Match 57 of the 2025 Indian Premier League season brings us an encounter between a resurgent Kolkata Knight Riders side and a struggling Chennai Super Kings side at Eden Gardens on May 7.
For the game, here are our preview and predictions.
The Knight Riders started the season poorly but are peaking at the right time. Having won their last two games, they’ll be looking to continue their upward trajectory against a struggling CSK.
The positive thing to note about KKR is that their key players are returning to form at the right time, with the likes of Andre Russell and Sunil Narine having contributed significantly to the team’s cause in recent games.
Their most recent encounter against the Rajasthan Royals turned out to be a last-ball thriller, which the defending champions won by one run. Batting first, KKR managed a par total of 206/4, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz (35 off 25) and Ajinkya Rahane (30 off 24) ensuring they had a decent start. Angkrish Raghuvanshi (44 off 31), Andre Russell (57 off 25), and Rinku Singh (19 off 6) then took them past the 200-run mark as no RR bowler came close to troubling them.
In response, RR lost the young Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the first over, though Yashaswi Jaiswal (34 off 21) went after the the KKR bowlers in the Powerplay. Captain Riyan Parag then played a blinder (97 off 45), giving the team hope despite wickets tumbling around him. Shubham Dubey (25 off 14) then took on Vaibhav Arora in the last over, taking his team close, but he couldn’t quite cross the finish line. Varun Chakaravarthy’s two crucial wickets in a single over proved key in KKR’s win.
On the other hand, the Super Kings were on the losing end against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their last encounter. Batting first, RCB openers Jacob Bethell (55 off 33) and Virat Kohli (62 off 33) smashed their bowlers all around the park, scoring 97 runs in the first ten overs. However, after their departure, the RCB middle order slumped as CSK made a comeback. Then, just when it looked like RCB wouldn’t cross 175, Romario Shepherd played a blistering knock of 53* off 14 to take them to 213/5. Only Noor Ahmad, Ravindra Jadeja, and Anshul Kamboj returned with decent bowling figures for CSK.
In response, thanks to their impressive young opener Ayush Mhatre’s 94 off 48 and Ravindra Jadeja’s 77* off 45, CSK looked like they’d cruise to a win. Once Mhatre got out, however, Dewald Brevis followed suit immediately, putting the team on the backfoot. MS Dhoni came in but struggled to score freely as the five-time IPL winners failed to chase the target and lost by a mere two runs in the end. Krunal Pandya proved RCB’s most economic bowler on the night with figures of 1/24 from three overs.
Coming to this game, while CSK have nothing but pride to play for, KKR remain in the hunt for a playoff spot. With most of their players finding form at the right time, this is a match the Knight Riders should be able to win.
Fantasy XI: Ayush Mhatre, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Rinku Singh, Anshul Kamboj, Harshit Rana, Khaleel Ahmed
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Winners Prediction: Kolkata Knight Riders
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