Chennai Super Kings vs Kings XI Punjab, Indian Premier League 2020: In Pics

KL Rahul-led Kings XI Punjab won the toss and opted to bat first against three-time winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Match 18 of the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.

The Chennai-based franchise kicked off their campaign at the 13th season of the lucrative T20 tournament with a comfortable five-wicket win over defending champions Mumbai Indians. However, they failed to capitalise on the same and slumped to three consecutive defeats--against Rajasthan Royals (lost by 16 runs), Delhi Capitals (lost by 44 runs) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (lost by seven runs).

The three back-to-back defeats saw CSK slump to the bottom of the IPL 2020 standings. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Interestingly, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have headed into the clash against Kings XI Punjab with the same squad that slumped to a seven-run defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad. 

Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Sam Curran and Dwayne Bravo are the four overseas players in the MS Dhoni's Playing XI against the KL Rahul-led side.

The two teams have faced each other in a total of 21 matches, with CSK emerging victorious on 12 occasions. (Image Credits: Twitter/@ChennaiIPL)

Kings XI have made three changes in their Playing XI. Karun Nair, K Gowtham, and Jimmy Neesham are out, while Mandeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, and Chris Jordan have been roped in.

Nicholas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Chris Jordan and Sheldon Cottrell are the four overseas players in Punjab's Playing XI against CSK. 

Skipper KL Rahul and opener Mayank Agarwal provided a steady start to their side by guiding them to a score of 46 without the loss of any wicket at the end of Powerplay. After 6 overs, Rahul and Agarwal were batting at their respective scores of 24 and 21. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

 Shortly after Kings XI Punjab crossed the 50-run mark, Mayank Agarwal (26) smashed the first delivery of the ninth over from Piyush Chawla to deep midwicket, only to see Sam Curran grab a good catch. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Mandeep Singh was caught by Ambati Rayudu at extra cover on the last ball of the 12th over from Ravindra Jadeja.With this, the Kings XI Punjab player's cameo of 16-ball 27 runs also came to an end. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Kings XI Punjab skipper KL Rahul brought up a half-century off 45 deliveries. He lofted the second delivery of the 15th over from Shardul Thakur over the deep cover region to achieve the feat. En route to his knock, Rahul also completed 1,500 runs for Kings XI. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Back-to-back wickets for Shardul Thakur. Nicholas Pooran (33) looked to go high on the first delivery of the 18th over, only to see Ravindra Jadeja grab a good catch at deep midwicket. Skipper KL Rahul (63), on the other hand, was caught by MS Dhoni behind the stumps on the very next ball. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Skipper KL Rahul smashed a crucial knock of 52-ball 63 besides stitching crucial stands of 61 and 58 runs  with Mayank Agarwal and Nichoolas Pooran, respectively to help Kings XI Punjab post a score of 178 for four against CSK.  (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Opener Shane Watson brought up his 20th IPL fifty and his first of this season. Watson achieved the feat with a four by hitting the second delivery of the 11th over from Chris Jordan wide of mid-off. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

CSK opening batsman Faf du Plessis notched up a half-century off 33 deliveries.Du Plessis flicked the fifth delivery of the same over to third man's right to reach fifty with a single. (Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) openers Faf du Plessis and Shane Watson displayed solid performances with the bat to help the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side thrash Kings XI Punjab by 10 wickets at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.(Image Credits: Twitter/@IPL)