With heavy rain and ominous skies earlier in the day, the eagerly awaited IPL 2026 meeting between Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants at Eden Gardens now looks set to proceed with minimal disruption. After the morning showers brought dark clouds and a yellow weather alert for thunderstorms, conditions are expected to settle as the evening approaches, giving both teams and their supporters a clearer run at match day.
Key takeaways
- Rain disruptions are not expected to be a major factor by the toss, with precipitation odds falling to almost none around 7:30 PM IST.
- Kolkata’s morning weather included intense showers and a thunderstorm alert, but the forecast suggests improving conditions through the day.
- Kick-off conditions are projected to be clear to partly cloudy, supporting a full-length 40-over game.
- Temperatures during the match window are expected to sit between 24°C and 27°C.
- A light south-southeast breeze (about 11 km/h, gusting up to 24 km/h) could offer early movement for swing bowlers.
- High evening humidity (around 79%) may bring pronounced dew, which can affect ball handling and typically favours teams batting second.
Weather outlook at Eden Gardens
Kolkata saw intense showers during the morning hours, accompanied by thick cloud cover, which led to a yellow alert for thunderstorms. Despite that early scare, the latest outlook points towards a far calmer evening, reducing the likelihood of further rain before the toss.
By the time the teams are scheduled to begin proceedings at 7:30 PM IST, the chance of rain is forecast to drop to near zero. The match is therefore expected to be played under clear to partly cloudy skies, with many expecting the contest to run as a complete 40-over encounter.
Across the playing hours, temperatures are expected to remain comfortable, hovering in the 24°C to 27°C band. There is also a possibility of a gentle south-southeasterly breeze, travelling at roughly 11 km/h and occasionally gusting up to 24 km/h, which may help seamers and swing specialists in the early stages of the innings.
Dew and pitch conditions could shape the contest
Even if rainfall stays away during the match window, humidity is expected to be high—around 79%—which often translates into heavier dew later in the evening. That kind of moisture can make the ball harder to grip, reducing movement and grip for fast bowlers and spinners, while generally making batting easier as the innings progresses.
Earlier showers may also leave the outfield slightly damp. If that impacts how smoothly the ground is prepared, the venue staff could require additional time for safety and readiness, which may translate into a small delay despite the expectation of no rain during the game.
Squads: KKR vs LSG
Lucknow Super Giants squad
- Aiden Markram
- Mitchell Marsh
- Rishabh Pant (w/c)
- Ayush Badoni
- Nicholas Pooran
- Abdul Samad
- Mukul Choudhary
- Manimaran Siddharth
- Avesh Khan
- Mohammed Shami
- Digvesh Singh Rathi
- Prince Yadav
- Matthew Breetzke
- Shahbaz Ahmed
- Anrich Nortje
- Himmat Singh
- Akshat Raghuwanshi
- Josh Inglis
- Naman Tiwari
- Arshin Kulkarni
- Mayank Prabhu Yadav
- Akash Maharaj Singh
- Arjun Tendulkar
- Mohsin Khan
- Wanindu Hasaranga
Kolkata Knight Riders squad
- Finn Allen
- Ajinkya Rahane (c)
- Cameron Green
- Angkrish Raghuvanshi (w)
- Rovman Powell
- Rinku Singh
- Ramandeep Singh
- Anukul Roy
- Navdeep Saini
- Vaibhav Arora
- Kartik Tyagi
- Blessing Muzarabani
- Manish Pandey
- Tejasvi Dahiya
- Saurabh Dubey
- Sunil Narine
- Rahul Tripathi
- Tim Seifert
- Sarthak Ranjan
- Rachin Ravindra
- Prashant Solanki
- Varun Chakaravarthy
- Matheesha Pathirana
- Umran Malik
- Daksh Kamra
