KKR look to make it 3 on 3

Kolkata A confident Kolkata Knight Riders would look to maintain their winning momentum after victories in their first two matches and avert the heartbreak two years ago when they take on a wounded Chennai Super Kings in their Indian Premier League match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Tuesday.

In the inaugural edition in 2008, KKR had beaten Royal Challengers Bangalore and Deccan Chargers in their first two matches -- the same two sides they had beaten this year - only to see suffer defeat at the hands of CSK before crashing to a string of losses and never really recover from there.

The celebrations and jigs by Shah Rukh Khan then suddenly came to an end as KKR went on to finish sixth out of eight teams in IPL I, a story that still rankles principal owner Shah Rukh Khan and captain Sourav Ganguly.

KKR have beaten defending champions Deccan Chargers and runners-up Royal Challengers Bangalore in their first two matches and would now to look not to repeat the 2008 experience by beating Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men.

The team think-tank seemed to be extra cautious this time as there have been restrained celebration from the team boss Shah Rukh even after their two consecutive wins.

"We have enough celebration in the first IPL and the hangover still remains. Hope to get some more wins and we will celebrate," said Ganguly following their facile seven-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore.

It was a clinical effort from Ganguly's men who first impressed with their disciplined attack led by Angelo Mathews and Murali Kartik to restrict RCB for 135, and then the makeshift opening pair of Manoj Tiwary and Brad Hodge ensured with their twin half centuries that KKR overhaul the target with four balls to spare.

Hodge and Tiwary's 101-run opening stand must have given Ganguly a relaxed time in the absence of explosive Chris Gayle and Brendon McCullum.

In the bowling department, the pace trio of Ishant Sharma, Charl Langeveldt and Angelo Mathews have done well so far but their big challenge will come when they bowl to the likes of big hitters in Matthew Hayden and Dhoni tomorrow.

Even though Hayden is yet to be a hit form with his high definition Mongoose bat it's just a matter of good start for the opener who scored 17 in their loss against Deccan Chargers last night.

Dhoni will be hoping to forget the disappointing show by his side in their last match which they lost mainly because of a pathetic last over spell from Sudeep Tyagi who conceded 39 runs from his 1.5 overs to be replaced in the last ball of the last over by Justin Kemp.

CSK would look to sort out their bowling at the slow Eden pitch. With 8pm start, dew will also be a concern for both the teams.

Ganguly vs Dhoni: courage under fire

Kolkata: It's captain courageous versus captain cool as in-form Kolkata Knight Riders take on Chennai Super Kings at the Eden Gardens on Tuesday evening. The change of the jersey colour has come with the change of fortunes for the Knight Riders as they sit atop the points table with two wins from two games. Chennai, on the other hand, will be smarting from a defeat in their opening game against the Chargers.

The Knight Riders seemed to have shaped up well in the first two games. While their bowling was good from the word go, their batting at the top order was a bit wobbly in the first match. By the second game, they had sorted that out as well and openers Manoj Tiwary and Brad Hodge showed their metal against the Bangalore outfit.

Kolkata will be hoping that they carry on their form. Even though Sourav Ganguly looked a bit scratchy during his short innings on Sunday, MSD will be aware that he Prince of Kolkata hardly takes time to shift gears. Angelo Mathews and Owais Shah have been in fine form and young Cheteshwar Pujara has just the right technique to make a mark on the Chennai bowlers.

The hosts' bowling is also looking good except the unavailability of the fifth bowler, a role that was played by Ganguly, Hodge and Rohan Gavaskar in the previous game. Ishant Sharma and Charl Langeveldt are in the zone and Mathews has been the great find for Kolkata so far. But Kolkata's only worry going into Tuesday's game will be the fifth bowling option. Four overs of loose bowling could cost them the game especially as Chennai has a strong batting lineup.

Chennai, smarting from an unexpected defeat in their opener, have less than 48 hours to regroup. Except skipper Dhoni and Albie Morkel, none of the other batsmen really troubled the Chargers. Kolkata's think-tank would have closely followed the game and a lot depends on the batting form displayed by Matthew Hayden and Suresh Raina.

The bowling too remains a big worry for Chennai. Morkel was carted all over and was unable to control the new ball. Young pacer Sudeep Tyagi turned out to be the most expensive of the lot and the hammering he got would not have done well for his confidence. Only Muttiah Muralitharan and Ravichandran Ashwin showed a bit of class, but overall Chennai's bowling was pretty pedestrian.

Kolkata fans will be hoping for a hat-trick of wins for the Knight Riders, while Chennai knows that only a top overall performance will be able to stop the Ganguly juggernaut. It's going to be a great battle between two men - one who started India's ascent to the peak, and the other who planted the flag on the top.

Inspired Kolkata claw back to derail Deccan

Last year's wooden spoon holders Kolkata Knight Riders pulled off a major upset by defeating defending champions Deccan Chargers by 11 runs in the opening game of the Indian Premier League on Friday.

The defending champions began in style in their chase of 162, with captain Adam Gilchrist and VVS Laxman milking the bowlers as they raced away to 61 within six overs. Laxman's dismissal didn't deter Gilchrist, who went on to post a half-century from just 30 balls, helped by dropped catches from the Kolkata fielders.

But Gilchrist's wicket in the 12th over allowed Sourav Ganguly to apply the brakes on Deccan's scoring, and some inspiring bowling changes derailed their chase thereafter. Langeveldt accounted for both Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs, while Symonds was removed by Ishant Sharma in quick time.

The Deccan batsman lost the plot despite cruising to their target, with inexperience in the middle order undoing the good work done by Gilchrist and co. Rohit Sharma fell to impatience, while Anirudh Singh capitulated.

Kolkata's bowlers, often let down by the fielders, didn't lose heart as they stifled the Deccan batsmen. Langeveldt was the pick of the bowlers with 2-26, while everyone else picked up a wicket each.

Put into bat, Kolkata could not have asked for a worse start as they lost Manoj Tiwary with the first delivery and then Sourav Ganguly on the fourth ball of the over. RP Singh struck soon after, sending back debutant Cheteshwar Pujara and at 31 for three in the fifth over, a pall of gloom descended over the Kolkata camp. Brad Hodge was dismissed in the next over and it was 31 for four in no time.

Owais Shah and Angelo Mathews then came together and dropped anchor. The first few overs were difficult, but the two backed each other and at the end of the 10 overs, Kolkata was 57 for four.

But then Kolkata resurrected itself as Mathews and Shah tore into the Deccan attack. After overs and overs of single-block housing, the Manhattan skyline was in the offing and the two sent the bowlers on a leather hunt.

They added 104 runs in the last 10 overs and have give Kolkata a real chance of fighting back in this game. Mathews finished with 65 not out, while Shah was unbeaten on 58.