Match Set-up: Both teams are fresh from a thrashing at the hands of the Mumbai Indians. Kolkata looked good, winning three on the trot before running into Mumbai, only to face an embarrassing defeat. Chennai haven’t been too consistent: They started well, lost a couple in between, then defeated Delhi before losing to Mumbai. Importantly, neither of these teams have cemented their place in the top four which makes this tie all the more crucial with the winner gaining an edge over the opponent.

Mini-Battle: Shoaib Akhtar vs Mahendra Dhoni will make for an interesting clash. Also, will Muralitharan will be able to curb Hussey’s attacking instincts?

Star Watch: Albie Morkel has proved he can be extremely destructive and promoting him up the order has been a good move. Kolkata’s batting failed miserably last time but expect Hussey to come good this time.

Team News: Aakash Chopra hasn’t made much of an impact and his place could come under scrutiny.

Ntini has been left out for far too many games now and it is likely he might be included in the playing eleven today.

Previous Encounter: In what was billed to be a top-of-the-table clash, Kolkata looked haplessly out of place. Kolkata managed only 147 which Chennai chased down with all of 3 overs to spare and with 9 wickets in hand.

Match is scheduled to start at 1600 IST (10:30 GMT).

SQUADS:

Kolkata Knight Riders (From): Salman Butt, Aakash Chopra, Sourav Ganguly(c), David Hussey, Mohammad Hafeez, Wriddhiman Saha(w), Laxmi Shukla, Ajit Agarkar, Shoaib Akhtar, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda, Tatenda Taibu, Iqbal Abdulla, Murali Kartik, Debabrata Das, Siddarth Kaul, Umar Gul, Brad Hodge

Chennai Super Kings (From): Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan, Stephen Fleming, Suresh Raina, Subramaniam Badrinath, Chamara Kapugedara, Mahendra Singh Dhoni(w/c), Albie Morkel, Joginder Sharma, Manpreet Gony, Lakshmipathy Balaji, Muttiah Muralitharan, Parthiv Patel, Palani Amarnath, Abhinav Mukund, Arun Karthik, Makhaya Ntini, Napolean Einstein, R Ashwin, Shadab Jakati, Srikkanth Anirudha, Suresh Kumar, Viraj Vilas Kadbe, Sudeep Tyagi