As it happened - CSK vs KKR, IPL 2021, final

UAE. This is where their year from hell began. The first Covid-19 case in the IPL. Major controversy around Suresh Raina. Early exit. Nothing going for them. One more year with the same core. And what do CSK do? Come back to UAE to finish this cycle off in style. A turnaround for the ages. Just the right picks at the IPK auction to provide the batting depth that has made them the sixiest batting side, the quickest team in the middle overs and at the death, and now the IPL champions for a fourth time. They have put together a line-up with which Stephen Fleming and MS Dhoni have been able to convince their batters that 15 off 5 is not a failure. That’s how you get Robin Uthappa and Moeen Ali bat the way they have batted.

They have zero 145kmph-plus bowler, no wristspinner, no mystery spinner, no left-arm quick, but their defensive bowling have been good enough with what their aggressive batting has done. Sixth title as captain for Dhoni. Sixteenth as a player for Bravo. Gaikwad, who lost half his season to Covid-19, is the highest run-getter. Du Plessis, not good enough apparently to play for South Africa, is the second-highest.

Bravo was there bowling two overs for eight runs when things were slipping away. Thakur with the wickets when the pressure was built. Jadeja and Rayudu sensational in the field.

They are kings again. In Dubai no less.

We leave you with that as another excellent IPL winds up. As the game evolves and innovates, we have innovated through this IPL. We have given you access to a great database through Ask Cricinfo, forecaster when batting first, win probability during chases, and now this Live Report, which will keep getting better as we move into the World Cup. See you there.

Just one parting thought: have we seen the last of him on a cricket field?

Also Morgan's tally of 133 in 16 innings is only the second-lowest for a batter-captain. The two lowest belong to Warne and Harbhajan Singh, but between them and Morgan is the other captain playing this match. MS Dhoni has scored just 114 runs, at 106.54 per 100 balls.

This is a rank long hop from Jadeja but Karthik has pulled this straight to Rayudu at deep square leg. It is five down now, which means Tripathi is qualified to bat not, but out comes Shakib Al Hasan. That tells you something about his fitness status. Two left-hand batters in the middle now. Jadeja is in his last over. And he has fired one in to get Shakib lbw too. A two-wicket, three-run over from Jadeja after he was pummelled by Iyer in his first two. And now comes out Tripathi.

KKR 120 for in 15, and CSK can sniff the title now. CSK's win probability is 98% now.

This is only the second time that Chahar has bowled the 14th over of an IPL innings. He usually bowls three in the Powerplay and one at the death, but MS Dhoni must have his reasons to bowl him as early as the 14th today. And he gets Gill out lbw, thus also bringing out the man who is the biggest remaining threat to CSK, Dinesh Karthik. And he starts with a pulled six first ball. Chahar done at 4-0-32-1, three of them in Powerplay. KKR need 76 off 36, win probability 10%

It is a hamstring injury, he didn't field for a majority of then first innings, so I think he can't bat before 7. With the third wicket down, the struggling Eoin Morgan has come in ahead of Dinesh Karthik and Shakib Al Hasan.

We have no update on Tripathi, though, so we don't know if he will bat at all if required and qualified.

KKR promote Narine again as Thakur gets Rana too with another cross-seam delivery in the 11th over. Unlike RCB, who gave Narine the medium pace of Dan Christian, CSK have gone to their only 140-ks bowler, Josh Hazlewood. And he gets Narine out with a short ball for 2 off 2. Good bowling change. KKR 97 for 3 in 11.3 overs. Their win probability is down to 16%. We don't have any update on Tripathi's fitness.

It looks simple enough. Ball goes up, Jadeja has time to get under, and while he has to dive in the end, he holds on. But hey, watch it again, and it is a sensational recovery in the end. Jadeja realises at the last moment that the ball is not falling quite where he is. He gets it in his fingertips, but it is right at the edge and is sure to pop out when Jadeja hits the ground. Mid fall, though, he shifts the position of the ball and gets a strong enough grip to hold on. You won't have seen many like that. Just look at that photograph above. Jadeja has recovered from that position. Iyer is gone. CSK's luck has finally turned. KKR 91 for 1 in 10.4.

Ambati Rayudu takes what looks like an excellent catch as the high ball from Gill goes higher than the lights and comes down, but it has hit the cable of the spider cam, which means it is a dead ball. Gill comes back and hits two fours later in that over. KKR 88 for 0. They now have a 40% chance to win according to our win probability

Some high-quality gap-finding, some timing, power, one catch dropped, one falling short, one top edge just over the keeper, and KK are well on track in this Powerplay. Can CSK slow them down now that the field goes back?

They had a chance to push for a better Powerplay when Josh Hazlewood found the edge of Venkatesh Iyer's bat. Dhoni went to collect it in front of his face, and the ball wobbled a little. Dropped. And Iyer goes on to hit a six the next ball. KKR 15 for 0 after two overs.

Lockie Ferguson has been KKR's go-to quick this IPL, but he went for 56 tonight without a wicket. Where does this stand among his worst analyses in the IPL? Ask Cricinfo

Interestingly, two of his worst have come against this opposition, at this ground, in must-win matches.

That was the last time these sides played in the final. CSK scored 190, and KKR managed to get past it for their first title. Here they looked like, at 185 for 2 in 19 overs, going well past it, but they managed only seven in the last over. Was Faf du Plessis tired? He tried his best but couldn't connect well enough. He falls just two short of the orange cap, which goes to opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad, who says this is a pretty good score because the ball was stopping on them. Well well well, that adds a dimension to it because Gaikwad, du Plessis, Uthappa and Moeen made it look like a good batting surface.

Moeen Ali has played Varun perfectly. He sits back, doesn't commit, and then imparts all the power he has. And this is a good skiddy pitch so he keeps connecting. The 19th over goes for 13, making this his second-costliest analysis this IPL. CSK 185 for 2 in 19 overs.

Rahul Tripathi, the hero from the last match, walked off early in this game with what looked like a calf issue, but we now have official word. It is a hamstring injury, and they are working on him as we speak. He has not fielded since then. CSK meanwhile 153 for 2 in 17 overs.

From my understanding, a hamstring strain is not an external blow so Tripathi might not be allowed to bat wherever KKR want to bat him. There might be time that he might need to serve before he gets to bat. If he can bat, that is.

That's Narine's last over. What a contest there. KKR bowl out Narine as early as the 14th over, but CSK keep trying to go after him. Remember they took 41 off his four in the last game. Robin Uthappa hits one six, but Narine then gets him out lbw. So Faf du Plessis shows respect for the situation and plays out two dots to deny Narine any other wicket. Now just one over of mystery spin left: KKR 125 for 2 in 14 overs.

The 109th also brought up Faf du Plessis' half-century, 52 off 35 balls. CSK 97 for 1 after 11 overs.

Having said that, though, KKR have been the best bowling side in the middle overs, going at just 7.02 an over. So KKR have brought out their big guns against CSK in the middle overs, and Sunil Narine has produced the wicket of Gaikwad in the ninth over. In comes Robin Uthappa, who has gone at 5.53 an over against the mystery spin of Narine and Varun.

KKR, though, go back to Shakib immediately. CSK show their newfound adventure as both du Plessis and Uthappa hit him for a six each. Left-arm spin against du Plessis is not a good match-up. A little surprising KKR stepped back after getting one wicket. CSK 80 for 1 in 10 overs.

Ruturaj Gaikwad goes at 6.84 an over. And KKR have now brought out their big guns. Now starts the real contest. A no-ball and a free hit has given du Plessis first blood, though. CSK 50 for 0 after the Powerplay.

In this game, though, Gaikwad has found a favourable match-up against Shakib's left-arm spin and has come out firing. At the end of the fourth over, he is 23 off 14, which is 9.86 an over. It has allowed Faf du Plessis to take his time, and he has now gone after Lockie Ferguson. CSK 34 for 0 after four overs.

Also Faf du Plessis averages 55.12 against left-arm spin and scores at 7.71 an over. KKR, though, have been happy with Shakib opening in the last few games and they do so again. Shaklib gets out of the over with six runs taken.

Eoin Morgan the captain has given a vote of trust to Eoin Morgan the batter as KKR have gone into the final with an unchanged XI. They have won the toss too, and got what they want: a chase. CSK would have done the same but Dhoni says his side is prepared for setting a total too. They are unchanged themselves.