IPL 2022 | Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Match 1 - Preview, Predictions, Probable XI, Fantasy XI

And, so here we are! Finally, after weeks of anticipation, analysis, predictions etc., the biggest party of the summer- the Indian Premier League (IPL) - will commence on Saturday (March 26), where defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK)lock horns with last years' runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

Saturday's game will usher in a new era for CSK and IPL, as it will be the first time that MS Dhoni will not lead the 'Yellow Army'.

The 2022 season is expected to be Dhoni's swan song from the lucrative T20 league, but no one in their wildest dreams would have thought he won't be leading his beloved franchise for one final time this year.

But, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Ravindra Jadeja has been picked as Dhoni's successor, and he will be making his captaincy debut on Saturday. It won't be an easy task for Jadeja, though he has such humongous shoes to fill, plus the fact that he has never captained a T20 side before.
 

But, the good thing is that he will have the presence of Dhoni on the field for guidance. Speaking of CSK's squad, the defending champions retained most of their core during the mega-auction.

They have replaced Faf du Plessis with another overseas opener in Devon Conway. Still, their top-5 remains the same in the form of Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, followed by MSD and all-rounders like Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo.

Moeen Ali will miss the first game as he has just arrived in the country. However, Shivam Dube is expected to make it to starting XI, while Adam Milne and Tushar Deshpande are likely to spearhead the pace department.

Death bowling is a matter of concern for CSK, and with Chris Jordan being not the force he once used to be, the onus will once again be on Bravo (albeit he's a pale shadow of himself) to step up to the party.

It will also be interesting to see if CSK take a punt on rookie seam-bowling all-rounder in the form of Rajvardhan Hangargekar. Like the last season, CSK has a deep batting line-up and multi skill set of cricketers.

Also, with Moeen not available for the first game, CSK may be tempted to slot in Mahesh Theekshana in the playing XI to bolster their spin department.

As for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), they will also kickstart a new era under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer.

KKR's top-4 is slated to be Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Ajinkya Rahane and skipper Iyer, who more or less operate at the same tempo. So, it will be interesting to see if they go with this top-4 or will they use Sunil Narine as a pinch-hitter during the powerplay.

Venkatesh had a brilliant season last year, and the onus will again be on him to provide explosive starts to his side. Venky Iyer's strike rate dips after the powerplay, and that's where the likes of Nitish Rana and Shreyas, a renowned spin-basher, will come in handy.

Last season, KKR struggled with their middle-order batting, and this time, the onus will be on Shreyas, Sam Billings and Andre Russell to ensure it doesn't happen again.

With Pat Cummins unavailable for the first few games, Tim Southee would get a place in the starting XI. He, alongside Umesh Yadav and Shivam Mavi, are set to spearhead the fast bowling unit.

One of KKR's major issues with the ball in the past few seasons is their inability to pick wickets in the power play consistently. But, that shouldn't be an issue this time, given the fact that Umesh and Southee are proven power play specialists.

That said, their death bowling still leaves a lot to be desired, and it's expected that they will have to turn to Russell and Narine to do the dirty work.

Match Details:

Date - 26th March 2022

Time - 07:30 PM IST

Venue - Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Broadcast - Star Sports, Disney Hotstar

Pitch Report:

The pitch at Wankhede has traditionally been a safe haven for batters. True bounce and pace off the surface make for delightful stroke-making and short dimensions of the ground, making it even easier for batters.

Having said that, fast bowlers also get a fair share of assistance due to the pace in the pitch. Moreover, the dew factor is immense here, so chasing has always been a go-to option for teams.

Key Stats:
- CSK boast of an 18-8 lead over KKR in head-to-head encounters.  

At Wankhede, it's 1-0 in favor of CSK.

Chennai Super Kings:

Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Devon Conway, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja(c), Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni(w), Dwayne Bravo, Chris Jordan, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Maheesh Theekshana, Adam Milne, Mitchell Santner, Tushar Deshpande, Hari Nishanth, N Jagadeesan, Subhranshu Senapati, Prashant Solanki, Mukesh Choudhary, KM Asif, Simarjeet Singh, Bhagath Varma

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings(w), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chamika Karunaratne, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakravarthy, Umesh Yadav, Rasikh Salam, Mohammad Nabi, Sheldon Jackson, Baba Indrajith, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Aman Hakim Khan, Tim Southee, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar

Probable Playing XI:

Chennai Super Kings:

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

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer (c), Sam Billings (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Mohammad Nabi, Shivam Mavi, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy

CE Fantasy XI:

Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Andre Russell, MS Dhoni, Sunil Narine, Dwayne Bravo, Varun Chakravarthy, Adam Milne

Captain: Ravindra Jadeja

Vice-captain: Andre Russell