Eden.

“A spell of showers, accompanied by strong gusts of wind and streaks of lightning, is very likely in Calcutta between late Friday night and the early hours of Sunday,” H.R. Biswas, head of the weather section at the Regional Meteorological Centre, Calcutta, told Metro around 8.45pm on Friday.

“If the spell happens between Friday night and the first half of Saturday, then the chances of rain in the evening will go down. Even if it happens, the showers are expected to be brief and light. But if the city is dry till Saturday afternoon, then a strong spell of rain is expected to strike late in the evening,” said Biswas.

Rain need not be the only worry for the Eden-bound.

Supporters have to be mindful of the traffic curbs that will be in place on Saturday because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to the city. He is expected to stay at Raj Bhavan.

Kolkata Traffic Police posted a detailed bulletin on the traffic restrictions on Saturday and Sunday:

Around 3pm on Friday, the slice of the Maidan near Mohammedan Sporting Club, which has tents for people to collect online tickets, was abuzz.

The weather was on the minds of many.

Gary Gower, 60, who came from England, was kicked about making his Eden debut.

He was tracking the weather forecast. “I pray that my IPL debut is not ruined by rain tomorrow,” said the retired banker, who counts Sunil Narine and Phil Salt among his favourite players.

An army jawan posted at Fort William was among those who had come to collect tickets. “I am a supporter of Mumbai Indians. Very rarely do I get a chance to watch a cricket match live. I just hope the rain does not spoil my opportunity,” he said, requesting anonymity.