IPL 2022: CSK vs KKR Preview, Playing XI, Live Streaming Details & Updates

Cricket fans must gear up to witness some exciting action between the bat and the ball as the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to get underway on March 26. The opening clash would see last season’s finalists Chennai Super Kings crossing swords with Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Both teams have managed to retain their core from the last season but there’s a significant change in leadership.

On the eve of the competition, MS Dhoni, having led CSK for 12 seasons, handed over the reins to Ravindra Jadeja. On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer is the new KKR captain and he’ll have a point to prove. Both these players have been impressive in their recent assignments and expectations are pretty high from them.

While Shreyas has the experience of leading Delhi Capitals in the past, Ravindra Jadeja is yet to prove his credentials as skipper. The latter certainly has big boots to fill with MS Dhoni arguably being one of the best skippers ever. However, Jadeja will continue to have the assistance of the veteran wicketkeeper-batter, who’s expected to bid adieu to professional cricket after the competition.

As far as the team combination is concerned, there are some unavailability issues in both camps. CSK are set to miss Deepak Chahar’s services for a while amid fitness issues. On the other hand, KKR won’t be able to avail services of Australian duo Pat Cummins and Aaron Finch, who have been granted NoCs to participate in games post April 6. Hence, it will be interesting to see how their playing XIs will look like.

Pitch and Conditions

The pitch at the Wankhede Stadium is a good one for batting. The willow wielders will get value for their shots on this surface. The chasing team will defintely hold a great advantage as the dew is all but likely to play a part.

Playing Combinations for CSK vs KKR

Chennai Super Kings

With Faf du Plessis going to RCB, Ruturaj Gaikwad is set to open alongside New Zealand’s Devon Conway. CSK will continue to enjoy services of multi-dimensional players like Shivam Dube, Dwayne Bravo and skipper Ravindra Jadeja. While Adam Milne will be the overseas pacer, Tushar Deshpande and Rajvardhan Hangargekar can serve CSK till Chahar is available.

Predicted XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Shivam Dube, Dwayne Bravo, Tushar Deshpande, Chris Jordan, Adam Milne

Kolkata Knight Riders

As far as KKR is concerned, Ajinkya Rahane seems the top pick to open the batting alongside Venkatesh Iyer. Skipper Shreyas will walk into bat at number three. With wicketkeeper-batter Sam Billings , Andre Russell and Sunil Narine being in the ranks, the lower order also looks pretty solid. The bowling looks similar from last season with Shivam Mavi, Umesh Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy joining forces.

Predicted XI: Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Sam Billings (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shivam Mavi, Chamika Karunaratne, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy

CSK vs KKR Head-to-Head

Played – 26 | Chennai Super Kings – 17 | Kolkata Knight Riders – 8 | N/R – 1

CSK vs KKR Broadcast Details

Match Timings – 07:30 PM IST

TV – Star Sports Network

Live Streaming – Disney+Hotstar