Defending champions Chennai Super Kings start their title defense against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2022 on Saturday, March 26. This match would begin a two-month-long cricketing carnival that fans eagerly wait for, every year and there could not have been a better way to kickstart things than to have a rematch of last year's final. A lot of things have changed though from that summit clash at the Dubai International Stadium last year on October 15. New captains, new players but the hunger to win would remain the same. MS Dhoni, a day ago, shocked the cricketing world when he said he would not be CSK's captain anymore, which concluded an illustrious episode in the franchise's history. MS Dhoni To Retire After IPL 2022? CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan Has the Answer!

The four-time champions would be under a new leader in Ravindra Jadeja and will have some new faces in the team. CSK lost crucial players like Faf Du Plessis, Shardul Thakur and Josh Hazlewood, all of whom were part of their title-winning campaign last term. Apart from providing new opportunities, a team with some new faces also presents a challenge for the captain and management as they are to put together a winning combination as early as possible in the competition. Devon Conway, Adam Milne are among those new names, who would aim to cement their spots in CSK's playing XI. Also, CSK would have to do without Moeen Ali for this match. Robin Uthappa and Ambati Rayudu alongside Dhoni and Jadeja are likely to form CSK's middle-order.

The story is same for Kolkata Knight Riders as well. The two-time champions would have a new captain in Shreyas Iyer, who replaced Eoin Morgan as skipper of the franchise which finished runners-up last year. Iyer was roped in by the Knight Riders for a whopping sum of Rs 12.25 crores and needless to say, he would be one of the main players KKR would bank on to give them success this season. Kolkata also have lost some crucial players like Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi and Lockie Ferguson--all of whom were crucial in their season last year but they have put together a strong squad with some new names and returning players. KKR would hope to avenge their loss from last year's IPL final and have a winning start to this edition. Iyer is expected to bat at number three following his exploits at the same position for India in the T20Is against Sri Lanka.

Ajinkya Rahane is expected to partner Venkatesh Iyer at the top of the order. Nitish Rana would be expected to play a key role this time for KKR after underwhelming performances last season. And so Andre Russell, who has not had an impactful performance for KKR in a long time. The bowling would rest on Umesh Yadav and young Shivam Mavi's shoulders with the spin department handled by Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy. IPL 2022: KKR Skipper Shreyas Iyer Ready to Bat at Any Position for the Team

CSK vs KKR Head-to-Head

Chennai Super Kings have faced Kolkata Knight Riders a total of 28 times, winning 18 times. KKR have won nine matches with one game ending in a no-result. CSK beat KKR thrice last season, which included the IPL 2021 final in Dubai where Dhoni's side had come out on top by 27 runs.

CSK vs KKR, IPL 2022 Match 1, Key Players

Ruturaj Gaikwad and new captain Ravindra Jadeja would be very crucial for Chennai Super Kings in their opening game against Kolkata Knight Riders. For KKR, a lot would rest on the performances of skipper Shreyas Iyer and Sunil Narine.

CSK vs KKR, IPL 2022 Match 1, Mini Battles

The duel between Ruturaj Gaikwad and Varun Chakaravarthy would be one to watch out for. Another mini-battle in the game that fans would look forward to is one between two captains--Shreyas Iyer and Ravindra Jadeja.

CSK vs KKR, IPL 2022 Match 1 Venue and Match Timing

Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders (CSK vs KKR) match in IPL 2022 will be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 26, 2022 (Saturday). The game is scheduled to begin at 07:30 pm IST (Indian Standard Time). Toss will be held at 07:00 pm.

CSK vs KKR, IPL 2022 Match 1 Live Telecast and Live Streaming Online

Fans can live telecast the Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders match live on Star Sports channels. The CSK vs KKR match in IPL 2022 will be live telecast on Star Sports 1/HD, Star Sports 2/HD, Star Sports 1 Hindi/HD, Star Sports Select 1/HD, Star Gold/Gold HD Star Sports 1 Tamil, Star Sports 1 Telugu, Star Sports 1 Kannada and Star Sports 1 Bangla channels on television. Fans looking for how to watch the CSK vs KKR live streaming online can watch the match live on the Disney+Hotstar app as well as on the website. Fans watching the live streaming online on Disney+ Hotstar will have to pay a nominal fee and subscribe to catch the live-action.

CSK vs KKR, IPL 2022 Match 1, Likely Playing XIs

Chennai Super Kings Likely Playing XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudi, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (c), Dwayne Bravo,  Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, KM Asif, Tushar Deshpande

Kolkata Knight Riders Likely Playing XI: Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Sheldon Jackson (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chamika Karunaratne, Shivam Mavi, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 25, 2022 01:30 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).