Rohan Pandit: "Well, I for one am hoping for a KKR Rcb finals. Social media will be bonkers whoever wins the match! " It's a possibility, let's see if it happens. For now, thanks for joining. Kudos to our scoring team - Venkat Raghav, K Vairavan, and Ranjith P - too, by the way, who have also had to endure a long wait. See you for Qualifier 1!
Dissapointed RR: "Its funny how a month back RR and RCB were on the top and bottom of the table respectively. Now they are next to each other i.e. 3rd and 4th!! That shows the level of inconsistency that RR has :( "
Ramesh: "Eliminator between a team that won 7 out of its first 8 matches and a team that lost 7 out of its first 8 matches"
10:49pm - Handshakes among the officials and that's it. The game has been abandoned. Sanju Samson trods out with a smile. Shreyas Iyer walks out, with arms flailing jovially, and there is a handshake and a hug. An RR fan looks pensively, a few more chat while many walk back. Samson calls the groundstaff for a picture, they oblige.
Shankar: "Back to back abandoned matches for KKR means that they will go to Qualifier 1 without learning the impact of Phil Salt's absence, not an ideal situation for them. "
10:44pm Ian Bishop says they can start a five-over game at 10:56pm at the latest. That stays consistent but the rain's doing the same. The TV broadcasters go through the playing XIs, probably while hoping the rain stops but that seems unlikely. However, things have gotten this far despite being heavily improbable. Can it happen again?
Goutam: "Do people get a refund if the toss has been made?" Not sure, trying to find out here too. Genuinely hope they do regardless of what happens tonight. Seriously, a lot of them have waited for four hours at least. But Sreshth finds the official word on it - "Refunds (less any applicable administration fee, if any), will only be made if the Match is cancelled or abandoned without a single ball being bowled in any Match in the stadium on that day."
Uday: "All Happy faces here in Hyderabad :)"
10:39pm: And while I type out the XIs, the covers are being brought back on! The rain returns as have the umbrellas. Trevor Penny, next to Sangakkara in the sheds, shakes his head as the rain gets steadier a couple minutes later. There's a chat going on among eight people under four umbrellas. Glum faces among the crowd. A couple of dudes are happy to be spotted by the cameras.
Sai rajesh: "Noooooooooooooooooooooooo not again"
RR Impact player options - Shubham Dubey, Keshav Maharaj, 3 Yuzvendra Chahal, 4 Kuldeep Sen, Donovan Ferreira
RR XI: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Tom Kohler-Cadmore, 3 Sanju Samson (capt), 4 Riyan Parag, 5 Dhruv Jurel, 6 Rovman Powell, 7 Ravi Ashwin, 8 Trent Boult, 9 Sandeep Sharma, 10 Avesh Khan, 11 Nandre Burger
KKR Impact player options - Vaibhav Arora, Manish Pandey, Nitish Rana, KS Bharat, Sherfaine Rutherford
KKR XI: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Venkatesh Iyer, 3 Shreyas Iyer (capt), 4 Rinku Singh, 5 Sunil Narine, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Ramandeep Singh, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Anukul Roy, 10 Harshit Rana, 11 Varun Chakravarthy
Vismay: "'7-over game. Thala for a reason !"
It will be a seven-over game, starting at 10:45pm!
No timeouts. Four bowlers can bowl - 2, 2, 2 and 1 over per bowler.
Shreyas says they'll obviously bowl because of the rain, don't know how the wicket and outfield will be. Anukul Roy will come in. Samson says they'd have liked to bowl. Says the pitch looks better, last was dry. RR (last-minute) changes - Nandre Burger in
Deep Dasgupta is out with Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer. Heads is the call and it is heads, Shreyas wins it. KKR will bowl
10:29pm: Riyan Parag is out, leaning forward on his knee and looking at the pitch, and just like that, the announcer seems to have made the call for the toss! We're actually going, folks! Not sure how anything has happened but here we go!
10:25pm: Chat going on among Deep Dasgupta, Gautam Gambhir and Chandrakant Pandit and one of the match officials. The announcer calls excitement as the inspection begins. There is one patch of grass, deep in the outfield, that has an imprint of the water left out. The super-sopper is brought out on it seconds later. Officials are keeping the walk brisk, with the odd trod in areas that may need attention. A look at the watch, a word here and there goes on, as the walk continues. The rain, by the way, seems to have halted completely.
10:12pm And the pitch gets uncovered, probably for the first time in over three hours! The umpires are out having a chat with some of the other officials.The crowd are having a ball btw, especially the ones on camera. There will be an inspection at 10:25pm. Talk about taking the game deep...
For now, Samson has a chat with the umpires. He's nodding, glances at his watch momentarily, as the umps do most of the talking. Shreyas Iyer joins in, a brief chat later, a couple of sheets are out. The umpires seem to be telling them about revised playing conditions and the captains get the odd clarification.
In the meantime, the ground gets completely uncovered. The super-sopper is moving about, a couple of ropes are being dragged around too. Sangakkara runs in towards an official to ask about things as well.
Anjan: ""2, 2, 2, and 1.." A guy in suit said to Sanga, so there will be 7 overs :)" Seemed like it, but I'm not sure.
Taposh Roy: "If match gets played out, certainly there would be more than 5 overs a side." Not sure, your guess is as good as, well, anyone's
10:05pm: Kumar Sangakkara walks out with the smallest of subdued smiles. The super-sopper is hosing out water outside the playing field. The crowd are rhythming out beats of encouragement to the groundstaff who still have their hands full. Puddles are being sopped out, coaches are chatting around and some of the players are making their way out too. The announcer has found life again all of a sudden. Five minutes later, a layer of the covers on the pitch is removed to a cheer.
"Considering the boundary ropes are brought in to inflate the number of sixes anyways , why don't they just dry about 45 m around the pitch bring the ropes in and play?," sniggers Pranali
Pashin: "Would love to see a 5 over game with Narine going mad and KKR scoring around 100"
9:58pm: A couple of officials walk out to the field. One of them looks at his watch while looking up at the persistent rain. They look around and holy heck, they're throwing a hail mary - the covers are being removed off the square! Fans are chuffed but the grass just outside the 30-yard circle is drenched. The super-sopper is working in full force, guessing it'll be pushed to the limits tonight. Uh-oh, and there's a leaky banner in front of one of the stands, but it's not concerning many.
Mojo Jojo : "I thought somebody would have already asked this. Is it raining in jaipur? " Prateek had said this a while back - "Rajasthan's home game affected by rain - you don't hear that too often. It's scorching hot here in Jaipur at the moment."
Here's Ashu using some semantic liberty: "Seems like eliminator match is gonna be Royals VS Royals"
9:40pm The rain is just as heavy. The covers on the square are still firmly in place. Sadly, this feels like a wait towards an inevitable washout.
Anjan: "Can you please explain how Guwahati became Rajasthan's second home ground? The two regions are on opposite ends of India! Or did they select this as its Parag's home, like Ranchi for CSK? " It was due to 'RR's aspiration to play and expand cricket in north-east India' - an initiative from 2020.
ZaidKH: "Any chance of option 2??" It's 9:20pm and even a shootout seems unlikely. 10:56pm is the latest cut off time for a five over game. Lots of thunder and lightning around, the showers have been consistently heavy for the last 15 minutes. That and the DJs playing music. Spare a thought for the fans, who have had flock up in the shaded areas of the stands for shelter.
Guruprasad S: "The concern for RR is a weak-looking batting line-up, more so in the absence of Jos Butler who had a hand in quite a few early-season wins of RR. Jaiswal has not always fired, while Parag's form has dipped and Dhruv Jurel has not delivered anything big."
John: "Chepauk suits KKR /RR more , but the issue is RR will now be facing RCB at Ahmedabad. "
Abhinav: "I agree with Vinod. Till yesterday RCB really had nothing to lose to be honest. Now it's the playoffs time in which they can also be slightly overconfident after their miraculous comeback. And I am not sure if Chepauk really suits their style."
9:05pm: You know that poll below with the possible match scenarios for tonight? Chances of option one seem bleak now as the rain has kept all the people out of the playing area. Only the square is covered and there is water is trickling out onto the grass just inside the ring, square of the wicket.
Vinod: "In assam rain does not stop easily. rr will be better off preparing mentally to face RCB. Contrary to everyone, I don't think rob are clear favorites in that game "
8:48pm And the drizzle has gotten heavier, seemed like a bit of lightning too. The covers on the square are returning. About seven minutes later, it's turned into a proper downpour. The square and run-up areas are fully covered.
Parag: "What is the cut off time to have a 5 over match?" No official word yet, but somewhere around 10:55pm has generally been the cut-off.
Navneet: "@Bunty you will have your half wish fulfilled with City leading 2-0."
Agni : "@Sahil clearly at this rate, the rain is not supporting the home team!"
Sahil Subedi: "Seems like even the rain is a cricket fan, but it couldn't decide which team to support, so it decided to join the match instead!"
8:42pm Good news, the covers over the square are finally being removed, probably for the first time since 6:55pm. The crowd cheer, the DJ requests a round of applause for the groundstaff. Rain has relented after a while but will it stay away? Water is being sponged out of one of the squares, that might be an improvement from using hairdryers.
8:30pm: Most of the ground is still covered. The square and the run-up area have been unmoved for the last 50-odd minutes. Outfield covers are coming off to allow Super Soppers try and keep it as dry as possible. But it's still raining albeit at a lesser intensity than before. Umpires having a chat in the outfield. Kumar Sangakkara looks pensive with a hand on his face.
Bunty: "I have shifted to EPL with eye on this match through espncricinfo. Hopefully City will win the league and RR sneaks back to 2 place."
8:10pm: Better news but not by a great deal. Some of the covers were being removed but that was probably to pour the water out as it was creating puddles. But there has been movement. Even the super sopper is out on one side draining the outfield. The umbrella is above the heads of the couple of people who are out. Not on the groundstaff handling covers though. There is still a steady drizzle. Given the toss hasn't happened and it'll be an hour into the scheduled start of play in 20 minutes, it's almost inevitable that this won't be a full game.
rga: "The weather forecast until 10 30 pm is rain at times heavy. As srh fan I am extremely happy if this gets abandoned "
Calin: "I hope the weather will be good for the next 4 matches." Ahmedabad and Chennai will host two each btw
8pm: There's still a slight drizzle. Almost the entire ground is still under cover, just a small block at the edge (square of the pitch) has been peeled off. No real progress yet.
As the wait continues, you can check out Alagappan Muthu's piece about MS Dhoni's future in the remarkably titled piece - #Thalaforareason … but Thala for another season?
7:42pm: The rain has gotten even more heavy. The covers are being swarmed onto the outfield. The entire playing area should be blanketed in about five minutes.
Tanny: "That last ball to Powell by Bhuvi will haunt RR if this match is washed out"
Niroop : "RR would dearly love to get on the field today evening if it's a reduced match. They wouldn't want to go into playoffs with 4 consecutive losses and no match practice against a red hot RCB"
Dinu: "The situation reminds everyone of yesterday's true hero… the drainage system at KSCA " Yeah, and luck. I stay around 3 kilometres away from the stadium and it was pelting there till about 11:30pm.
SharatOjha: "What are the live visuals from the ground look like ?" At 7:32pm, it's still raining. The square is covered, a few people are standing around but there's no movement. No super sopper yet. Remember, we can afford an hour's delay before overs get reduced. At 7:36pm, the rain has gotten heavier and there are more covers being brought on. Areas around bowlers' run-ups have now been covered.
Here's Sunaadh Sagar, from ESPN India, helping you keep occupied during the break - Elsewhere in Indian badminton, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won the Thailand Open with ease, which saw them reclaim their world no.1 ranking and is important for their medal prospects at the Paris Olympics.
George : "Any status on Who is available to play for both teams ?" As of now, the match preview covers the available options
7:15pm: Sunrisers Hyderabad have completed a four-wicket victory against Punjab Kings. So, RR have to win tonight to finish in the top two. What that also means is that the last three league-stage games of the tournament will be of consequence. It's still raining at 7:25pm btw.
Abhilash: "@Mustafa - The team with better NRR will take the second spot before it comes to number of matches won (source - espncricinfo points table page )" Keen eye you've got, Abhilash. But just to clarify NRR will come into play if the teams have an equal number of wins. Most wins in league stage is the primary clause that decides qualification.
Vinod: "What's the weather prediction for tonight?" According to the BBC, there will be thundery showers with light winds. The highest chance of rain is around 9:30pm.
7:05pm: There's been a slight drizzle, a few officials in the middle have umbrellas tucked in their hands rather than over head. Covers still on though. A couple of minutes later, it looks like the drizzle has gotten steady again. Gautam Gambhir is having a chat with Gurbaz, Nitish Rana and Ramandeep Singh in the outfield.
6:55pm: With five minutes to go for the scheduled toss time, bad weather has struck. A sudden drizzle has the groundstaff run across to bring the covers on. The players have to abandon their warm-ups. Just the square has been covered for now. Toss has been delayed due to rain - the announcement comes a minute or two later.
Mustafa Moudi: "Polite Enquire: Suppose SRH wins the current match and this match get abandoned with 1 Point being distributed to both these 2 sides, Who takes the 2nd Spot - SRH or RR ?? Both would have equal points (16) but RR would have more no. of Wins while SRH would have a higher NRR !!" Should be SRH going through. Also, both teams will have eight wins each if SRH win, no?
Pitch and conditions for the last league game for the season - The pitch is almost at the centre at the ground. Square boundaries are 61-62 metres. One straight boundary is longer (71 to 73 metres), other is shorter (56 and 57 metres). The last game here wasn't high-scoring. Matthew Hayden says it's a cracking wicket - a different looking one from the last game. RR got 199 and DC couldn't chase it down last year. The pitch is extremely hard, he says, it's got a good sheen to it. It's got a nice covering of grass, even in the bits where it isn't there, there is sheen and the ball will slide on. Spinners came into play last game. Matt Hayden said he'd bat first.
Abhishek : "What are the chances of a completed match considering the rain around?" Not sure but it's dry for now. Nice atmosphere too at Guwahati, ground's buzzing, fans have begun to pack the stands.
6:45pm: For KKR, the carrot halwas have kept coming. They can have an assortment of halwas if they want given how well they've gone. Nine wins in 13 games, just three losses and one no result, hard for a situation to get more enviable than that. They already have secured a top-two spot and tonight's game can just be a dress rehearsal ahead of Qualifier 1. They can also have Rahmanullah Gurbaz get game time at the top with Phil Salt having left for national duties.
Mohit Arya: "I think RR should let Ashwin open with Jaiswal instead of trying TKC at such crucial time of the tournament, 4 foreign players should be Hettie Powell Boult Burger/Maharaj depending on condition." Sure is a brave call
Opus: "After 2008 season this is first time that two table toppers are playing the last league game. RR had won that season. " It might have been if not for SRH, who look all but certain to win against PBKS. 38 needed off 34 with six wickets in hand, and Harshal's just dropped Abhishek as I type. But let's see, who knows
Vishal Dikshit's preview: Rajasthan Royals search for winning mantra to hold on to second spot
6:30pm: The absence of the need to worry about survival is an inherent benefit to first-world problems. It leaves you in a situation where you have the option of choosing between ordering carrot halwa or kofta rather than running after carrots. In tournament play, securing qualification is that luxury that opens access to all kinds of carroty goodness - Rajasthan Royals earned that in a sizzling first-half this IPL. Eight wins in their first nine games felt like an inevitability and the one loss an aberration. They didn't have to worry about qualification but four losses in a row have pegged them back. Couple that with Sunrisers Hyderabad chugging along and well set to win their ongoing game against Punjab Kings, and RR are in must-win situation if they want to finish in the top two.
