Faf du Plessis' unbeaten 95 and 4-29 from Deepak Chahar combined to earn Chennai Super Kings an 18-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders in a thrilling clash, in Mumbai.
Du Plessis and fellow opener Ruturaj Gaikwad (64 off 42) paved the way for Chennai's imposing total of 220-3 by putting on 115 for the first wicket.
Kolkata appeared down and out at 31-5 in reply after a devastating opening spell of 4-16 from Chahar only for Andre Russell's brutal 55 off 22 deliveries and Dinesh Karthik's 24-ball 40 to reignite the match.
The pair put on 81-run stand for the sixth wicket in six overs and the onslaught was maintained by Pat Cummins, who smote 30 - including four sixes - off one Sam Curran over that included four sixes.
Cummins completed his second IPL fifty off 23 balls and attempted to farm the strike as wickets ebbed away only to be stranded on 66no from 34 balls as Kolkata were dismissed for 202 off 19.1 overs.
Kolkata skipper Eoin Morgan won the toss and elected to field only to find his side quickly under pressure.
Gaikwad had scored just 20 runs in his previous three IPL innings but repaid the faith shown in him by reaching his fourth IPL fifty off just 33 balls.
Together with Du Plessis, he added 54-0 in the six overs, the pair improving the stand to 115 before Gaikwad slog-swept Varun Chakravarthy (1-27) to Cummins in the deep.
