Kolkata Knight Riders have beaten Royal Challengers Bangalore by four wickets in their opening match at the Eden Gardens. Put into bat, RCB posted a decent 176/7 with AB de Villiers scoring 44 runs. In reply, Sunil Narine gave Kolkata Knight Riders a flying start with a 19-ball 50. After Narine’s wicket, Nitish Rana (34) and new skipper Dinesh Karthik (35 not out) scored crucial knocks as KKR overhauled the target with 7 balls to spare.

“Good to get off to a good start. If AB and Kohli went till the end, it would have been tough, but we got lucky,” said Dinesh Karthik, captain Kolkata Knight Riders.

“We were 15 short with the bat, myself included. I played too many dot balls. Me and AB getting out in two balls to a part-timer was game changing as well,” said RCB captain Virat Kohli.

Kolkata Knight Riders win by four wickets in their first match under new captain Dinesh Karthik. The captain anchored his innings brilliantly to see his side win their first match of the tournament. Virat Kohli will not be a happy man.

After 17.3 over, KKR 164/6
WICKET! Russell goes after quick-fire 15 of 11 balls. A brilliant catch by AB de Villiers once again. Chris Woakes gets his third wicket of the night. Kolkata need nine runs of 12 balls now.
Russell b Woakes c De Villiers 15 (11b)

After 17 overs, KKR 162/5
Andre Russell smashes Umesh Yadav for 15 runs. Two boundaries and one towering six. Kolkata now need 15 runs of 18 balls. Fiery battle that between bat and ball. Russell won the battle in the end.

After 16, KKR 147/5
WICKET! Rinku Singh goes for 6. A brilliant ball by Chris Woakes. Short and fast that takes the bat’s edge with Quinton de Kock taking a simple catch in the end. Out comes Andre Russell who has a strike rate of 173. Kolkata need 30 of 24 balls.
Rinku Singh b Chris Woakes c De Kock 6 (6b)

After 14.1, KKR 138/4
WICKET! Rana goes as he caught LBW by Washington Sundar. A well made 34 of 25 balls there. He brought Kolkata back into the game.
Nitish Rana lbw Washington Sundar 34 (25b)

After 14.1, KKR 138/3
Rana sends Washington over the fence as the 50-run partnership comes up with Karthik.

After 13 overs, KKR 119/3
Nitish Rana and Dinesh Karthik are rebuilding the Kolkata innings here. The partnership is worth 37 of 38 balls. They need 58 runs of 42 balls now. Virat Kohli is looking for wickets. This game is going to see a close finish.

After 10.2 overs, KKR 101/3
100 up for Kolkata. They need 76 of 57 balls. Bangalore slowly but steadily making a match out of this after Narine’s early onslaught. A couple of wickets here and this game will be in Bangalore’s bag.

After 7.3 overs, KKR 83/3
WICKET! Umesh Yadav strikes again. This time he dismisses Robin Uthappa for 13 with Brendom McCullum taking an easy catch in the end. Out comes Kolkata captain Dinesh Karthik.
Uthappa b Umesh Yadav c B McCullum 13 (12b)

After 7 overs, KKR 81/2
Kolkata need 96 runs from 78 balls. Nitish Rana and Robin Uthappa out there in the middle. An expensive first over by Kulwant Khejroliya. 13 runs come of it.

After 5.2, KKR 65/2
Umesh Yadav strikes in his very first over. Castles Sunil Narine who departs after a brilliant 50 of just 19 balls. However, still a lot of work to be done by Kolkata. Out comes Nitish Rana.
Narine b Umesh Yadav 50 (19b)

After 5 overs, KKR 65/1
Fifty up for Kolkata as Narine continues with his onslaught. Narine takes Washington Sundar to the cleaners now. 19 runs come of the over as Narine reaches his 50 in 17 balls.
1, 0, 4, wd, 6, 6, 1= 19 runs.

After 4 overs, KKR 46/1
Sunil Narine tears into Chris Woakes. Smashes 20 runs of his over. Kolkata finally look steady. They need 131 runs more in 16 overs.
0, 6, 4, 4, 0, 6

After 1.5 overs, KKR 16/1
WICKET! Chris Woakes bags the wicket of the dangerous Chris Lynn. Just the start they wanted. AB de Villiers with a brilliant catch
Lynn b Woakes c De Villiers 5 (8b)

After 1 over, KKR 12/0
Narine begins with a six and four as Yuzvendra Chahal is taken to the cleaners. Smart batting by Lynn as well. Just nudging the ball around. Woakes into the attack now.

Out come Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn for Kolkata. They need 177 in 20 overs. A solid start is required by the duo. Bangalore need early wickets if they want to win this game.

After 20 overs, RCB 176/6
WICKET! Vinay Kumar strikes again. A superb catch by Andre Russell to dismiss Chris Woakes for a duck. Back-to-back wickets for Kumar. He was smashed for 16 runs in the first three balls. A brilliant comeback though in the end. A tricky target for Kolkata to chase.
Woakes b V Kumar c Andre Russell 0

After 19.5 overs, RCB 176/6
WICKET! Mandeep Singh goes after a brilliant 37 of 18 balls. Vinay Kumar with the wicket as Kuldeep Yadav takes a brilliant catch.
Mandeep b V Kumar c Kuldeep Yadav 37 (18)

After 18.1 overs, RCB 154/5
WICKET! Mitchell Johnson bags the wicket of Sarfaraz Khan. A brilliant catch by Rinku Singh. RCB captain Virat Kohli is not a happy.
S Khan b Johnson c Singh 6 (b 10)

After 17 overs, RCB 142/4
The boundaries have dried up as Kolkata pull things back. Bangalore need to find the fours and sixes now. Three overs to go. Sarfaraz and Mandeep have to get their act together.

After 14.3, RCB 127/3
WICKET! This time it is captain Virat Kohli. Nitish Rana cleans him up with a brilliant delivery.
Kohli b Nitish Rana 31 (33b 4s: 1 6s: 1)

After 14.2, RCB 127/3
WICKET! AB de Villiers goes for 44 as Nitish Rana strikes with the ball. Brilliant catch by Mitchell Johnson. Out comes Sarfaraz Khan.
De Villiers b Nitish Rana c Mitchell Johnson Narine 44 (23b 4s: 1 6s :5)

After 14 overs, RCB 121/2
AB de Villiers 38 (21)
Virat Kohli 31 (32)
Tidy first over by Andre Russell. Only five runs of it.

After 11.2, RCB 106/2
100 up for Bangalore as Johnson’s delivery is dispatched for the boundary by ABD. He then backs it up with a towering six. Kohli is a happy man at the other end. He must be itching to get into the act.

After 11 overs, RCB 96/2
14 runs from Narine’s over.
2, 4, 1 6, 0, 2.
AB de Villiers 23 (9)
Virat Kohli 21 (6)

After 10 overs, RCB 82/2
AB de Villiers smashes back-to-back sixes of Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling. Things are looking ominous for Kolkata. The run rate stands at 8.16 at the moment. Narine back in the attack. Smart cricket by Bangalore.

After 8.2 overs, RCB 63/2
WICKET! Sunil Narine shows his class as he cleans up McCullum. What a delivery to bowl the former New Zealand captain out. This is what Kolkata were looking for. But out comes AB de Villiers now.
McCullum b Narine 43 (27b 4s:6 6s :2)

After 8 overs, RCB 63/1
Brendon McCullum launches into Mitchell Johnson. Smashes the Australian for two boundaries. A packed house at the Eden Gardens tonight. A huge score on the cards as it stands. With AB de Villiers yet to bat, things look scary for Kolkata.

After 6 overs, RCB 52/1
McCullum smashes Chawla for a huge six to bring up the fifty for Bangalore. End of the power play as well.

After 5 overs, RCB 44/1
A tidy fifth over by Kuldeep Yadav. Just five runs of it. Kohli and McCullum at the crease. Spinners doing a good job so far. Brilliant captaincy by Dinesh Karthik here as well. However, wickets are still the need of the hour for KKR.

After 3 overs, RCB 28/1
Kohli is looking to score of every ball. A tidy third over by Kuldeep Yadav. Spinners keeping it tight for Kolkata Knight Riders. A couple of wickets here will give Kolkata the edge.

After 1.3 overs, RCB 18/1
WICKET! Piyush Chawla gets Kolkata’s first wicket. Quinton de Kock goes for four. Easy catch for Vinay Kumar. Out comes Virat Kohli.

After 1 over, RCB 14/0
Vinay Kumar bowls the first over for Kolkata. McCullum smashes two fours and six as De Kock watches from the other end. Solid start for Bangalore. Kolkata need to get that opening wicket.

Out come the players.
Brendon McCullum and Quinton de Kock to open for Bangalore. Vinay Kumar to open the bowling for Kolkata.

Playing XI for RCB: Quinton de Kock(w), Brendon McCullum, Virat Kohli(c), AB de Villiers, Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Washington Sundar, Chris Woakes, Kulwant Khejroliya, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal

The top four have to click for Bangalore.

Umesh Yadav, Woakes will be lethal with the ball

Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal can be a deadly combination for RCB

Playing XI for KKR: Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, Dinesh Karthik(w/c), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Piyush Chawla, Vinay Kumar, Mitchell Johnson, Kuldeep Yadav

Three spinners for KKR in Narine, Chawla and Yadav

Johnson and Russell with the injection of pace

“Looking to have balanced performances rather than relying on one department”: Virat Kohli

Dinesh Karthik has won the toss and will field against Virat Kohli. Kohli too would have batted if he would have won the toss.

RCB overseas players: Chris Woakes, Quinton De Kock, AB De Villiers, Brendon McCullum

KKR overseas players: Mitchell Johnson, Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine and Andre Russell

A record that Kolkata would like to build on.

Kolkata Knight Riders have been one of the most successful franchises in Indian Premier League history. They have won the title twice and they have always banked on their Indian talent rather than putting their money on foreign players. However, this time around the lack of batting firepower can be a problem. Read the preview of the KKR squad here.

The last time these two sides met, Bangalore were bowled out for 49. Last season, Kolkata won both the home and away fixtures against Virat Kohli’s men. Will history repeat itself? Only time will tell.

In the third match of the IPL promises to be a cracker as Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens. There will be pressure on Dinesh Karthik to perform as captain for Kolkata who have lifted the title twice. Kohli on the other hand will look to begin with a win as he eyes the elusive IPL title. Stay tuned for more live updates.