IPL Clash at Chepauk: KKR Win Toss, Decide to Bowl Against Chennai

The 22nd match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season is underway between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. After winning the toss, Kolkata elected to bowl first at the Chepauk venue. KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane confirmed that spinner Varun Chakravarthy has regained fitness and returns to the playing XI, replacing Navdeep Saini. Meanwhile, CSK have opted to go unchanged from their previous match lineup. Notably, former CSK captain MS Dhoni is not featuring in this match. He was also absent from the team’s previous fixture and did not arrive at the stadium. This encounter marks the first meeting between the two sides in the current season. Both teams are playing their fifth match of the tournament. Team Line-ups Chennai Super Kings (CSK): Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurjapneet Singh. Impact Player Options: Matthew Short, Akeal Hosein, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Matt Henry. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicketkeeper), Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakravarthy, Kartik Tyagi, Vaibhav Arora. Impact Player Options: Finn Allen, Manish Pandey, Tejasvi Singh, Navdeep Saini, Tim Seifert.