Match Center

And then, there was one! After Kolkata lost this game, Rajasthan remain the only unbeaten side in the tournament and they will keep that run intact for now. Next up, two teams who are deadlocked in the table will go up against each other in a bid to break free from that congested middle part of the table and move up a few places. It is Punjab taking on Hyderabad in Mullanpur and that game will be played on Tuesday, 9 April at 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT). You can join us a lot sooner though for the build-up to that game. Till then, take care and goodbye!

Ravindra Jadeja is the Player of the Match for his brilliant bowling and fielding performance and also becomes the first player ever in the Indian T20 League to score at least 1000 runs, take 100 wickets and take 100 catches as well. Jadeja says that he didn't know about that record and jokes that both MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina got the verification of their names given by the fans and his name is yet to be verified. He goes on to say that whenever he plays at Chennai, he enjoys a lot. Adds that he was hoping with the seam-up deliveries, the ball would grip and just looked to bowl in the right areas. Mentions that for any visiting team, it will take time to settle and for them to come here, it is a bit difficult and they know the home conditions really well.

Ruturaj Gaikwad the skipper of Chennai says that this game reminded him of when he scored his first 50 in the Indian T20 League with MS Dhoni on the other side. Adds that with Ajinkya Rahane out with an injury he had to play along and anchor the innings. Mentions that this was a 150-160 run wicket with rotation of strike in the middle overs but certainly wasn't a 6-hitting track. Says that Ravindra Jadeja always comes to bowl after the Powerplay and gives them that much-needed momentum and with this team he doesn't have to tell anybody what is to be done and with MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming around it all seems easy. Concludes that this game was perfect and he had enough time to tick along and get it done.

The presentation ceremony...

Daryl Mitchell is now down for a chat. Mitchell says that it is always nice to play in front of this special crowd and get the wicket as well. Adds that they knew the surface was on the slower side and wanted to take the game deep with a big partnership. On facing Narine, he says that he is a world-class bowler and is happy with the way he was able to play him and commends Ruturaj Gaikwad for holding one end. Mentions that it was nice batting out there and he doesn't mind batting higher or lower in the order and just wants to contribute.

Shreyas Iyer the captain of Kolkata says that they fell short on assessing the wicket after the phenomenal start and after the powerplay run scoring wasn't very easy. Adds that Chennai know the conditions better and the wicket changed after that powerplay and there are great learnings going ahead. Mentions that they were at a comfortable place and they thought 160-170 could be a good total but the loss of consecutive wickets hampered their cause. States that they have to go back to the drawing board and are glad that this loss came early in the tournament so they can retrospect and come back stronger.

Earlier in the game, Ruturaj Gaikwad won the toss and had no hesitation in bowling first and even mentioned that there would be dew later on. Chennai got the perfect start with the ball as Phil Salt hit the very first ball of the match straight to Ravindra Jadeja at point. Sunil Narine did counter-attack well and added a good stand with young Angkrish Raghuvanshi just like in the previous game. However, as soon as Ravindra Jadeja was introduced into the attack, it all started to fall apart for Kolkata. Shreyas Iyer held up one end but couldn't convert it into a big finish and they lost wickets in the latter half to hobble their way to 137 runs. The likes of Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande and Mustafizur Rahman all picked up multiple wickets and overall it was a solid bowling effort from the home side. In reply, it was a calm and composed knock from skipper Gaikwad that took Chennai to the win without much of a fuss.

Kolkata simply didn't have enough runs on the board but could have done a bit better with the ball as well. Mitchell Starc was once again expensive but Vaibhav Arora did bowl decently and got the first wicket. In the middle phase, their spinners just didn't have the same impact as their counterparts due to the dew and also due to the fact that they just didn't bowl well enough. The likes of Anukul Roy and Varun Chakaravarthy were pretty expensive but Sunil Narine did show good control and did get a wicket. And, that was as good as it got for Kolkata as they were beaten comprehensively and their unbeaten run has ended.

Back at home and back to winning ways for Chennai as they recover from a two-game losing streak to hand Kolkata their first defeat of the season and it was quite a thumping defeat. This just goes to show that in a tournament of such high quality, you cannot relax for even a bit and always have to be at the top of your game to get the result in your favor. Chasing 138 for the win, the Chennai openers got off to a quick start with Rachin Ravindra taking on Mitchell Starc but he went for one too many and got himself out. After this Ruturaj Gaikwad played an anchoring role and played some delightful shots to find the fence as Daryl Mitchell at the other end kept the ante fairly up. Mitchell tried to be even more aggressive but got caught out as well. Shivam Dube came out and entertained the crowd with a few big hits but couldn't finish unbeaten but Gaikwad finished with an unbeaten knock of 67 runs off 58 balls to take his side home and keep the unbeaten home run going as well.

FOUR! Ruturaj Gaikwad does it with a boundary for his side as Chennai win by 7 wickets with 14 balls to spare. Anukul Roy bowls this a tad shorter and outside off, Ruturaj Gaikwad rocks back and crisps it through point for four runs to wrap things up. A true captain's knock from Ruturaj Gaikwad!

Bowls this nicely on a fuller length and gets the ball to angle back into the pads, MS Dhoni tucks it to deep mid-wicket and gets the single.

Pushes this through on a fuller length and into the stumps, MS Dhoni pushes it to mid on.

Floats this one on off, Ruturaj Gaikwad cuts it to the right of point for a single.

Bowls the fuller one on the off stump line, MS Dhoni drives it on the full straight to the fielder at cover.

MS Dhoni walks out to bat with Chennai needing 3 runs for victory and the crowd goes wild.

OUT! TIMBER! Vaibhav Arora gets his second but Shivam Dube has done his part. Arora bowls a fuller delivery on off, Shivam Dube looks for the big hoick but misses out as the ball zips through the bat to uproot the off stump.

SIX! That's huge and couldn't have sounded better off the bat! A fuller delivery, on leg, Shivam Dube makes a bit of room and hoists it into the stands over mid-wicket for a biggie!