Live Cricket Score - CSK vs KKR, Final, IPL 2021

Will there be another year for CSK with Dhoni or not it'll be left for time to tell. for now, CSK are the champions and rightly so! A magnificent story and another season of the IPL comes to an end. Enjoy the moment and celebrate. Thank you for your company tonight. Goodbye and CSK supporters, you're in for a night of celebration! Thank you and goodbye!

Here are the awards for this season:

MoM: Faf du Plessis

Most valuable player of the season: Harshal Patel

Orange cap: Ruturaj Gaikwad - 635 runs in 16 games - 1 hundred, 4 fifties.

Purple cap: Harshal Patel - 32 wickets (joint highest ever in IPL with Dwayne Bravo) in 15 games, one 5-wicket haul, one 4-wicket haul.

Power player of the season: Venkatesh Iyer

Maximum Sixes:KL Rahul - 30 sixes

Game changer of the season: Harshal Patel

Super striker of the season: - Shimron Hetmyer - SR: 168

Catch of the season:Ravi Bishnoi - Narine's catch in Ahmedabad with a full-length dive at deep mid-wicket

Fairplay award:Rajasthan Royals

Emerging player of the season:Ruturaj Gaikwad.

That's that, people!! CSK BEAT KKR by 27 RUNS TO BAG THEIR FOURTH IPL TITLE! There are stories and there's a fairytale and CSK have pulled off an absolute stunner to ensure this squad has had a fairytale end to their run ahead of the mega auction next year. Who knows where they'll be next? It was the perfect way to end the final edition together. Amazing win, and one that they'll be super proud of!

Absolute CHAMPION stuff this from CSK! KKR were cruising at one point with their openers sharing a 91-run stand. From there, they were reduced to 125/8! Can you even believe it? KKR only could manage 165/9! "We'll come back stronger, that's what we are known for," said MS Dhoni after CSK failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time last year. And they did, and how!

It was a team performance to pull this off. Faf du Plessis, who was handed a life early, made KKR pay and powered CSK to 192 with an 86, which was par on the wicket. Dhoni dropped Iyer early and he made them pay as well with a half-century. However, once he fell, it was the beginning of the end for KKR with CSK's bowlers all over the KKR's fragile middle order. Jadeja played a huge role in taking two great catches and picking up both Karthik and Shakib. All single digits from No.3 to No.8 made sure CSK didn't have too much to fret about in the end. Rahul Tripathi's hamstring injury hurt KKR's chances, but that wasn't the only reason. Rana fell for a duck and Morgan's poor run in the tournament didn't help KKR on THE day.

CSK will be extremely pleased with that comeback and why not?! They deserve every bit of this win. They dominated from the beginning and ended on a high. Who knows what would've happened had Rabada bowled that last over instead of Tom Curran in the Qualifier 1, but that's a forgotten story now. Chennai Super Kings are the IPL champions once again and are closing in on Mumbai Indians' 5 titles!

KKR will be disappointed after the start they got, but they should hold their heads high. It was a comeback of sorts from them too, given their 7th standing when the UAE leg began to sealing their spot in the finals. It was a game that could've been theirs, but they'll hold this comeback close to their hearts for another shot next year. Hope you enjoyed this amazing final today. Just in case you forget, this was Dhoni's 300th match as captain.

That's out and KKR have lost their skipper!!!Morgan holes out in the deep and Chahar takes a great catch. Over the boundary and back in!! 8 down are KKR! That's the last of KKR's specialist batsmen. We're into the bowlers now.

Tripathi holes out.Didn't think he'd come out to bat; he was hobbling even, and he tries the big shot and Moeen takes it.

Two in an over!!!! Jadeja has Shakib leg before for a golden duck!Beaten for pace is Shakib. CSK have comeback into this game and how!

Another one!! Karthik pulls straight to Ambati Rayudu.He doesn't have to move an inch. Jadeja has his first wicket! KKR are 5 down... Still no word on Tripathi...

NOPE! Chahar strikes and Gill is out leg before!It was a low full toss and Gill looks to steer it down leg and is rapped on the pads. Big wicket for CSK!

50 for Gill off 40 balls!Can he finish this?

100 up for KKR

OUT! Superb from Jadeja!! What a catch at deep midwicket from Jadeja!Narine comes and goes for 2. No cameo then today. Hazlewood finally gets a wicket. Short of length delivery and Narine pulls. It goes flat to deep midwicket to Jadeja, who holds his balance and pulls off a good catch! Would've been a six otherwise...

No news on Tripathi yet. Narine comes in at No.4.

Double blow for KKR!Rana falls for a duck, cross-seam delivery from Thakur chipped straight to Faf at mid off. Two wickets in an over for CSK!

OUT! Iyer holes out this time and Jadeja takes a good catch.He's scored 50 off 32, however... Could've popped out, but Jadeja holds on. The 91-run stand is finally broken!

Gill skies one to Rayudu.He calls it and take it. But the umpires are checking for a no-ball here... Will the stand of 79 be broken? NO!!! Dead ball!! It's hit spidercam!! Can you even believe it?? Gill survives! KKR have another reprieve. Oh dear... Not looking like CSK's day...

FIFTY FOR IYER!He's making CSK regret the drop.

Here's a stat for you guys: First time in seven games CSK have gone wicketless in the PowerPlay

50 up for KKR and they've done it easily in the powerplay

Another half-chance!!Shardul at mid off can't hold on. He throws in the dive but Hazlewood is once again denied of a wicket. Tough chance, but nevertheless.

DROPPED!Can you believe it? Dhoni has dropped an in-form Iyer in the second over. Hazlewood denied a wicket here. The next ball has been pulled for a six! OUCH! It was quite an easy chance. Should've been taken.How much will that cost CSK?

CSK finish just short of 200. It was likely at one point, but Mavi bowled a superb final over, conceding only 7 runs in the final over as CSK finished with 192. Du Plessis fell for 86 off 59 and carried the innings today, falling off the final ball. KKR will be happy keeping CSK down to below 200. Faf falls just short of getting the orange cap from Ruturaj. JUST short.

However, it will be a tough chase for KKR, especially with a cloud of uncertainty around Tripathi who hobbled off the field with a hamstring injury. Moeen was brilliant too in the 68-run third-wicket stand that helped take CSK close to 200. Join us for the chase in a bit.

Moeen and du Plessis add 50 runs

150 up for CSK... 3 overs to go

Review! Uthappa is given leg-before against Narine.He plays across the line and is struck on the pad. Three reds and Narine has the last laugh after the previous ball was dispatched into the stands. Hitting middle and Uthappa goes for a 15-ball 31. The partnership of 63 off 32 comes to an end.

Robin Uthappa and du Plessis have added 51 runs in 26 balls!

Dropped!Tough chance and it was hit really hard by Uthappa. Narine gets his fingers to it in the follow-through but can't hold on.

50 for du Plessis!He's made the most of the missed stumping in the third over and is now once again among the runs.

First break for KKR:

Just after the break, Gaikwad takes on Narine and holes out in the deep looking to loft it over long-off. The 61-run opening stand is broken. Ruturaj falls for 32.

Opening wicket stand:

Ruturaj Gaikwad has the orange cap now! Du Plessis and Gaikwad have now added the seventh 50-plus opening partnership this season.

After a slow start, CSK have picked up the ante with a few boundaries.

Oops! How costly will that be?DK misses a stumping chance. Du Plessis comes down the track but Karthik can't get hold of the ball.

We're minutes away from the big final. Shakib will start for KKR.

TOSS: Morgan wins toss, KKR will bowl first, as expected. No changes for CSK as well. Just in case you guys want to know: KKR have won 6 out of 6 chasing in the UAE.

Pitch report from Dubai! "Cracking wicket," says Matt Hayden. But statistically, the chasers are the winners. 9 of the 12 fixtures in Dubai have been won by the chasing side this season. However, one team has to bat first...belter of a wicket that has runs.

Build up:

The Indian Premier League had begun in its usual window earlier in the year amidst all the uncertainity that COVID had brought with it. Yet, we had a good first-half of the tournament. Despite all the bubbles and the protocols enforced due to COVID, there was a breach with positive cases being reported in a number of franchises which caused the tournament to be postponed.

Here we are five months after that whole saga for the final of the 13th edition where the Chennai Super Kings are up against Kolkata Knight Riders. What a ride it's been for the latter, who were 7th on the table when the UAE leg kicked off. They made a remarkable comeback, with 5 wins in 7 games and overcame Delhi Capitals in the Qualifier 2 to reserve their berth in the final. All that, without the might of Andre Russell, who's been out with injury. Much of KKR's success came at Sharjah and moving to Dubai for the final will make a difference as opposed to the familiarity they had at the smaller ground.

CSK made a superb start to the UAE leg with four wins on the trot, before slipping to three losses in their remaining games. However, in the game that mattered most, they beat Delhi Capitals to power through into the finals with glimpses of Dhoni of the old who smashed a 6-ball 18 to take them over the line.

Both teams finished in the bottom-half last year, and have made superb comebacks respectively to be in the final. Although CSK have been in more finals, KKR have never lost one. Can they halt their amazing run in UAE to bag their fourth IPL title?

P.S: This is Dhoni's 300th match as a T20 captain!!

Toss, teams, pitch report and more...coming up!