Last Updated on 3 months by Charbel Coorey

IPL 2021 Final: CSK vs KKR Dream11 Prediction & Fan2Play Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | CSK vs KOL Dream11 Prediction Today | Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders Key Players | Dubai Pitch Report

Five titles between them. Plenty of pedigree. World class players in either side. And another IPL trophy up for grabs to complete the redemption after poor seasons respectively in 2020.

The IPL 2021 Final features two of IPL’s most successful teams behind the Mumbai Indians, who both had contrasting runs to the big game. Chennai Super Kings have been one of the best sides all season, sitting towards the top of the league right throughout the campaign. And, despite ending the league stage with three straight defeats, MS Dhoni did what MS Dhoni does best in leading his team to victory in Qualifier 1 against Delhi Capitals.

As a result, they are set to compete in their ninth IPL Final. An incredible feat.

On the other side, it has been quite the journey. Kolkata Knight Riders played awful cricket in the first leg of IPL 2021, sitting second-last heading into the UAE leg. However, they have won seven from nine matches since, including two crunch matches against Royal Challengers Bangalore and the top-placed Capitals. Winning in such high-pressure environments can hold KKR in great stead for this match, despite making things much more difficult for themselves in Wednesday’s Qualifier 2.

To increase the excitement further ahead of this match, CSK beat KKR by two wickets in a thriller the last time they met. It took a swipe over midwicket off the final delivery by Deepak Chahar to seal victory, and if we see anything similar today, we are in for some ride.

Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

Chennai Super Kings:

• What a season Ruturaj Gaikwad has had. The classy right-hander is coming off a player of the match performance in the Qualifier (70 off 50 balls), part of 603 runs in 15 matches in IPL 2021 at an average of 46.38 and strike rate of 137.35. He needs 24 runs to go past KL Rahul and become the Orange Cap winner for 2021.
• Gaikwad struck scores of 64 (42) and 40 (28) against KKR in the league stage. Also, Gaikwad loves batting at Dubai, with four half-centuries in seven matches (325 runs, avg. 65.00, SR 130.52).
• Faf du Plessis scored 43 (30) and 95* (60) vs KKR in the league stage. He has a fine career record against the Knight Riders, with 341 runs in 12 innings at an average of 37.89 and strike rate of 128.68.
• Will Robin Uthappa deliver against his former franchise? He has 224 runs in 10 career matches vs KKR at an average of 22.40 and strike rate of 112.56. He produced a magnificent 63 off 44 balls in the Qualifier.
• Can Moeen Ali make an impact after a lean run with the bat? He has scores of 17, 21, 5, 0, 16 in his last five matches.
• Moeen struck 25 (12) and 33 (28) vs KKR in IPL 2021. Also, expect Moeen to bowl a number of overs given the number of left-handers in the KKR lineup.
• Ravindra Jadeja was player of the match in his last meeting vs KKR (22 off 8 balls and 1/21). He has 16 wickets in 17 matches for CSK against KKR, as well as 248 runs at an average of 49.60 and strike rate of 156.96
• Josh Hazlewood’s battle with the in form KKR opening pair can go a long way to deciding this match. Hazlewood was superb last match vs DC, with 2/29 including the dismissals of Shikhar Dhawan and Shreyas Iyer.
• Shardul Thakur had an expensive outing in the Qualifier (0/36 off 3 overs). This was his first wicketless outing in the UAE leg, as he took 13 wickets in the previous seven matches, including 2/20 vs KKR.
• Dwayne Bravo has 11 wickets in 12 matches vs KKR at an average of 32. He has been a touch expensive in recent matches, but he remains crucial at the death for CSK.

Kolkata Knight Riders:

• Up until four matches ago, Shubman Gill was averaging just 19 in IPL 2021. He has scored 57, 56, 29 and 46 in his last four matches, helping to provide strong starts for KKR. So, can he improve on his career average of 21 in seven matches vs CSK?
• Gill averages 38.9 in the second innings of IPL matches compared 26.1 batting first. Also, Gill averages 34.60 in five matches at Dubai (173 runs).
• Venkatesh Iyer has been one of the key reasons why KKR have improved in phase two. The classy left-hander was player of the match in Qualifier 2 with 55 (41), which was his fourth 25+ score in his last five matches (67, 8, 38, 26, 55).
• Rahul Tripathi saved the day for KKR with a six off the second-last ball to win Qualifier 2. The right-hander has had a strong season, with 395 runs in 15 matches at an average of 30.38 and strike rate of 141.07. This includes a 33-ball 45 vs CSK.
• Nitish Rana has struck a double-figure score in each of his last seven matches (37*, 36*, 31, 25, 12, 23, 12). He has a decent record for KKR vs CSK, with 179 runs in seven innings at an average of 29.83 and strike rate of 123.45.
• Sunil Narine, who has been superb in the UAE leg, nearly pulled off a great win vs CSK earlier this season by bowling a terrific final over. He took 3/41 in that match, part of 19 wickets in 16 matches vs CSK at an average of 20.95 and economy rate of 6.28. No bowler has more wickets in CSK-KKR matches than Narine.
• However, Dubai isn’t Narine’s favourite ground as he strikes every 48 deliveries (three wickets in 24 overs on this ground).
• Varun Chakravarthy had nearly the identical record at Sharjah to Narine at Dubai, before bowling a terrific spell against DC (2/26). He has not conceded more than 26 in any match in the UAE leg to date, including 1/22 vs CSK.
• Chakravarthy has five wickets in four matches vs CSK at an average of 19.40. Also, he loves bowling at Dubai, with 10 wickets in five matches at an average of 11.50 and strike rate of 12.00.
• Lockie Ferguson’s wicket-taking ability has been key to KKR’s rise. He has taken at least one wicket in every match in the UAE leg (total of 13 scalps in seven matches), including 1/33 vs CSK.

Stats and Facts

• Head-to-head: Matches 27, CSK 17, KKR 9, N/R 1.
• CSK won both matches against KKR in the league stage. The latest was a thrilling two-wicket win, chasing KKR’s 171 with no deliveries to spare.
• Kolkata Knight Riders have a 100% success rate in IPL Finals (2/2). Chennai Super Kings have won three out of eight IPL Finals to date.
• Deepak Chahar took 4/29 in a dominant display vs KKR in the first leg of IPL 2021. He went wicketless against them in the UAE leg (0/32).
• MS Dhoni wound back the clock in the Qualifier with his six-ball 18 to seal victory for CSK. He has 500 runs for CSK vs KKR at a superb average of 45.45 and strike rate of 139.66. He is the man to step up in pressure moments, so keep an eye on MSD.
• Raturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis have scored 1,150 runs together this season – the most of any opening pair. However KKR could look to target Gaikwad with shorter deliveries (three dismissals to short balls out of 19 in the UAE leg).
• Dinesh Karthik for KKR vs CSK: 8 inns, 207 runs, avg. 34.50, SR 154.48. He scored 26 off 11 balls against them in the UAE leg.
• CSK have won all six games when chasing in IPL 2021.

Possible Playing 11

Chennai Super Kings: 1. Ruturaj Gaikwad, 2. Faf du Plessis, 3. Robin Uthappa, 4. Moeen Ali, 5. Ambati Rayudu, 6. MS Dhoni (c & wk), 7. Ravindra Jadeja, 8. Dwayne Bravo, 9. Shardul Thakur, 10. Deepak Chahar, 11. Josh Hazlewood

Kolkata Knight Riders: 1. Shubman Gill, 2. Venkatesh Iyer, 3. Rahul Tripathi, 4. Nitish Rana, 5. Eoin Morgan (c), 6. Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7. Sunil Narine, 8. Shakib Al Hasan, 9. Lockie Ferguson, 10. Varun Chakravarthy, 11. Shivam Mavi

Dubai Pitch Report and Weather

The chasing team has won the last eight matches at Dubai. With dew around, expect the captain who wins the toss to choose to chase, despite the pressure of runs on the board in a final.

Conditions are set to be all clear, as usual.

Dream11 Prediction

Note: Teams below are not based on the final playing XIs. We may not be able to update these teams in time after the final playing XIs have been announced.

Option 1:

Option 2:

Fan2Play Prediction

Base team:

• Wicket-keepers: MS Dhoni
• Batsmen: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill
• All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer
• Bowlers: Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson

Also read: Fan2Play vs Dream11 – What’s the difference?

Match Prediction

This promises to be a cracker. KKR have the form and talent to win it, but CSK, with their experience and depth, start as favourites. CSK to win and lift the title for the fourth time.