NEW DELHI: Ajinkya Rahane, captain of Kolkata Knight Riders, was on Wednesday fined Rs 12 lakh for maintaining a slow over-rate during their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Tuesday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.As this was the team’s first offence of the season under Article 2.22 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct, which deals with minimum over-rate violations, Rahane was fined Rs 12 lakh.In the match, Noor Ahmad returned figures of 3/21 as Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 32 runs to register their second win in a row.Chennai posted 192/5 after being asked to bat, with contributions from Sanju Samson (48) and Dewald Brevis (41).Noor then led the bowling effort with his left-arm wrist spin to restrict Kolkata to 160/7 in their chase, leaving them without a win after five matches.Kolkata are at the bottom of the points table with one point, which came from a washed-out match.Chennai, after starting the season with three losses, have now won two matches in a row and moved up to eighth place.The team is still waiting for the return of MS Dhoni, who is recovering from a calf injury and has not played yet this season.In the chase, Kolkata lost early wickets including Finn Allen (1) and Sunil Narine (24), but stayed in the contest for some time.Noor dismissed Rahane for 28 and Cameron Green for a golden duck on consecutive balls, but Rinku Singh avoided the hat-trick.Rovman Powell (31 not out) and Ramandeep Singh (35) tried to rebuild the innings, but the required run rate remained high.“We just have to keep that head up and just be positive and have that self-belief,” Rahane said.“I thought with the ball, we were treated really well. 190 on this wicket was really good, especially the power play, what they got, 70-odd runs. After that, pulling back to 190 was an amazing job from our bowling unit. I thought initially that with our batting, we just got 36 or 37 runs in the power play. I thought that was really important. In the middle phase, hitting spinners was slightly challenging, but apart from that, the wicket was really good. We needed one batter to bat until deep and then take it in the end,” Rahane added.

On a surface that rewarded patience and precision, Noor Ahmad delivered a decisive spell to help Chennai Super Kings secure a 32-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday.

Defending 192 on a two-paced Chepauk track, Noor returned figures of 3 for 21, removing Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh and Cameron Green as KKR collapsed from 79 for 2 to 90 for 6.

IPL 2026, CSK vs KKR: Highlights | Scorecard

“It was good. The wicket helped today. There was a little bit of turn for him. The other wickets are quite flat, but today it was a little slower through the air. There was more side spin on the ball and more drop,” CSK bowling coach Sridharan Sriram said after the match.

While conditions played a part, Sriram pointed to preparation as a key factor behind Noor’s turnaround.

“That is something he has been working on. Even MS had a long chat with him in one of the practice sessions, especially about getting his leg-break going. I think it was very helpful today, and the results were there to see.”

EXECUTION KEY

Noor’s impact was built on finding the right length on a surface that offered grip.

“Being able to get some deviation off the surface is very important, and that is what he has been working on. Everyone accepts that there will be days when wickets are flat, but still looking to be aggressive, putting revs on the ball and getting it to spin will help. That is how you induce mistakes,” Sriram explained.

There was also key input during the innings from fellow spinner Akeal Hosein.

“In his first over, he was either a bit short or slightly too full. Once he found that in-between length, he became very difficult to play. Credit to Akeal as well because he pointed that out during the strategic timeout.”

DHONI INFLUENCE

Sriram also highlighted the role of MS Dhoni, whose interaction with Noor during training helped sharpen his approach.

“One of his strengths is that he gets late movement. His release is very good and the ball moves late. When he gets it right consistently, it becomes difficult for batters.”

Beyond skill, Sriram emphasised Noor’s preparation and awareness.

“He is a very good student of the game. He analyses batters, studies where to place his fielders and understands what speeds to bowl. He comes prepared.”

With KKR unable to recover from the middle-order collapse, CSK’s control through spin proved decisive on a challenging surface.

For Noor Ahmad, it was a performance shaped by preparation, communication and execution, with Dhoni’s guidance playing a key role in his turnaround at Chepauk.

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The extreme heat and humidity during the summer months has seen plenty of bowlers and batters pull up with cramps during the ongoing Indian Premier League, but different teams have had different ways to deal with that particular kind of adversity in the last week.

In Chennai Super Kings’ win over Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday evening, fast-bowler Khaleel Ahmed pulled up a couple of times late on in the second innings. After initially receiving minor treatment and trying to run in to close out his over, Khaleel had to pause mid run-up. Subsequenltly, he hobbled off the field to receive further treatment, with Gurjapneet Singh closing out the over in his stead.

Watching this incident, Ravi Shastri on broadcast for JioHotstar couldn’t help but remember an incident from a couple of days prior, as the RCB vs MI match had delved into a farce in very similar circumstances.

“Rather than calling the pyhsio and wasting 10 minutes then doing the same thing, he has decided to walk off,” Shastri said on air as Khaleel left the pitch late on, allowing the game to progress – something that wasn’t the case during Bengaluru’s bowling innings on Sunday night, which was extended endlessly as seamer Rasikh Dar received treatment three different times over the course of a single over.

ALSO READ: Sunil Gavaskar fumes on-air at RCB time-wasting, blasts triple medical timeout: ‘Are we going to see this again?’

While games with super overs have lasted longer, social media posts regarding the match beating popular Bollywood movie Dhurandhar’s run-time went viral over the weekend. Lengthy reviews and extensive injury timeouts was a big reason for this, as commentators including Sunil Gavaskar lost their cool because of the repeated delay.

“Just go off the field, get treatment, and then come back… This is what, the third time the physio has come in. Are we going to see the same thing over and over again?” Gavaskar had said frustrated on air during that match, and the broadcasters’ disappointment was further made clear by Shastri’s sly dig on Tuesday.