Adaptability is the key to success in a long tournament like the Indian Premier League (IPL) in which the teams have to travel to 7-8 different venues to play matches. Teams that can adapt to varied conditions and exploit them for their benefit succeed in winning the title.
That is the reason why Kolkata Knight Riders don't plan as per specific conditions they will encounter in a match but rather work on mastering their skillsets so that they can adapt to any conditions, says Kolkata Knight Riders vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer.
We never look at what is the best condition for us. We prepare ourselves for good conditions of cricket, and that's what professional sport is about. If a team has to be a champion, then it has to understand that in all conditions, you have to have the combination that can do well.
Iyer was responding to questions in the pre-match press conference over their potential advantage in the upcoming matches because of their potent spin attack.
KKR have raised a hue and cry over not getting a spin-friendly pitch at the Eden Gardens which their top spinner Varun Chakravarthy could exploit. But Iyer downplayed the notion that KKR specifically seek favourable conditions.
In their sixth match in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), the defending champions will take on Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Both teams are coming into this match after losing their last encounters and are hoping to turn things around and put their campaign back on the rails.
With four consecutive defeats and just one win so far this season, CSK are languishing in ninth place, with pressure mounting with every game.
On the other hand, defending champions KKR reach Chennai after a narrow four-run defeat to Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Eden Gardens. With two wins in five games and placed sixth on the table, they too are in need of consistency.
Chennai Super Kings, however, have received a setback ahead of the KKR clash, losing skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad to a right elbow injury.
Gaikwad, who was leading the CSK in IPL 2025, sustained a blow to his right forearm during CSK’s match against Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati earlier this season. Scans later revealed an elbow fracture, effectively ending his campaign.
CSK head coach Stephen Fleming on Thursday confirmed the news and the leadership change ahead of the KKR match, informing that former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be leading the side again.
As far as replacements go, we have a few options in the squad. We haven’t zeroed in on anyone. Dhoni was ready to take over. He understood where it was coming from.
This will be Dhoni’s first match as captain since the IPL 2023 final in Ahmedabad, a memorable night when Ravindra Jadeja hit a six and a four in the final two balls to secure CSK’s fifth IPL title.
Having handed over the captaincy to Gaikwad at the start of the 2024 season, Dhoni had taken a step back from leadership duties but continued to play a key role behind the scenes and with the bat.
Dhoni has led CSK in a record 235 matches, including all of the franchise’s five title wins. He had briefly relinquished the role in 2022, handing the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja, but poor results led to Dhoni reassuming control midway through the season.
CSK will be hoping that their fortunes too will change with Dhoni returning to the helm, the Midas touch of MSD will turn them into gold once again.
Probable playing XIs:
Chennai Super Kings: Rahul Tripathi, Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Shivam Dube, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (capt, wk), R Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Khaleel Ahmed.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Quinton de Kock (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Spencer Johnson, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy.
