IPL 2017 Eliminator, Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kolkata Knight Riders – As it happened...

CATCH OF THE MATCH: Nathan Coulter-Nile
MAXIMUM SIXES: David Warner 
STYLISH PLAYER: Gautam Gambhir
MAN OF THE MATCH: Nathan Coulter-Nile

KKR win by 7 wickets with still 4 balls remaining (D/L method)

Over 5.2 | Score 48/3 | Jaggi 5 (8) ; Gambhir 31 (19)

Last six deliveries and just 2 runs needed. Bipul Sharma into the attack. Single off the first ball. And single off the nxt delivery as Kolkata inch past the defending champions to step into Qualifier 2 against Mumbai Indians.  

Over 5 | Score 46/3 | Jaggi 4 (7) ; Gambhir 30 (18)

Rashid Khan back in for his second over. 7 runs needed off 12 deliveries. Three runs picked up between the wickets by the skipper off the first three deliveries of the over. 4 off 9 now. Two more singles to follow. 2 off 7 now. Five off the over.  

Over 4 | Score 41/3 | Jaggi 3 (5) ; Gambhir 27 (14)

Siddarth Kaul into the attack now as 18 deliveries more to go and KKR need just 21 runs more. Second ball, short, seams across to off as Gambhir ramps it over point for a boundary. Third ball, down leg side, back of the length and Gambhir flicks it back over fine-leg for a six. 10 off 15 needed now. SRK looks quite anxious till now. 14 off the over.  

Over 3 | Score 27/3 | Jaggi 1 (3) ; Gambhir 15 (10)

Power-play is done. 27 needed off 24 now. Rashid Khan into the attack now. Singles off the first two deliveries. Six off the over, two runs coming from two wide deliveries.

Over 2 | Score 21/3 | Jaggi 0 (2) ; Gambhir 12 (5)

Chris Jordan is up for the second over, sharing the new ball. First ball, length, straight as Uthappa whips it over midwicket, but Shikhar Dhawan waits there in the deep to take it. Jordan's first wicket this season.

RV Uthappa c Dhawan b Jordan 1 (2b)

And Ishank Jaggi for the first time this season. Fifth ball, quicker bouncer, down leg side, off the top edge and balloons over the keeper for a six. Lucky Gambhir! 10 off the over.  

Over 1 | Score 11/2 | Uthappa 1 (1) ; Gambhir 4 (2)

Chris Lynn and Robin Uthappa are at the crease for the 48 run chase off just 36 deliveries. Bhuvneshwar Kumar to start off with the attack.

Second delivery, length, outside off as Lynn opens the face of his bat to slice it over backward point for a six. Pressure on the bowler immediately. Third ball, outside off yorker, feather-touch off vthe outside edge and Ojha takes it behind. Loud appeal and umpire goes upstairs....OUT! Huge wicket for Bhuvi and for SRH as mighty Lynn departs real early.

CA Lynn c Ojha b Kumar 6 (2b)

Yusuf Pathan out at strike now. Fourth ball, taps it shortly near his feet, looks for a single as Bhuvi charges in, collcts the ball and clatters the stumps. Pathan too slow to react departs on a golden duck.

YK Pathan run out 0 (1b)

Skipper out at the crease now. Last ball, length, seams across to the off, outside edge and arcs lowly over point for a boundary.  

The Umpires have inspected the field and #KKR will need to chase down 48 in 6 overs. Match to re-start at 00:55 IST with 2 overs of PP pic.twitter.com/0CnftAQcPZ

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 17, 2017

Umpires will be out to inspect in a few minutes from now. Warner and Tom Moody have already had a look and done their bit of inspection

UPDATE: Covers are coming off. KKR will get a chance to chase down 41 off 30 deliveries 

NEWS FROM THE PITCH: The deadline for the 20-over chase is now behind. Deadline for the five-over chase is 12:58am for which the target for KKR will be 41

BAD NEWS FROM THE PITCH: Rain is back! And so are the covers. Wait is still on for KKR

UPDATE: Good news! Match will start at 11:25pm. It means that Kolkata will have full 20 overs to chase down the paltry target of 129 set forth by SRH

UPDATE: There is still a possibility of a 20-over chase for Kolkata until 11.52pm. After which, overs will start reducing. Even if it starts at 12:58am, there is chance for a five-over chase. If rain continues throughout, SRH will win, owing to the fact that they finished with more points on the table.

NEWS FROM THE PITCH: The supper soppers are desperately trying to take the waters off the covers, but rain, it seems, doesn't want to stop there at Bengaluru

KKR need 129 runs to win off 120 deliveries

Over 20 | Score 128/7 | Bipul 2 (3) ; 0 (0)

Last six deliveries to go as Trent Boult paces up. Over the wicket. Three runs picked up between the wicket by Ojha off the three deliveries faced. Groundsmen are ready with the covers now. It is drizzling probably at Bengaluru. Last ball, fuller to the off, outside edge knick and catch at Short third man.

NV Ojha c Lynn b Boult 16 (16b)

Excellent, excellent bowling by Kolkata Knight Riders. They have restricted SRH to 128 in the important Eliminator.  

Over 19 | Score 121/6 | Bipul 1 (2) ; Ojha 11 (11)

Coulter-Nile into the attack now. First ball, length, lofts it over, looking for a six, but Narine takes it at long-on. Sunrisers are chipping away and their desire to successfully defend the title is slowly seeming dimmer and dimmer.

V Shankar c SA Yadav b Coulter-Nile 22 (17b)

Third ball, short, seaming in, off the leading edge flies shortly away from Nile as he dives to take it and dismiss Jordan. Excellent one-handed vcatch in fact.

CJ Jordan c & b Coulter-Nile 0 (1b)

Bipul Sharma is the new man in. Just three singles off the over.  

Over 18 | Score 117/4 | Shankar 21 (16) ; Ojha 9 (9)

Trent Boult in for his third over now. First ball, length, seams to the off, straight as Shankar lofts it over the bowler, down mid-on and crosses the rope for a boundary. Third delivery, fuller this time to the off as Ojha shoots it over mid-on for a six. 13 off the over.  

Over 17 | Score 105/4 | Shankar 16 (13) ; Ojha 2 (6)

And Narine into his last over now. Excellent over! Just two runs off it. Sunrisers are in dire need of runs and its just not coming. Kolkata seems all geared up.  

Over 16 | Score 103/4 | Shankar 15 (12) ; Ojha 1 (1)

Pace attack back in with Umesh Yadav now. Third ball, slow and short as Yuvi pulls it over square-leg, doesn't cover the distance as Piyush Chawla takes it in the deep. Anther big wicket falls.

Yuvraj Singh c Chawla b UT Yadav 9 (9b)

The 16th over is underway, SRH still not up with 100 and four wickets down. Something is seriously wrong now.
Naman Ojha walks in now. Single tapped down the leg side off the fourth ball and 100 up for SRH.  

Over 15 | Score 98/3 | Shankar 14 (9) ; Yuvraj 9 (7)

Piyush Chawla back in now for his third over. Last 19 deliveries, just 15 runs and two wickets. Second delivery, googly, fuller as Yuvi chucks it, Shankar ducks it and the ball whistles to the boundary. Fifth ball, length, googly, offside as Shankar on one knee slogs it high over the bowler for a huge six. 13 off the over.  

Over 14 | Score 85/3 | Shankar 6 (5) ; Yuvraj 4 (5)

Narine back in for his third over now. Slip comes in position. Third ball, full at middle stump, as Shankar lifts is over midwicket, one bounce and over the rope for a boundary. Just five off the over.  

Over 13 | Score 80/3 | Shankar 1 (1) ; Yuvraj 4 (3)

Yuvraj Singh is the new batsman at the crease. Returns after that finger injury. Chawla in for his second over now. Second delivery, flat, quicker, googly and topples down the middle stump as Warner departs in complete astonishment.

DA Warner b Chawla 37 (35b)

Two back-to-back blows for SRH and both big ones. Vijay Shankar joins Yuvi at crease. Fifth ball, over-pitched, offside as Yuvi punches it down cover for a boundary. Five off the over.  

Over 12 | Score 75/2 | Warner 37 (33) ; 0 (0)

Coulter-Nile back in for his third over now. Single and two leg-bye singles off the four deliveries bowled so far. And that brings up the 50 runs stand off 45 deliveries. Last ball, length, low, outside off as Kane fires it to Gambhir at cover. Second wicket down now as Kane departs.

KS Williamson c SA Yadav b Coulter-Nile 24 (26b)

Big blow for the Sunrisers.  

Over 11 | Score 71/1 | Warner 36 (30) ; Williamson 23 (23)

Gambhir shifst back to his 'go-to-man' now. Narine in for his second over. Three suns picked up between the wickets by Warner off the first three deliveries of the over. Last ball, length, spins out as Warner off his back-foot ramps it over long-on boundary for a six. 10 off the over.  

Over 10 | Score 61/1 | Warner 27 (25) ; Williamson 22 (22)

And after that short time-out, Coulter-Nile continues the attack. Second delivery, length, down off side as Kane flicks it cautiously over midwicket for a boundary. 50 up for SRH now. Third ball, length, seams it in as Kane drags to dispatch it over deep square-leg boundary for a six. 13 off the over. 

Over 9 | Score 48/1 | Warner 25 (22) ; Williamson 11 (19)

Piyush Chawla now introduced into the attack now. Second ball, flat, quick, googly and Warner rocks back to clobber it over midwicket for a six. Three more single off the four deliveries bowled. First time-out.  

Over 8 | Score 39/1 | Warner 17 (18) ; Williamson 10 (17)

Nathan Coulter-Nile into the attack now. First time in quite a number of weeks. Two single off the first two deliveries and then two quicker bouncers to trouble Kane. And two more dot balls to follow as the South African international finish off with a tidy over.  

Over 7 | Score 37/1 | Warner 16 (17) ; Williamson 9 (12)

And surprise, surprise! It is Yusuf Pathan into the attack now. Has hardly bowled too many overs this time. Two singles picked up off the first half off the over. Fourth ball, fuller, jamming in as Kane makes himself some room to drive it down cover off his back-foot for a boundary. Seven off the over.

Over 6 | Score 30/1 | Warner 15 (15) ; Williamson 3 (8)

KKR to end power-play over with some spin action. Sunil Narine steps into the attack now. Three dot balls and three singles to end the over. Hyderabad are off to a real slow and cautious start. But they sure know what they are doing. Last time they had defended their score and had earned the result.  

Over 5 | Score 27/1 | Warner 14 (14) ; Williamson 1 (3)

Umesh Yadav in for his third over now. Second delivery, short of the length, didn't swing much, straight as Dhawan shoots the ball straight up, floats and Uthappa takes it.

S Dhawan c Uthappa b UT Yadav 11 (13b)

Kane Williamson is the new batsman at crease. Just two off the over.

Over 4 | Score 25/0 | Warner 13 (13) ; Dhawan 11 (11)

Pace attack continues in the power-play with Trent Boult pacing up for his second over. Three singles and leg-bye off the five deliveries bowled. Single off the last ball.  

Over 3 | Score 20/0 | Warner 12 (10) ; Dhawan 8 (8)

Umesh Yadav back in for his second over now. Single off the first two deliveries and fifth delivery smacked for a boundary. Slow bouncer, straight and Dhawan pulls it down square-leg for a four. Seven off the over.  

Over 2 | Score 13/0 | Warner 11 (9) ; Dhawan 2 (3)

And sharing the new ball for the second over is Trent Boult. Just two singles off the four deliveries bowled. Last ball, short and off as Warner with a full-hand smash down the line for a boundary. Six off the over.  

Over 1 | Score 7/0 | Warner 6 (4) ; Dhawan 1 (2)

Everything uptill now is same as last year, including the toss. Will SRH once again strike down KKR hope of a third title win? Curtains to unveil in 40 overs from now.

Skipper David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan are out at the pitch. Big responsibility on the two to provide a gritty start to their innings. Warming up with the new ball is Umesh Yadav.

First ball, short, seams across the stumps, Warner looking to strike removes bat and the bal swings along untouched to the keeper. Loud appeal and denied by the Umpire. Certainly shows ample bounce, more than what was expected. Fifth ball, short, seams out, too much height as Warner ramps it over cover with an upper cut for a boundary. Seven off the over.  

The @KKRiders are warming-up for the #IPL Eliminator at Bengaluru #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/N8AIGZtS59

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 17, 2017

The @SunRisers are all set to take on the @KKRiders in the #IPL Eliminator #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/hO19ySLo7B

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 17, 2017

#IPL Eliminator - Here are the Playing XIs for @SunRisers vs. @KKRiders #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/u30qYDds2G

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 17, 2017

TEAM CHANGES: Ample changes for either teams. For SRH,  Yuvraj Singh, Kane Williamson, Chris Jordan and Bipul Sharma make it to the squad; and for KKR, Suryakumar Yadav, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla and Ishank Jaggi will are feature in tonight's crucial encounter

TOSS TIME: KKR win toss, elect to bowl

#IPL Eliminator - Chinnaswamy Stadium all set for @SunRisers vs @KKRiders #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/n80yNTuhDW

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 17, 2017

Just an hour to go!
The troops are pumped.
RT if you're ready to witness this epic battle.#RiseOfOrange #OrangeArmy #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/YlFbTjGB17

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) May 17, 2017

Here are the players to watch out for in today's encounter...

Good batting practice before tomorrow's game  pic.twitter.com/dj5TKTOLh3

— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) May 16, 2017

.@y_umesh & @trent_boult are ready for the battle against an explosive #SRH line-up. Who will have the final laugh? https://t.co/d6aG1fbnCb pic.twitter.com/wClbtxElu3

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) May 17, 2017