IPL 2021 Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) vs Punjab Kings (PBKS): Live Updates from Dubai

IPL 2021, KKR vs PBKS Live: Welcome to our live coverage of Match 45 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 where Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will square off against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai.

Punjab have suffered a major blow in the form of Chris Gayle, who announced his decision to leave the bio-secure environment citing "bubble fatigue". The West Indies dasher is likely to remain in Dubai before joining the West Indies squad for the T20 World Cup.

LIVE UPDATES

23:30 IST: Punjab Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by five wickets in Dubai

Skipper Rahul anchored the run-chase with his 67 and Shahrukh finished with 22 from 9 deliveries to help Punjab beat Kolkata by five wickets in a thriller in Dubai. Some late drama but Shahrukh seals the win with a six! Goes over mid-wicket, doesn't clear the boundary but fortunately, the fielder tips it over the rope. Punjab jump to fifth spot while Kolkata remain static at fourth. 

23:28 IST: Rahul departs for 67! Caught by Mavi.

23:20 IST: Tripathi takes a diving catch but the third umpire says it's touching the ground. Rahul gets a reprive. Punjab now need five off the last six deliveries. 

23:15 IST: Punjab need 15 runs in 12 balls! Mavi comes in to bowl the penultimate over. 

23:01 IST: WICKET! Twist in the tale? Hooda caught at deep mid-wicket. Punjab are in a tricky spot after losing four wickets. Shahrukh at the crease with Rahul. 

22:57 IST: WICKET! Narine strikes just when Punjab was looking in control. Markram tries to clear the rope but picks out Gill at deep cover. Hooda joins Rahul in the chase, with Punjab still needing 37 runs. 

22:52 IST: Fifty for Rahul! He reaches his half-century with a flat six over mid-wicket. Punjab still need to score 45 in the last five overs. 

22:40 IST: Rahul takes the Orange Cap from Shikhar Dhawan. Punjab 103/2 after 13 overs. 

22:23 IST: Punjab 76/1 after 10 overs. Skipper Rahul has been cautious so far. Punjab still need 90 runs in the next 60 balls. Kolkata are currently going in with an all-spin attack from both ends. Chakravarthy and Narine would be looking for some wickets in middle overs.

22:15 IST: WICKET! First blow for Punjab. The opening partnership has finally been broken. Mayank falls for 40 after he tries to smack it to covers, straight to Morgan. Pooran joins Rahul.

22:58 IST: Rahul and Mayank have added 46 in the first six overs. The two have been watchful so far and are eyeing a 50-run opening stand. Punjab will overtake Mumbai and move to fifth place if they pocket this contest. 

21:45 IST: Punjab 25/3 after 3 overs. Rahul, Mayank are off to a steady start. A decent opening stand and Punjab fans will be hoping for no late drama. 

21:19 IST: Kolkata 165/7 in 20 overs

Iyer's 67 set the tone while Rana chipped in with an 18-ball 31 as Kolkata have managed to post 165/7 in 20 overs. Tripathi also scored 34, helping Kolkata resurrect their innings after Gill's early departure. Kolkata, however, lost wickets in quick succession towards the end, losing four wickets and adding 44 runs in the last five overs. On the bowling front, Arshdeep picked three while Bishnoi added two to his name. 

21:10 IST: Debutant Seifert run out for 2! Tries to steal a quick single but falls short. Shami hits the woodwork as Kolkata's fall continues. They've slumped to 156/6, being 120/3 at one point. 

21:03 IST: Arshdeep removes Rana, who was looking dangerous at the death. Rana tries to clear the rope but picks out Mayank at the boundary. Arshdeep takes his second. Debutant Seifert joins Karthik at the crease.

20:52 IST: WICKET! Morgan's dismal run continues. He is trapped plumb in front of the middle by Shami. Morgan's scores this season - 7, 8, 0 and 2. 

20:40 IST: WICKET! Bishnoi with the breakthrough! Iyer tries to dispatch Bishnoi's googly but picks out Hooda. Skipper Morgan joins Rana in the middle.

20:31 IST: Second IPL fifty for Venkatesh Iyer! The left-hander's impressive outing in the UAE continues. His scores so far in the IPL 2021 -- 41, 53, 18, 14, 58*

20:25 IST: Bishnoi strikes! Punjab finally break the stand as Tripathi looks to slog-sweep but picks out Hooda. Rana joins Iyer, who is eyeing his second IPL fifty.

20:19 IST: Kolkata 76/1 at the halfway mark. The average first-innings score in Dubai is 159 in six matches so far in the ongoing IPL edition. 

20:13 IST: Kolkata 73/1 after 9 overs. Iyer continues his dream run. The left-handed opener has been timing it nicely. Iyer (42*) and Tripathi (22*) at the crease with over 10 overs still to go. Arshdeep has been able to generate swing at the start but the Iyer-Tripathi pair is steady in the middle.

20:03 IST: Bishnoi into the attack! All eyes on Venkatesh vs Bishnoi match-up. 

20:00 IST: Kolkata 48/1 after 6 overs. Back-to-back boundaries for Iyer! Ellis into the attack and Iyer welcomes him with two fours -- one wide of mid-on and another to the right of mid-on. 

19:42 IST: WICKET! Arshdeep removes Gill with a peach of a delivery. Pitched up around off and it shaped to come back in. Gill left a big gap between bat and pad and the delivery crashed into the top of the off-stump. First blow for Kolkata!

19:30 IST: Iyer starts with a boundary! Allen opens the attack for Punjab and Iyer welcomes him with a four towards deep square leg. Iyer and Gill are at the crease. Kolkata 10/1 after 1 over.

19:08 IST: Eoin Morgan - "It will be a challenge, but there's no advantage chasing. The teams that play well have deserved the points. Two changes for us - one forced, Seifert is in for Lockie, Shivam Mavi replaces Sandeep Warrier."

Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan(c), Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik(w), Tim Seifert, Sunil Narine, Shivam Mavi, Tim Southee, Varun Chakravarthy

19:08 IST: KL Rahul - "We will bowl first. The wicket has been quite tricky, some days it's 180, some other days it's 150. So it could be tricky to bat first, better for the opposition to set the target."

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w/c), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Shahrukh Khan, Deepak Hooda, Fabian Allen, Nathan Ellis, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh

19:03 IST: Punjab Kings have won the toss and have opted to bowl. Three changes for Punjab! Allen comes in place of Gayle. Mayank replaces Mandeep and Shahrukh Khan instead of Hardeep Brar.

18:55 IST: Tim Seifert has been handed his KKR cap!

18:45 IST: Pitch Report: "The average score is 159, there are no demons and the batters can trust this surface. From a bowling point of view, you have to get your length right," feel Simon Doull and Kevin Pietersen.

18:40 IST: Shubman Gill: "I think we're doing well in all the three departments of the game. With the position we were at the end of the first half, it was important that we regroup. I don't think we clicked the way we wanted in the first half, but we're doing so here."

The young opener will also look to regain his mojo towards the business end of the tournament. He has scores of 48, 13, 9 and 30 since the restart of IPL 2021 in the UAE.

18:30 IST: In nine appearances this IPL season, Morgan has scored 107 runs at a run-a-ball rate, averaging just 11.9. Although IPL fans do familiarise these numbers with Morgan, England fans certainly do not.

17:40 IST: Kolkata will look to continue winning momentum and edge closer towards the playoffs berth. Their latest batting sensation Venkatesh Iyer will eye a decent start, having gathered 126 runs in four games so far. Kolkata have won three of their four games in the second leg and are currently fourth in the table.

17:31 IST: Punjab are currently sixth on the points table, heading into the encounter in a do-or-die situation. Punjab will remain in the fray with a win, but a defeat will put them in a tricky spot. With three matches to go, the Punjab outfit will look to get six points and hope Kolkata or Mumbai suffer more than one defeat.

[KKR vs PBKS Dream11 Prediction IPL 2021, Today Match Playing11, Fantasy Tips]

KKR vs PBKS Preview: IPL's newest sensation Venkatesh Iyer's footwork or the lack of it will be put through a stern test against the sharp googlies bowled by Ravi Bishnoi when Kolkata Knight Riders square off against a beleaguered Punjab Kings here on Friday. Knights all-rounder Venkatesh has caught everyone's attention with his fearless strokeplay against genuine pace but Bishnoi's wrist spin has troubled the best in the business during the last two editions.

It will be the biggest match-up in the game which is very important for KL Rahul's Punjab Kings if they have any intentions of staying afloat in the competition. Rahul had admitted after the defeat against Mumbai that his team has not played well under pressure and needs to put up a better fight. [FULL PREVIEW]