IPL 2018, KKR vs KXIP, as it happened: Gayle, Rahul power Punjab to nine-wicket win in rain-hit game

That is all folks. However, do follow our live blog for the second game of the night. Bangalore take on Delhi as both team are looking to get back to winning ways. You can follow the live updates here.

“The bowling is coming along. It was going to be pretty easy for Kings XI after the rain break. Gayle and Rahul showed how good they are,” said Sunil Narine after bagging the purple cap.

‘It feels good to be among the runs. Doesn’t matter about the orange cap, I think Rahul deserves it. To be honest, I didn’t strike it really well, but when you have a momentum going, you need to capitalise,” said Chris Gayle after getting the orange cup.

PUNJAB WIN!

Gayle smashes one out of the park as Punjab register an emphatic nine-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Garden. The target was reduced to 125 due to the D/L method. Punjab win their third match on the trot. They now sit atop the IPL standings with eight wins.

WICKET! Rahul departs.
Narine strikes after being smashed for 14 runs in the first three balls. Gets Rahul who falls after a brilliant 60 of 27 balls.
Rahul b Narine c Curran 60 (27b)

After 9.3 overs, KXIP 116/0
Now Rahul brings up his fifty with a huge six. He then backs it up with two fours. Narine is being tested here. Superb batting this by Gayle and Rahul.

After 8.3 overs, KXIP 102/0
50 up for Gayle as he smashes Chawla for a huge six. This is his 23rd IPL fifty. Punjab now need 23 of 25 balls.

Punjab’s game to lose now. They need 29 runs from 28 balls. Kolkata need to get a few wickets early on if they are to win this game.

The covers are coming off. Play will resume in a bit.

Still raining in Kolkata ladies and gentlemen. Stay tuned for live updates.

After 8.2 overs, KXIP 96/0
Rain plays spoilsport or is it a blessing in disguise for Kolkata. According to Duckworth–Lewis method, Punjab are winners at this moment. The par score at this stage is 65/0. Punjab are 31 runs ahead. They have just blown the Kolkata bowlers away today.

Rahul 46 (23b)
Gayle 49 (27b)

After 7 overs, KXIP 86/0
Gayle and Rahul are firing on all cylinders as they march towards the target of 192 runs. They are just bossing this game at the moment. Kolkata are looking clueless out there. Kuldeep Yadav has been smashed by 13 runs in his first over.
Rahul 43 (17b)
Gayle 42 (25b)

After 5 overs, KXIP 62/0
Sunil Narine is brought into the attack. After four dot balls he has been smashed for a four by Gayle. Punjab are cruising at the moment. They need 130 runs in 90 balls. Smart batting this by Gayle and Rahul.

After 3.4 overs, KXIP 57/0
50 up for Punjab as Gayle smashes Russell for a four and a six. Fourth time Gayle and Rahul have stitched a partnership of 50 in the IPL. Russell seems to struggling with his hamstring here.

After 3 overs, KXIP 39/0
An expensive third over by Mavi as 17 runs come off it. Rahul ends it with a towering six as Mavi watches the ball go over the fence. Punjab are looking good to win this game. Dinesh Karthik needs wickets here.

After 2 overs, KXIP 22/0
Russell is taken to the cleaners in his first over. He has been hit for three boundaries as Punjab are off to a flying start. Kolkata need to get wickets here. They can’t let Gayle play himself in.

After 1 overs, KXIP 9/0
Nine runs come off the first over by Shivam Mavi. Rahul smashes him for back-to-back boundaries in the first three balls. But he pulls things back in the end. Brilliant start this.

Only 45 runs scored off the last 30 balls. Kolkata will be disappointed of not getting to 200.

“Executed my skills better. Full credit to Lynn, but nice to pull it back in the end. The score’s on-par,” said Punjab bowler Andrew Tye

After 20 overs, KKR 191/7
Kolkata end their innings with 191/7 which is a competitive total. Punjab pulled things back towards the end of the innings. However, they will need to perform with the bat now. Kolkata have done a good job here.

WICKET! Curran goes.
Tom Curran falls as Tye strikes in the last over of the innings. Easy catch for Ankit Rajpoot. Kolkata losing wickets now. Out comes Piyush Chawla. Punjab will look to restrict them under 200.
Curran b Tye c Rajpoot 1 (3b)

WICKET! Karthik falls
Sran strikes to dimiss Kolkata captain Dinesh Karthik. He goes for 43 of 28 balls. Easy catch for Tye in the deep. However, it looks a little too late for Punjab as Kolkata reach 186/6 after 19 overs.
Karthik b Sran c Tye 43 (28b)

After 17.3 overs, KKR 172/5
Karthik is playing an important innings here as he smashes Rajpoot for back-to-back boundaries as Kolkata continue to pile on runs. Shubman Gill needs to just hang in there and anchor the innings.

WICKET! Russell falls.
Karun Nair takes his third catch of the match. Sran strikes to dismiss the dangerous Andre Russell. The big hitter falls after smashing him for back-to-back boundaries.

Russell b Sran c Nair 10 (7b)

WICKET! Dangerous Lynn goes.
Tye strikes as he dismisses Chris Lynn who was looking dangerous out there. Easy catch by wicket-keeper Rahul. Out comes Andre Russell who has been in splendid form for Kolkata.

Lynn cRahul b Tye 74 (41b)

After 15 overs, KKR 146/3
Ashwin finishes his spell and ends with figures of 4-0-33-1. He bagged the wicket of Uthappa early on. Kolkata are closing in on a big score here.

After 14 overs, KKR 136/3
50-run partnership comes up between Chris Lynn and captain Dinesh Karthik. The duo are looking dangerous out there and with Andre Russell yet to come, one can expect fireworks now. Punjab need to get one of these guys out.
Lynn 67 (37b)
Karthik 28 (16b)

After 12 overs, KKR 112/3
50 comes up for Lynn. Brilliant batting this by the Australian. An expensive first over by Yuvraj Singh as 13 runs come off it. Ashwin needs to break this partnership.

After 11 overs, KKR 99/3
An expensive over by Ashwin there as Karthik smashes him for back-to-back boundaries. 13 runs come off it. Nine overs to go as Kolkata will be eyeing the 180-run mark.

WICKET! Rana is run-out.
A mix-up out there in the middle as Nitish Rana is run-out by Rajpoot. There was no run there. Clearly this was Rana’s mistake. He had been having a brilliant IPL so far.
Rana run-out by Rajpoot 3 (5b)

WICKET! Uthappa goes.
Ashwin strikes in his second over. He gets the wicket of Uthappa who was looking dangerous out there. Karun Nair gets his second catch of the day. He has been invovled in both wickets. The captain leading from the front here.
Uthappa b Ashwin c Nair 34 (23b)

After 8 overs, KKR 78/1
6, 1, 4, 6, 0, 6: 23 runs come off Sran’s second over as Lynn smashes him for two towering sixes. Kolkata are crusing at the moment.

After 7.1 overs, KKR 61/1
50 partnership between Lynn and Uthappa in just 36 balls. Sran is smashed for a huge six by Uthappa to bring up the achievement.

After 6 overs, KKR 50/1
And the 50 is up for Kolkata as Uthappa smashes Tye for a four and then backs it up with a single. The powerplay ends and the fielding restrictions are lifted. Ashwin immediately comes in to bowl the seventh over.
Lynn 22 (17)
Uthappa 24 (16)

After 5 overs, KKR 42/1
A tidy first over by Sran as six runs come of it. However, wickets is the need of the hour. Uthappa and Lynn need to build a partnership here.

After 4 overs, KKR 36/1
Uthappa smashes Mujeeb for a hat-trick of boundaries as 15 runs come of the over.
Uthappa 18 (10)
Lynn 15 (10)

After 3 overs, KKR 21/1
Lynn sends the ball over the fence for the first six of the match. Along with Uthappa, the duo are looking to make amends after Narine’s early wicket. Punjab need to pick up wickets here.

WICKET! Narine goes
Mujeeb Ur Rahman strikes in his first over as he dismisses the dangerous Sunil Narine. A superb catch by Karun Nair. Not the start Kolkata were looking for.
Narine c Nair b Mujeeb 1 (4b)

After 1 over, KKR 5/0
A fine first over by Ankit Rajpoot as he concedes only five runs with Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine at the crease. A cautious start by Kolkata.

Playing XI for Punjab: KL Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Aaron Finch, Yuvraj Singh, R Ashwin (captain), Andrew Tye, Barinder Sran, Ankit Rajpoot, Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Playing XI for Kolkata: Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (wk/captain), Andre Russell, Shubman Gill, Tom Curran, Piyush Chawla, Shivam Mavi, Kuldeep Yadav

The toss: Kings XI Punjab win the toss and opt to bowl first.

No changes for Kolkata in this match.
One change for Punjab as Mohit Sharma is replaced Ankit Rajpoot

“The body’s coping good. Not playing as much cricket as I used to. We have a good physio team in the IPL who are making sure I’m ready to go. Honestly, I like batting in the last five overs. Say, I go into bat at 130 with five overs to go, that lets me go hard from the start,” said Andre Russell before the match.

Pitch report: The pitch is nice and hard and players will get value for their shots. The team that wins the toss should bat first given it is a day game.

03:00 pm: Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the live blog of the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab at the Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata. This promises to be a mouth-watering encounter as Kolkata look to cement their spot at the top of the table. Punjab, on the other hand, are coming off a splendid win against Sunrisers Hyderabad who were hit by a Gayle storm. The West Indies batsman scored a 63-ball 104.