11.54 pm: CSK almost pulled off a great win, thanks largely to MS Dhoni who scored a career-best 79* off 44 balls, smashing the Punjab bowlers all over the park in the death overs. Needing 17 runs to win in the last over bowled by former teammate Mohit Sharma, Dhoni, who had scared the daylights out of the Punjab bowlers in the previous two overs with some ferocious batting, however just fell short as KXIP won the game by four runs to hand the former Indian captain's team their first defeat in IPL 2018. Punjab may have won the match but the contest will forever be remembered for Dhoni's exploits with the bat even as he battled a back injury. Dhoni again proved he still has plenty of fire in his belly. It's just unfortunate he couldn't take his team over the line. That's it from us. Join us tomorrow for the KKR-DD match. Till then goodbye. Click here for scores.
11.05 pm: The match is slowing slipping away from CSK. At 107/3 in 13 overs they are far, far behind in this 198-run chase. Both Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni will have to up the ante to even make a match of it. They need 91 off 42 balls to win this contest. Yes, we know anything can happen in the IPL but for some reasons, CSK are not giving the right vibes today. Click here for scores.
10:35 pm: Chennai haven't gotten off to desired start chasing a stiff 198. After losing Watson in the second over, the Yellow Army has lost Murali Vijay (12) and Sam Billings (9), which gives the hosts control as of now. At the end of seven overs, the score reads 58/3, and CSK requiring 140 more in the remaining 13 overs to win.
10:15 pm: CSK have lost an early wicket in the form of Shane Watson (11) who has been dismissed by Mohit Sharma, caught at short fine leg by Barinder Sran. Watson's fellow opener Murali Vijay has been joined by Ambati Rayudu as the scorecard at the end of three overs reads 31/1. (Click here for scores)
9:50 pm: Karun Nair's 17-ball 29 and skipper R Ashwin's 14 off 11 balls help Punjab recover from a middle-order stutter to post 197/7 on the board. However, they will feel at least 15-20 runs short after the 96-run opening stand provided by Chris Gayle and KL Rahul. Shardul Thakur (2/33) and Imran Tahir (2/34) took two wickets apiece. Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo and Harbhajan Singh took one each. (Click here for scores)
9:30 pm: KXIP have lost their way since losing Chris Gayle and have slipped to 160/5, as Imran Tahir removed Mayank Aggarwal (30) and Aaron Finch (0) off consecutive balls in the 15th over. Yuvraj too also couldn't kick on and was dismissed for 20 by SN Thakur. (Click here for scores)
9:15 pm: Chris Gayle (63 off 33 with 7 fours and 3 sixes) was finally dismissed in the 12th over of the Punjab innings by Shane Watson as his attempted hook landed in the hands of Imran Tahir. However, it put the hosts on course to reach 200 with the score reading 127/2 in 11.3 overs. (Click here for scores)
8:45 pm: It's turning out to be a 'Gayle Day' in Mohali as it rains fours and sixes off the big Jamaican's bat. He brought up his fifty in 22 balls. However, Punjab lost their other opener, KL Rahul, who was dismissed by Harbhajan Singh for 37 (22) after a partnership of 96 runs in 8 overs. (Click here for scores)
8:15 pm: KXIP have gone off to a confident start, which has been gathering pace with Chris Gayle and KL Rahul deciding to go after the bowlers in the Powerplay overs. Gayle will have more than a point to prove as he was left out of the eleven by Punjab in their first two matches. After 3 overs, Punjab 20/0, having been put in to bat. (Click here for scores)
TEAM NEWS: Here is how the two teams line up
Namma lion up for the Kings' duel! #WhistlePodu #Yellove #KXIPvCSK pic.twitter.com/VtxZlVWuIu
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) April 15, 2018
Kings XI Punjab: KL Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, M Agarwal, Aaron Finch, Yuvraj Singh, Karun Nair, R Ashwin (c), A Tye, Barinder Sran, Mohit Sharma, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
TOSS NEWS: The visitors won the toss in Mohali and the CSK captain MS Dhoni decided to field first.
Hello and welcome to our score updates from the match between KXIP and CSK in Mohali, where Chris Gayle has been included in the Punjab line-up for his first match of IPL 2018.
MATCH PREVIEW
CSK will look to continue their winning streak when they lock horns with Kings XI Punjab in the IPL on Sunday. It will be the third game for both teams. After opening their campaign with a stunning win over MI in the league opener, CSK pulled off yet another thrilling chase to beat KKR.
The likes of Dwayne Bravo and Sam Billings are in red-hot form for the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led team.
CSK have enough depth in their batting line-up with the likes of Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Kedar Jadhav, Ambati Rayudu, Billings and Bravo.
The spin trio of Harbhajan Singh, Jadeja and Imran Tahir can be a potent force as they are complemented by Deepak Chahar, Watson and Shardul Thakur.
On the other hand, KXIP are coming into the match after Friday's loss against RCB. The KXIP started the season on a resounding note, beating Delhi by six wickets.
Local player KL Rahul, who fashioned the victory with the fastest-ever fifty in IPL, justified why the franchise spent Rs 11 crore for him.
Rahul smashed a 30-ball 47 against RCB and had Punjab not lost wickets in quick succession, they could have notched up a bigger total than the 155 they managed while batting first.
A cause of concern for KXIP is the form of their top batsman Yuvraj Singh, who has made 12 and 4 in the two games while in the bowling department, Mohit Sharma looked off-color against RCB.
Ashwin has been in good form with his bowling and has contributed with the bat as well.
Playing his maiden innings as a captain, Ashwin has also been marshalling his men nicely.
In the batting department, there are high expectations from Aaron Finch, who was unavailable for the opening match but failed with the bat against RCB.
Punjab's bowlers are doing a fine job with 17-year-old spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman surprising the batsmen with his unconventional deliveries. He was even rewarded with the prize wicket of RCB skipper Virat Kohli.
Apart from Ashwin, Mohit Sharma, Mujeeb, Axar Patel and Andrew Tye add depth to Punjab's bowling attack.
