Varun-Narine duo ends rare 96-match IPL streak

• KKR must field a changed lineup vs Punjab, due to injury & illness.
• Narine & Chakravarthy's 96-game run as a duo ends, a rare shift.
• Rain has halted play; match may end in a points split for both teams.

Kolkata Knight Riders were forced to make a couple of changes to their lineup against Punjab Kings on Monday (April 6).

At the Eden Gardens, Ajinkya Rahane

won the toss and elected to bat, and while doing so, the KKR skipper confirmed their forced changes.

Varun Chakravarthy has missed out due to an injury which inflicted damage to his fingers while attempting a catch against Sunrisers Hyderabad. On the other hand, KKR's mainstay Sunil Narine has not featured due to an illness, likely a viral issue. KKR replaced the spin duo with Navdeep Saini and Rovman Powell respectively.

Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy have been the pillars of success in the last half of a decade or so. Since being a regular for KKR in 2019, the spin duo have worked in tandem to torment many oppositions. The spin-heavy KKR side have often extracted the best services, which led to a final appearance in 2021 and then the title in 2024.

Although KKR have lost the first two matches and both Narine and Chakravarthy have looked subdued, their influence still remains a big part of KKR's bowling arsenal.

KKR's Spin Duo end 96-game Streak

For the first time since April 12, 2019, Kolkata Knight Riders have fielded a playing XI without both Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy. KKR played against Delhi Capitals on that day at Eden Gardens and lost the match by 7 wickets. Interestingly, Dinesh Karthik was the captain that time and Shubman Gill used to play for the Knights.

Since that date, the two spinners had featured together in 96 consecutive matches, forming a central part of KKR's strategy. Their joint absence today marks the end of that long‑running streak, a rare disruption to one of IPL's most consistent spin‑pair combinations.

KKR vs PBKS: Rain Stops Play at Eden Gardens

In the match, KKR lost two early wickets as Finn Allen anf Cameron Green departed cheaply. The Knights were 25/2 in 3.4 overs when rain came, and so far, it has not stopped yet. As this article gets published, the match is heading towards a washout and two teams may have to split the points.