IPL 2025, KKR vs CSK Highlights: Chennai clinch Eden thriller; Dhoni six, Dube hit Kolkata’s Playoff hopes

Ajinkya Rahane: It's a tough thing to be on the losing side, I think we were 10-15 runs short. We thought 185-195 would have been an ideal total on this wicket, but I think it was a great game. In this format that things are bound to happen, an over (Vaibhav vs Brevis) here and there, but I think they batted really well and took their chances. Brevis and Dube they took their chances and it really paid off (for CSK.) No complaints but I think our bowlers bowled really well. It is pretty simple, now we have to win two out of two, let's see what happens to see what happens from there.

MS Dhoni becomes the first batter to remain unbeaten in 100 innings in the IPL.

100* not outs

60 in won matches

42 in chases

30 in winning chases

8 needed off 6. MS Dhoni on strike. 2 wickets in hand. Russell up with the ball. Here goes...

BANG!! Low full toss and MS Dhoni rewinds the clock to pump the ball over wide long-on for SIX! Dhoni drives the next to long-off but decides against the single. Similar stroke, Dhoni runs to level the scores this time. Anshul Kamboj is on strike. In the slot and Kamboj pumps it over mid-on for FOUR and CSK sneak in a two-wicket victory to break KKR's hopes.

Huge pressure on Dhoni to get his hits on point here. Vaibhav returns with a slower delivery outside off and Dhoni taps for a single. A wide to fall as Arora attempts to keep the lines away from Dube's arc. Well.. KKR have reviewed to get the wide signal rectified and we have action replay as Arora hits a similar line again. Another review against the wide from KKR. This time the umpire gets it right as the ball falls outside the revised wide guideline. Arora brings one back in and Dube waits on another delivery to clobber it over wide long-on. SIX! Arora to Dube, OUT! High in the air and taken this time! Arora almost gets the line on point this time. Fuller outside the off-stump and Dube's outstretched swing sends a miscued ball to Rinku at mid-off. Excellent hand from the southpaw but he fails to finish the job for CSK. Noor Ahmad is in at 9. He taps one behind square and scrambles to complete a second run first up. Short ball and Noor pulls it straight to Rinku in the deep.  KKR and Arora have dramatically managed to pull this game to the final over.

Shivam Dube c Singh b Arora 45 (40b 2x4 3x6); Noor Ahmad c Singh b Arora 2 (2b)

Russell nails in a tight over as Dube and Dhoni fail to find the fence. Excellent lengths on the full as CSK only reel in four runs from the over and the equations suddenly slip to 18 from 2 overs!

CSK 162/6 in 18 overs

Dhoni is content with the singles as Harshit continues. It's on Dube for now to find the boundaries and the skipper is happy to take it deep as is his wont. Rana darts in the slower-ball but Dube nails the connection yet again as he launches it over long-on for SIX. That will ease the nerves in the CSK camp yet again as Dube flicks the ball to the deep for a single.

CSK 158/6 in 17 overs

Andre Russell into the attack

Dhoni misses out a loosener outside off-stump and promptly hands the strike to Dube. Short ball and Dube swiftly swats it through square-leg for FOUR before finding another single. 

CSK 147/6 in 16 overs

Harshit returns with subtle changes of pace that keeps Dhoni on his toes. KKR are slowly pulling things back and Dube would need Dhoni to nail a few hits as well in the rest of this chase. Harshit comes around to hit length and Dube makes room to pumps the slower-ball over long-off for SIX.

CSK 140/6 in 15 overs

Narine continues to fire from stump-to-stump but Dhoni and Dube are content to keep him out of bay, playing with a watchful eye to see him off. Narine beats Dhoni's blade with his final delivery. A tickle could have made things interesting there.

CSK 132/6 in 14 overs

Varun to Brevis, OUT! Has Brevis thrown it away? One pressure over has flipped the scales again. Varun comes from around the stumps and slides it in, only for Brevis to scoop it up for the long-on fielder. In walks MS Dhoni, probably for the last time at Eden, to face a huge spin test. He's off the blocks with a single. A short leg in place as Dube gives the strike back with a single. Dhoni taps it out. Varun bows out with figures of 4-0-18-2.

Dewald Brevis c Singh b Varun 52 (25b 4x4 4x6)

Narine subtly pulls things back with another tight over. CSK can afford to take it a little slowly from here with the current asking rate. Four from the over.

CSK 127/5 in 12 overs

Arora overpitches and Brevis smites it so hard that even a bulwark in Russell cannot stop it searing past him at long-off. Pace off off-cutter to follow and Brevis nonchalantly clips it fine for FOUR. THWACK! Another one in the slot and Brevis crunches it down the ground for FOUR more! Full toss to follow and Brevis crunches another hit down the ground, SIX more! 6, 4, 4, 6.... and 6 more! Another loopy full-toss and Brevis pummels it over wide long-on this time for another maximum. Slower ball outside off-stump and Brevis smears it through extra cover for FOUR. 32 from the over and Brevis has waltzed to a 22-ball half-century. 

CSK 123/5 in 11 overs

Varun has put a stranglehold on this chase here. Just the four runs from the over as Dube and Brevis keep the anchors down to see off another over. 

CSK 93/5 in 10 overs

Narine keeps him in check but slips one loosener in and Brevis doesn't wait to launch it over long-on for a massive SIX. A hint of width again and Brevis makes the ball race towards the practice strips but there's cover to deny a boundary,

CSK 88/5 in 9 overs

Daunting ask for the two batters to keep up the scoring rates while tackling Narine and Chakaravarthy. Varun skims through a tight over, conceding only five runs,

CSK 79/5 in 8 overs

Sunil Narine into the attack

A hint of space from length and Dube slaps it through extra cover for FOUR. A couple of singles and Brevis goes for the hack, just wide of the fielder in the deep on the on-side for FOUR.

CSK 74/5 in 7 overs

Varun Chakaravarthy to Jadeja, OUT! Dragged on and gone!

Jadeja was particularly watchful as he slowed back into the crease to counter the googly, but he ends up slicing it off the inside-edge back to the stumps. KKR are eyeing a huge win here with half the CSK side back in the hut.

Ravindra Jadeja b Varun 19 (10b 2x4 1x6)

Jadeja advances and hammers Rana's short delivery over deep mid-wicket for SIX. Off-cutter outside off-stump and Jadeja dabs it past point for FOUR. Jadeja buys a two before rotating strike. Harshit to Ashwin, OUT! Guided straight to point. A silly shot in the outcome from Ashwin as he opens the face of the blade and simply parries it to preying hands. CSK find themselves in a rut despite the runs on board.

CSK 56/4 in 5 overs

Moeen continues. Jadeja and Ashwin isn't a duo that an IPL top-order would want batting in the Powerplay. Quiet over from the offie, just the six coming from it.

CSK 43/3 in 4 overs

Urvil biffs another massive SIX over mid-wicket, taking on Harshit Rana's short-pitched delivery. A slower-cutter outside off-stump and Urvil flashes hard. OUT! Thick outside-edge and Urvil's caught by a pretty straightish short-third. Excellent variation from Rana and fine field placement from the captain.

CSK 37/3 in 3 overs

Urvil Patel c Varun b Harshit Rana 31 (11b 1x4 4x6)

Moeen Ali into the attack

Moeen slides it in and Urvil unleashes a blistering slog-sweep for SIX over mid-wicket. Mooen offers width and Urvil slaps it over mid-off for FOUR. Short ball and Urvil wallops another one over mid-wicket. This is some statement on debut from Urvil. A single to follow. Moeen to Conway, OUT! Cleaned him up. Moeen gets one to scuttle through the gates and Conway's return to the top of the order ends with a blob. Interestingly, R Ashwin walks out at 4.

Devon Conway b Ali 0 (2b)

Vaibhav to Mhatre, OUT! A two-ball duck for the youngster! Short and wide and Mhatre slaps it straight to the fielder at cover-point. Urvil Patel walks in at 3 on his debut. SIX! Urvil smokes a maximum over mid-wicket on his IPL debut second ball. Talk about a start after coming in as a replacement player.

CSK 8/1 in 1 over

Ayush Mhatre and Devon Conway walk out for the chase. Vaibhav Arora takes the new ball.

Pathirana fires it in the blockhole. Three on the bounce and KKR reel in three singles. Slower low full-toss and Pandey drags it to the deep for another run. Six singles and a superb finish from Pathirana. 

Erred in a couple of overs in between but the Lankan slingman has ensured Kolkata hasn't run away with this one.

KKR 179/6 in 20 overs

Noor to Rinku, OUT! Noor goes short and Rinku's attempted reverse-sweep is stopped in the deep by an excellent Ayush Mhatre. He lunges to keep the ball in play with the right hand and balances himself well to keep it in control. Still some firepower left as Ramandeep Singh comes in. A single to follow. Noor tosses one up and Pandey heaves it across the line through wide long-on for FOUR.

Rinku Singh c Mhatre b Noor Ahmad 9 (6b 2x4)

KKR 173/6 in 19 overs

Pathirana misses his length and Pandey clears his front leg and pumps him over long-on for a SIX. A single to follow and Rinku slices a low full-toss past Dhoni for FOUR. Despite Russell's fall, KKR are lining up a decent finish here.

KKR 162/5 in 18 overs

Russell launches another biggie over mid-wicket but Noor immediately strikes back. Gone! Russell miscues the hit from a flatter angle outside the off-stump and the ball lobs straight to the long-off fielder. Big wicket for CSK after Russell was threatening to leave a massive dent.

Andre Russell c Brevis b Noor Ahmad 38 (21b 4x4 3x6)

Pathirana sprays it a touch short and Russell butches it from his presence over mid-wicket for SIX! Another loosener on length and Russell smites it over extra cover for FOUR.

Jadeja goes flat and Russell's thick heave flies sharply over first-slip for FOUR. Streaky but Russell decides to put more weight on the subsequent deliveries and clobbers a length ball down the ground for SIX.

KKR 124/4 in 15 overs

Matheesha Pathirana enters with a bag of yorkers and keeps down Pandey and the big blade of Andre Russell to six singles in the over. Top start there and it seems like he's slowly getting back into his groove.

KKR 109/4 in 14 overs

Jadeja to Rahane, OUT! The KKR skipper perishes with a tame shot. Rahane unfurls a reverse-sweep and miscues it straight to the point fielder. A milestone wicket that for Jadeja as he becomes CSK's highest IPL wicket-taker, surpassing DJ Bravo.

Ajinkya Rahane c Conway b Jadeja 48 (33b 4x4 2x6) 

Ashwin has returned with a neat over, mixing it up nicely against Pandey and Rahane. He invites Pandey into the big swing down the ground and he nearly finds the long-on fielder on the full. Tough chance there.

KKR 101/3 in 12 overs

Jadeja hits length and Rahane rocks back to slap it over long-off for SIX. A couple of singles to follow and Rahane is squared up with a beauty that turns and straightens from length, whizzing past the off-stump.

KKR 97/3 in 11 overs

Noor continues.

He hits length and Rahane taps it across for a single. Angles it across the pitch this time and Pandey carves it out to the deep for another run. Over 25 balls now without a boundary as Rahane and Pandey continue to tread on singles. 

KKR 87/3 in 10 overs

Ravindra Jadeja up with the ball

He skims through a quiet over as Rahane and Pandey resort to singles. Seven from the over as KKR jump to 80 before the timeout.

KKR 80/3 in 9 overs

Noor Ahmad into the attack

Noor to Narine, OUT! You still can't test MS' glovework at 43. Narine advances to a loopy delivery and the ball trickles back from the stumps. Dhoni collects and flicks it in the nick of time and Narine's on his way. Angkrish Raghuvanshi at 4. OUT! A two-ball duck and MSD clings onto the outside-edge.

Angkrish Raghuvanshi c Dhoni b Noor Ahmad 1(2)

Sheer class from Rahane! Kamboj hits length and Rahane subtly scoops it over Dhoni for SIX. Kamboj overpitches and Rahane flays it over mid-off for FOUR. A single to follow. Kamboj strays to the pads this time and Narine flicks it behind square for another FOUR.

KKR 67/1 in 6 overs

R Ashwin into the attack

Ashwin tosses one up to the pads and Narine scythes it behind square leg for FOUR. Ashwin goes slightly side-on but drops it shorter and Narine hammers it through mid-wicket for another FOUR. All power from Narine! Ashwin goes short again and Narine rocks back and pumps it down the ground off the backfoot over long-off for SIX! 

KKR 50/1 in 5 overs

Rahane gets adventurous with another pick-up shot from length off Kamboj, but does not get the desired timing on this one. He skies it but Pathirana fumbles and puts down a straightforward chance at deep square!

KKR 36/1 in 4 overs

Ajinkya Rahane picks on the short ball and handsomely wallops it through mid-wicket for FOUR. Khaleel errs with another short ball and Rahane miscues it for a four over mid-wicket. Streaky but gets it past the fielders.

KKR 27/1 in 3 overs

Anshul Kamboj from the other end

Anshul to Gurbaz, OUT! Gone. The high bumper does the trick as Gurbaz advances to send a top-edge to the edge of the circle at mid-wicket. 

Gurbaz c Noor Ahmad b Anshul Kamboj 11(9)

KKR 17/1 in 2 overs

Khaleel Ahmed up with the new ball

First ball sprayed across the turf and Gurbaz eases into the drive through the covers and beats the fielders for FOUR first ball. Just the five from it as Gurbaz gives a couple of charges but misses.

KKR 5/0 in 1 over

KKR co-owner Juhi Chawla and bowling coach Dwayne Bravo ring the bell as Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sunil Narine walk out to the middle for KKR. 

All players line up for the national anthem in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attacks before beginning match proceedings. 

Kolkata Knight Riders Impact Subs: Harshit Rana, Anukul Roy, Luvnith Sisodia, Anrich Nortje, Mayank Markande
Chennai Super Kings Impact Subs: Shivam Dube, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Jamie Overton, Deepak Hooda

Kolkata Knight Riders Playing XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Ramandeep Singh, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy.

Chennai Super Kings Playing XI: Ayush Mhatre, Urvil Patel, Devon Conway, Ravindra Jadeja, Dewald Brevis, Ravichandran Ashwin, MS Dhoni(w/c), Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed, Matheesha Pathirana

TOSS: KKR win toss, opt to bat

MS Dhoni: I have played a lot of cricket here while growing up, like a home ground for the amount of cricket I have played here. When it was Zonal trophy, a few office leagues, overall I have played a lot of cricket here and nearby. What's important is to get answers for the next year. What hasn't gone well for us in the tournament. Trying to get those answers, our middle order batting and bowling solutions. We are giving chances to players, but we want a good playing XI or XII. You can try such things towards the end. What players will slot in. They have two quality spinners, so it will be a challenge. Conway and Urvil Patel come in for Rasheed and Curran.

Ajinkya Rahane: We will bat first. Looks a good wicket. Last two games we batted first and did really well. We want to put runs on the board and defend it. What's important is taking one game at a time. Not thinking much about the future. Lots of learnings from the previous match, guys are looking forward to this game. You are bound to lose close games, but you need to be confident. If there's a chance, we will try to give our best. Venkatesh Iyer misses out, Manish Pandey comes in.

Ajinkya Rahane and MS Dhoni in the middle for the coin flip

The pitch that's going to be used tonight is right in the centre. The square boundaries are 62m and 64m respectively, 75m down the ground. The surface looks a bit tacky, looks a bit up and down. A little area on the surface looks loose. There will be a bit inconsistent pace on the wicket. There might be some turn later on, but you need to use the new ball really well. Scoring heavily in the powerplay will be crucial tonight. There are patches where it looks hard, there are a few patches where it doesn't. Four out of five games have been won by teams batting first. The team batting first should try to score 200-plus, it's achievable. Both the teams have some good spinners who can exploit the conditions, from Aaron Finch and Deep Dasgupta

With the Kolkata Knight Riders hosting the Chennai Super Kings in a must-game for the hosts on Wednesday, KKR coach Chandrakant Pandit has asked his team to "ignore the noise" around Dhoni. 

With there being plenty of clamour around Dhoni, and talk of this possibly being the former India captain's last match at the Eden Gardens, it could make members of the opposition team lose focus on the task at hand. 

“During these kinds of games, every player and every team is always focused on their own game,” Pandit said on the eve of the match against CSK. “I mean, that’s sometimes like, if a batter is batting and there is so much noise around and if you ask that batter, probably he will say that ‘I didn’t hear anything about it."

He added: “It was the same case with me when people used to tell me so much noise around and how you can focus. But sometimes we just ignore that noise automatically. So, obviously when you are focused on the game, it does not matter so much if you ask me,” he said.

MS Dhoni is the leading run-scorer for Chennai Super Kings among active players against Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, with 498 runs to his name.

Ravindra Jadeja leads the wicket-taking charts for CSK against KKR among active players, having claimed 20 wickets. He has also won four Player of the Match awards against KKR—second-most by any active player versus the franchise.

Faf du Plessis’ unbeaten 95 off 60 balls in the IPL 2021 final in Dubai remains the highest individual score by a CSK player against KKR.

Jadeja also holds the best bowling figures by a CSK player against KKR, with his 4/12 spell in IPL 2015 at Ranchi.

(Courtesy: CSK's website)

Chennai Super Kings talisman and stand-in captain MS Dhoni skipped training session at the Eden Gardens as the CSK players sharpened their weapons ahead of the battle with Kolkata Knight Riders. But CSK bowling coach Eric Simons said there was not too much to read into Dhoni’s absence. 

“With regards to MS, he knows his situation very well. He knows where he is in terms of his preparations. He always works very hard at the beginning of a tournament and then allows himself to taper off because he gets himself in a space where he's ready. So no issues. He just knows when he is prepared and when he's not,” said Simons at a press conference in Kolkata.

• Matches played: 10
• KKR won: 4
• CSK won:  6
• Tied: 0
• Last result: CSK won by 49 runs (April, 2023)

• Matches played: 32
• KKR won: 12
• CSK won: 20
• Tied: 0
• Last result: Kolkata Knight Riders won by 8 Wickets (April, 2025)

The day before the IPL auction of 2012, KKR captain Gautam Gambhir made only one demand to the team management. “Even if you buy just one player make sure it’s Sunil Narine.” The management was initially skeptical, given the tendency of mystery spinners to fade away once the batsmen decoded them. “We had all seen him in the Champions League the year before and there was an element of mystery about him, but some of us still had doubts. But he kept calling me and repeated the same line,” assistant coach Vijay Dahiya had told this newspaper.

Like fireflies, they dazzle by the night and fizzle out by dawn. But Gambhir was so insistent on the Trinidadian, they eventually shelled out 10 fold his base prize and swooped him, just to please him.

READ MORE

“As far as I’ve spoken to him and interacted with him, he still wants to play another two or three cycles of the IPL – which is easily six more years. He looks fine and fit. It doesn’t matter how old you are, as long as you’re contributing to the team. That’s the mindset. In franchise cricket, no one’s going to question that,” Chakarvarthy said in a post-match conference.

“When I went into bat, with the kind of deliveries and runs needed, I think I should have converted couple of more shots to ease the pressure. So, I would take the blame for it,” Dhoni said the post match presentation.

“I thought they got off to a good start. We pulled it back in between but Romario Shepherd was brilliant in the death over. Whatever our bowlers were bowling, he was able to get maximum runs,” Dhoni said.

Dhoni also felt that CSK’s bowlers needed to execute yorkers better to keep the batters in check during the slog overs.

“I think we need to practice more yorkers because when batters start to connect, then you have to rely on yorkers. I think we need to practise more yorkers because if you see more often than not, when the batsman starts to connect, then you have to rely on yorkers,” Dhoni said. “So, if you’re looking for a perfect yorker, [and] if that doesn’t happen, a low full toss is the next best thing because it’s one of the most difficult balls to hit. So, I think that’s where we need to improve.”

May 10 at 7.30 pm vs Sunrisers Hyderabad in Hyderabad

May 17 at 7.30 pm vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Bengaluru

May 12 at 7.30 pm vs Rajasthan Royals in Chennai

May 18 at 3.30 pm vs Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad

Gujarat Titans climbed to the top of the points table after beating MI by three wickets in the last game. RCB are second, Punjab third, and MI slipped to fourth.