Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE Score, IPL 2026: Rain Stops Play; Calamity For 2-Down KKR As Rs 25.20 Crore Star Flops

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Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE Updates, IPL 2026: Rain at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata has stopped the IPL 2026 clash between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Punjab Kings (PBKS). KKR won the toss and opted to bat, and reached 25/2 after 3.4 overs, with skipper Ajinkya Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi at the crease. They got off to a disastrous start, losing overseas stars Finn Allen and Cameron Green in the second over, bowled by Xavier Bartlett. The three-time champions are without star spinners Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy. Yet to win a game this season, KKR are hunting for their first points of IPL 2026. On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer-led PBKS can go top of the table with a win. (Live Scorecard)

KKR vs PBKS LIVE Score | Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE Updates, IPL 2026, straight from Eden Gardens, Kolkata:

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KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Slight rain

The rain doesn't appear to be extremely heavy. Let's hope it doesn't last for much longer. The good news is that the entire ground is covered at the Eden Gardens, not just the pitch area.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Rain stops play!

The rain is here! It was in the forecast and the downpour's finally here. Maybe it'll give KKR a chance to take a breather and get things back on track. Punjab Kings were totally on top, and they'll hope this rain goes away soon!

KKR 25/2 (3.4)

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: FOUR! Overthrow!

Luck favours KKR, and they needed this. Raghuvanshi looking to nudge it down the ground and pick up a single, but some poor fielding sees the overthrow go for 4. 5 crucial runs against Bartlett, who is bowling a stunning spell!

KKR 25/2 (3.3)

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: OUT! Green gone!

OUT! Another one for Bartlett! Cameron Green departs! He gets a thick outside edge and picks up 4 on the first ball, but gets caught behind on the final ball of the over. Very similar dismissal to Allen's.

The Rs 25.20 crore man fails again. KKR are 2 down after 2 overs!

KKR 16/1 (2)

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: OUT! Allen departs!

GONE! Massive wicket for PBKS! Xavier Bartlett was swinging it brilliantly, Finn Allen played and missed a couple of times. He had a lucky escape as a scoop attempt landed safely. But he departs on the fourth ball, soft edge and caught behind.

KKR 12/1 (1.4)

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: FOUR!

Finn Allen picks up his first boundary now! Very full from Arshdeep, swinging away from the leg-stump, Allen gets his bat down in time and the inside edge goes between his legs and for 4 through fine-leg.

KKR 12/0 (1)

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE: Play begins!

We are LIVE! Arshdeep Singh opening the bowling, Ajinkya Rahane and Finn Allen get off the mark first ball, and then Rahane caresses it past the slip cordon and picks up a boundary.

KKR 6/0 (0.3)

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE: Pressure on Rahane, Allen

With KKR batting first, their openers will have a lot of pressure on them to provide a good start. Finn Allen has played great cameos so far, but he will hope to bat beyond the powerplay today. Rahane will hope to tackle his weakness against spin, with the threat of Chahal in the opposition.

IPL 2026 LIVE: PBKS playing XI

Punjab Kings XI vs KKR: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Cooper Connolly, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Priyansh Arya will almost certainly be the Impact Player.

IPL 2026 LIVE: KKR playing XI

Kolkata Knight Riders XI vs PBKS: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi.

Blessing Muzarabani is likely to be the Impact Player if KKR's batting holds up well.

IPL 2026 LIVE: KKR opt to bat, major stars miss out!

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane wins the toss and opt to bat! Bit of a surprising call, particularly given the overcast conditions.

Interestingly, NO Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy for KKR tonight! They both miss out. Chakravarthy is injured, confirms Rahane. Narine also misses out due to sickness.

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE: Navdeep Saini to make debut?

Visuals coming in: The KKR camp have just handed a cap to 33-year-old pacer Navdeep Saini, who was brought in as Harshit Rana's replacement earlier in the season. That's a sign that either Vaibhav Arora or Kartik Tyagi may not play, or Blessing Muzarabani may be left out to make way for Rovman Powell.

Saini has played 2 Tests, 8 ODIs and 11 T20Is for India, but his last international appearance came nearly 5 years ago.

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE: PBKS to play extra spinner?

Punjab Kings could opt to play an additional spinner, given the clear weakness of many KKR batters against spin. Such a move could see Harpreet Brar replace Vijaykumar Vyshak in PBKS' playing XI.

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings LIVE: Possible changes for KKR

With their middle-order struggling, Kolkata Knight Riders could bring in either local powerhitter Tejasvi Dahiya or West Indies brute Rovman Powell. If Dahiya comes in, Ramandeep Singh or Anukul Roy could make way. If Powell comes in, Blessing Muzarabani may have to be dropped, which could see either Saurabh Dubey or Umran Malik get a game.

Cameron Green is expected to stay in the playing XI despite not bowling at the moment.

KKR vs PBKS IPL 2026 LIVE: No rain so far

Great news! There is still no rain at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Let's hope the skies stay clear right through. We are just about 20 minutes away from toss time.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Chahal back to his best?

A major positive for Punjab Kings in their opening two games of IPL 2026 has been the bowling of star leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The 35-year-old has looked sharp so far, keeping things tight through the middle overs, taking 3 wickets at an economy-rate of just 7.00. PBKS will hope this isn't a flash in the pan, but a genuine sign that the Rs 18 crore buy is returning to his best form.

IPL 2026 LIVE: Can Cameron Green step up?

A lot of eyes will undoubtedly be on Cameron Green, who was bought for Rs 25.20 crore by KKR in the IPL 2026 auction. Green has not had a great start to his KKR career, getting run out in a comedy of errors in the previous game.

Even if he's not bowling, the Kolkata fans will be hoping that Green comes good with the bat for the first time.

IPL 2026 LIVE: Covers coming off

According to reports, the covers at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata are coming off, with rain yet to hit. Let's hope this weather continues and we are able to have a full match.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Punjab Kings eye top spot

Punjab Kings have made a polar opposite start to Kolkata Knight Riders. Led by KKR's former captain Shreyas Iyer, the 2025 finalists have continued to impress, with their new signings like Cooper Connolly coming to the fore with clutch knocks.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Kolkata Knight Riders struggling

Kolkata Knight Riders seem to have problems aplenty. The absence of Harshit Rana and Matheesha Pathirana has left their pace bowling expectedly weakened. But KKR's main spin threat, Varun Chakravarthy, has had a poor start to the season.

KKR's middle-order problems are also concerning, with Rinku Singh not firing on all cylinders and the likes of Ramandeep Singh and Anukul Roy failing to impress so far.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: What's the weather now?

As of now, there hasn't been a significant downpour in Kolkata. However, rain is very likely accoridng to weather reports. We are just over 1 hour away from toss time. The match is scheduled to start at 7:30 PM IST.

KKR vs PBKS LIVE: Massive threat of rain

According to AccuWeather, thunderstorms could be about to hit Kolkata in the coming hours, which could play spoilsport later tonight. There is close to 50% rain predicted between 6 PM and 9 PM.

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