KKR vs Kings XI, 18th match at Kolkata, Apr 21 2018 - Match Result

That's all from the Eden Gardens tonight. We're already half-way through the first innings of the evening game in Bengaluru, so why don't you head over there? Match report, reactions, all to come as the evening progresses. On behalf of the ESPNcricinfo crew, this is Sreshth Shah, signing off.

8.30pm Chris Gayle hugs Mayank Agarwal as the visitors win for the first time in their last six attempts at the Eden. They'll finish Saturday as table-toppers of the IPL. It was that momentum at the end of KKR's innings, where they only scored 45 off the last five overs, that set the tone for Kings XI's chase when they came to bat. Rahul and Gayle smacked the ball to all parts, and finished as deserving winners. The hosts' bowling seemed all over the place. Presentation soon.

KL Rahul, Man of the Match: "I don't know what's happening, but I don't want to question what's going well for me. The approach is to stay aggressive and take the opposition down. The simpler you keep it, the clearer you will be as a batsman. Don't want to complicate my batting, see ball hit ball. I back my shots, and just want to get into shape. Feet's moving well and I'm striking well. Just want to make sure I make it big. Have gotten out after getting starts. Me and Chris have spoken - we're gonna back our games. If he's going for it, doesn't mean I take the back seat."

R Ashwin, the winning captain: "Happier with this win, compared to the previous one. The par score was about 210. We had a time-out, and I told the boys we should try and restrict to 190. KL looked like a million dollars, and well, Chris is Chris. Sometimes when you're going hammer and tongs, it's important to get some perspective in the chase. One side was a which shorter, so we opted to have AJ Tye for the 20th over. But we don't plan for wickets, we plan to make the batsmen uncomfortable and that force the wicket. It's a very hard week coming up."

Aniket: "I think kkr shouldnt be much disappointed with this loss...might be tactical errors of not starting with a spinner at one end to root off the nervous gayle in the beginning ..."

Pranav : "Explosive Rahul & Sensible Gayle. No the adjective isn't misplaced."

8.28pm Narine, the purple cap holder: "Bowling is coming along. It was going to be pretty easy for Kings XI after the rain break. Gayle and Rahul showed how good they are."

Chris Gayle, the orange cap holder: "good to be among the runs. Doesn't matter about the orange cap, I think Rahul deserves it. To be honest, I didn't strike it really well, but when you have a momentum going, you need to capitalise."

Dikshit Chhabra: "Tom currans economy reads as 36. What will be his smart economy ;) "

Prasanth Ajithk: "Tye should get the MoM award... but, I know, it's a Batman's world, right?"

Draqib: "Surely, Kl rahul is the Luke Ronchi of IPL, literally destroying every bowling lineup."

8.13pm DK's behind the stumps as Gayle and Rahul make their way into the middle.

Reetam: "Important that KKR drag this as much as possible. Need to follow Kohli's limit the NRR damage theory unlike the likes of RR and DD."

8.07pm It'll be a 13-over game. Target is 125. Kings XI Punjab need 29 runs in 28 balls. The fielders are now walking out.

The IPL handle has just tweeted: "It has stopped raining and the covers have come off. The umpires on the field for inspection. We will have an update soon on the match conditions"

8pm Abhas agarwal: "Is there any chance that the match will resume?" -- It should, yes, according to the broadcasters.

Jeff Probst: "whenever there's a rain out, they should switch to a kabadi game to decide the winner." -- "Survivor" of the fittest, eh?

Chandru : "Well, whatever. I want to see Gayle finish his half century "

Surbhit Thanvi: "So we will be having full 20 over game ?" -- No, there will be a loss in overs. Still no update on when play will start.

Venky: "Are any overs likely to be docked ? What is the cut-off time if any, when there will be no more action in this game." -- The cut-off time was supposed to be 8.10pm, but funny things have happened with respect to cut-off times in the IPL in the past.

7.33pm The centre covers are coming off.

Jay : "Just a slight change in topic. As I was reading the article by Mark Nicholas on the proposed "the hundred" version of cricket, where he mentioned the diminishing interest in cricket in the UK, I just wonder if the ICC has not done enough to globalise the game. It's a huge deal in the "big 3", but beyond that? Even basketball and hockey might be more popular"

7.20pm Update from the Knight Riders Twitter: The rain has stopped. Covers are being mopped for ridding them of residual water. The groundstaff is at work, but it may be a while before we can resume.

Joe: "what's the situation with today's 2nd game? Does this have to finish before that one starts?" -- Should start on time. Varun Shetty's already started warming up for that game here.

7.05pm Still no update from the ground, which basically means it's still raining.

Here's a fun read while you wait: On Friday, Arsene Wenger announced that he would step down as Arsenal manager at the end of this season after 21 years in charge. The world was a very different place when the Frenchman was unveiled in 1996 -- Facebook and Twitter didn't exist, Lionel Messi was yet to have a trial with Barcelona and 'Macarena' was dominating US music charts. Here's more.

KD: "Loving every bit of rejuvenated Kings XI Punjab. All the credit to Kings XI Punjab for playing smart cricket by staying ahead of RRR all the time. "

Zameer Arif: "I live in Kolkata. 5 KM away from the ground. Rain is still there but the intensity is definitely dropped. Hope it begins in 30-45 mins."

G Anantha Naray: "I think KKR were 20-30 runs short.Excellent effort by AJ Tye in the middle and death.Looks like KXIP would chase down even targets like 230 if it gets going this."

6.53pm Hypothetically, if we lose ten overs today, then Kings XI (currently 96 for 0) will win the game even if they play dot balls for the rest of their innings. That's because the 10-over target would be 89, and KXIP are already ahead of it. This sport is bizarre. This situation has happened in the past as well, in the Big Bash League.

6.41pm It's drizzling, so they're coming off with Gayle stranded on 49. The covers are swiftly on. With ten wickets in hand, Kings XI are 31 runs ahead of the DLS par score of 65.

Jishan: "@Rohan: We cannot be so dismissive of Rohit after all the good work he's done opening for India. But KL Rahul does deserve a go at the top. We could push down Rohit to number 4 and it would also solve the Indian middle order problem. Midlle order of Rohit, Karthik and Dhoni looks both solid and with firepower. Rahul and Dhawan at the top is as good as anybody"

Rohan: "I think Rahul has taken it upon himself to prove he cannot be ignored anymore from the Ind LOI lineups. Too much class, 0-100 in no time, equally good against pace and spin, and ability to score big. If Rohit cannot even open for his franchise anymore then there is no reason why Ind should persist with his slow, hesitant starts against seam in LOIs."