Spinner Kuldeep Yadav starred with the ball with career-best figures as Kolkata Knight Riders cruised past Rajasthan Royals by six wickets to close in on the play-offs.

Kuldeep claimed splendid figures of four for 24 to bundle out Rajasthan Royals for 142.

KKR were rarely threatened with the bat as Chris Lynn scored a steady 45 from 42 balls before captain Dinesh Karthik finished off things with a quickfire 41 from 31 balls.

Unadkat comes back as Russell cuts the first ball over point for a four and then takes one on the off-side.

Karthik plays the late cut, steering the third ball fine on the off-side for another boundary before he is beaten trying the same shot.

Two more singles as Unadkat gives away 10 from the over with KKR needing just 14 from three overs for victory.

Last throw of dice for Rajasthan as Archer is called back to bow his final over.

Karthik miscues a pull off the first ball but it falls safely for a single. Russell makes room and hammers the second ball through the covers for a four before he hits a full toss down to long-on for one as the target has come down to eight.

Karthik steers the fifth ball as Gowtham makes a good effort on the boundary with the dive but ends up giving away a four.

Archer comes back with Rajasthan needing a wicket or two to make their way back into the contest.

He starts with a short wide delivery which Lynn cuts past point for a four before he hits a similar shot next ball but this time he can't beat the fielder.

Two singles before Lynn looks to pull the last ball but gets a thick outside edge for another four as 10 come from the over.

Sodhi comes back with KKR inching closer to victory and doing it quite easily.

Karthik reverse sweeps the second ball fine on the off-side for a four as the runs needed comes down to 30.

Lynn has a huge swing as he targets the straight boundary but misses before he paddles the last ball fine for a couple.

Sodhi produces a beauty to end the spell, getting it to turn big to beat Lynn's defensive push.

Sodhi ends with impressive figures of one for 21 in four overs as KKR reach 116 for three in 15 overs, needing 27 from five overs for victory.

Stokes continues his wicket ways. This time he strikes with the key wicket of Lynn, who slashes at a wide delivery but is caught in the deep on the off-side after a sedate innings of 45 from 42 balls.

Stokes nearly picks another one as Karthik is hit on the pads by the incoming delivery as the leg before call is turned down. Rajasthan take the review but Karthik survives as the ball is clipping the outside of leg stump.

Just three from over as Stokes finishes with wonderful figures of three for 15 in four overs, including a maiden.

Left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat comes into the attack. Dinesh Karthik looks to keep the tempo going as he punches the pacer through the covers for a four to get seven from the over.

At the halfway stage, KKR are 80 for three, with another 63 needed from 10 overs for victory.

Leg-spinner Sodhi in the midst of a good spell as he sends down another tidy over, conceding just three singles as Rajasthan look to dry up the boundaries and build up some pressure.

Unadkat tries the slower bouncer but Lynn adjusts well as he pulls it through fine leg for a four followed by two singles.

Pacer Anureet Singh comes into the attack. Without taking any risks, Lynn and Karthik easily collect 10 runs from the over with Karthik playing a cracking cover drive off the last ball for a four.

Off-spinner Gowtham, who was smashed for 21 runs in his first over by Narine, is called back into the attack.

Three singles before Rana chips down and plays the inside out lofted shot to perfection for a six.

Two more singles from the last two balls to make it 11 from the over.

Sodhi strikes in the next over with the wicket of Rana, who is dismissed leg before wicket for 21.

The umpire is unmoved as Rajasthan go for the DRS. The left-hander has a nervy poke as he is struck in the crease in line with the ball going on to hit the stumps and the decision is overturned.

KKR still in control on 73 for three in nine overs, needing another 70 from 11 overs for victory.

Archer beats Rana with a full delivery that moves away a touch and does it again next ball with one that is slightly short.

Rana then plays a good drive off a full delivery but is unable to find the gap through the off-side.

He then plays the cut shot, hitting it uppishly as the fielder at point dives to his left but is unable to stop the boundary before he takes two runs off the next ball.

Stokes bowls another tidy over, giving away just five as Rajasthan look to keep the runs down and build some pressure. The England all-rounder has done a good job with the ball so far, taking two for 13 in his three overs.

Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi is called into the attack from the end where Kuldeep took all his four wickets.

Two singles from three balls before Rana cuts a short ball for a four as KKR reach 57 for two in seven overs.

Jofra Archer comes into the attack, to bowl the third over. Robin Uthappa picks a single before Lynn pulls a short ball over midwicket for a six and then steers the next short ball over thirdman for a four as KKR continue their fiery start.

Stokes strikes again in his second over. Again it is the short ball which does the damage as Uthappa plays the pull shot but ends up lofting it straight to Tripathi at deep midwicket.

Lynn crashes the last ball through the covers for a four as KKR reach 40 for two in four overs.

Off-spinner Krishnappa Gowtham opens the bowling for Rajasthan, who will be eyeing a few early wickets to keep themselves in the contest.

Sunil Narine wastes no time in getting going as he swings the first ball over midwicket for a six to start off in grand style.

He continues to throw his bat as the second ball goes for a boundary through square leg before the next ball is lofted down the ground for a six.

Gowtham bowls one wide and Narine drives it through the covers a four as KKR rack up 20 runs from the first four balls of their innings.

Ben Stokes to bowl the second over. Narine slashes his bat a wide one but is beaten before he perishes off the next ball as he throws his bat at a short ball to walk back after a quickfire cameo of 21 from just seven balls.

Chris Lynn defends the remaining four deliveries of the over as Stokes starts off with a wicket maiden.

Kolkata Knight Riders spinner Kuldeep Yadav registered career-best figures of four for 24 to bundle out Rajasthan Royals for 142 in Kolkata, on Tuesday.

Rajasthan made a quickfire start as the openers put on 63 inside five overs before Andre Russell made the breakthrough with the wicket of Rahul Tripathi (27).

Kuldeep then ran through the middle order as he dismissed Ajinkya Rahane (11), who missed the reverse sweep and was bowled.

The in-form Jos Buttler stroked 39 from 22 balls before he was caught on the off-side and the rest of the batsmen also perished cheaply as Rajasthan suffered a batting collapse.

Jaydev Unadkat added some respectability to the score with his fighting innings of 26 from 18 balls.

Russell comes back into the attack, to bowl the 18th over. A single to Unadkat off the first ball before Archer swings the next ball straight into the hands of Shubman Gill in the deep on the leg side.

Unadkat, on 23 from 13 balls, top edges the pull shot as he skies it on the off-side but Krishna puts down an easy catch.

Rajasthan continue to slip as they are reduced to 137 for nine in 18 overs, with Unadkat unbeaten on 24 from 15 balls.

Krishna to bowl the 19th over. With one just wicket in hand, Rajasthan are content to pick singles and add as many possible to their total.

He ends the Rajasthan innings with the last ball of the over as Unadkat is bowled, looking to swing but misses it completely.

Rajasthan will need their remaining batsmen to bat till the end and score whatever they can.

Jaydev Unadkat plays a nice drive through the covers off Mavi and the timing is good that the ball races over the ropes for a four.

He takes a lot of confidence from the previous shot as he pulls a short ball over square leg for a six and keeps strike with one from the last ball as Mavi finishes with one for 44 in four overs.

Unadkat playing a crucial knock with the bat. He cuts a short ball from Narine for a boundary followed by two singles before Unadkat carves the last ball over point for another four.

10 from Narine's final over as he finishes with one for 29 in four overs.

Pacer Krishna comes back into the attack. He starts with two dot balls to Ish Sodhi, who then swings wildly but can only manage an inside edge and is caught behind by wicketkeeper Karthik for one.

Jofra Archer, who was surprisingly held back at No. 9, shows his capability with the ball as he pulls the first ball he faces for a four through square leg.

Archer gently lobs the last ball back over the bowler's head to end the over with a couple of runs.

Pacer Mavi, who bowled a fiery first spell with the new ball, is called back into the attack.

Three singles before Mavi bowls a lethal delivery, quick and bouncing high as Gowtham looks to evade it but gets hit on the gloves and is caught behind for three.

In the next over, Kuldeep leaves Rajasthan in complete shambles with the key wicket of Stokes, who is caught by the bowler off a leading edge for 11.

Kuldeep finishes with career-best figures of four for 20 in his four overs, to turn the innings on it's head.

Rajasthan were looking set for a huge score after they raced to 63 inside five overs before they suffered a sensational batting collapse.

Russell made the breakthrough with the wicket of Tripathi before Kuldeep triggered a batting collapse to put KKR in control.

Kuldeep in the midst of a wonderful spell. He drags Stuart Binny forward with a flighted delivery before beating him with some turn as wicketkeeper Karthik comes up with a quick stumping.

Binny walks back for 1 as Rajasthan slip to 96 for five, losing five wickets for 33 runs in the space of 38 balls.

Krishnappa Gowtham is nearly done in by another brilliant delivery from Kuldeep, who again gets good amount of turn.

Four singles from the over as Rajasthan are left reeling on 100 for five in 12 overs.

Kuldeep strikes again in his next over, this time with the big wicket of Buttler.

The in-form opener looks to reverse the spinner but slices a simple catch to the fielder at short thirdman.

Buttler walks back after scoring 39 from 22 balls, as Rajasthan are reduced to 85 for three in the 10th over.

Samson sweeps the last ball for a four to take Rajasthan to 92 for three in 10 overs.

KKR keep coming back with regular wickets. Narine strikes in the next over, as Samson is dismissed leg before wicket for 12. He was given out not out initially before KKR decided to review the decision and it turned out to be the correct decision.

KKR looking to build some pressure on Ajinkya Rahane as Narine bowls four dot balls in a row at the Royals captain. But he makes up for it by flicking the last ball behind square for a four as Rajasthan race to 68 for one in six overs, with Buttler unbeaten on 36 from 15 balls.

Russell, who struck in his previous over, sends down another tidy over as he gives away just six runs in his second.

Left-arm chinaman spinner Kuldeep Yadav comes into the attack. Rahane sweeps the first ball square for a couple before he is dismissed off the very next delivery.

Rahane walks across his stumps and tries the reverse sweep but misses the ball completely and is bowled for 11.

New batsman Sanju Samson tries to sweep the first ball but misses and is hit on the pads followed by three singles off the last three balls.

KKR forced to introduce Sunil Narine as they look to make a breakthrough to somehow pull back things.

Tripathi lofts the second ball wide of the fielder at long-on for a four as Rajasthan race past the 50-run mark, in just 3.2 overs.

A single to Tripathi followed by a wide from Narine before Buttler crashes the last ball through the covers for another four to continue the fiery start.

A desperate KKR introduce Andre Russell, who has not been in his batting form this season.

The second ball is on the pads as Tripathi clips it on the leg side for a couple followed by a single and Buttler also takes one.

Russell makes the breakthrough with the wicket of Tripathi, who looks to pull a short ball but gets a thin edge and is caught behind by wicketkeeper Karthik.

Tripathi did his job, stroking 27 from 15 balls, putting on a quickfire stand of 63 runs from 29 balls for the opening wicket with Buttler.

The in-form Jos Buttler has a new opening partner in Rahul Tripathi, who makes a comeback for this crucial game for Rajasthan.

At the other end, Shivam Mavi, who is also making a comeback from injury, starts off with the ball. The first ball bounces a bit extra and moves away slightly as Tripathi tries to defend and gets an edge but Nitish Rana in the slips puts down a tough catch, diving to his right.

Buttler taps the first ball off the inside half of the bat back to the bowler before he slaps the next but is unable to beat point.

He then takes a single on the leg side to get off the mark.

Mavi gets the last ball to rise up quite a lot as Tripathi somehow manages to fend it to end an express over from the youngster.

Another young fast bowler to share the new ball in Prasidh Krishna. A single to Buttler off the second ball before Tripathi makes room and lofts the next over the off-side region for a six.

The next ball is wide as Tripathi steers it past point for a four before he gets a thick outside edge for another boundary.

But the last ball of the over comes perfectly off the middle as Tripathi hammers it straight down the ground to make it a hat-trick of fours.

19 from Krishna's first over as Rajasthan race to 21 for no loss in two overs.

Buttler joins the party as he steers a wide delivery to the left of thirdman for a four. He then walks across the stumps and paddles the next ball over the fine leg fence for a six.

Mavi then bowls a short wide delivery as Buttler hammers it over point for another four.

It's raining boundaries as Buttler pulls the next one past mid-on for another boundary.

Buttler repeats the paddle scoop and again with good effect as it goes the second six of the over.

The last ball is slapped behind point for another boundary as Mavi goes for 28 in his second over.

Tripathi and Buttler have hit seven fours and three sixes off the last 10 balls to race to 49 for no loss in three overs, with 47 coming from the last two.

Buttler has continued his devastating form, smashing 30 from 11 balls, while Tripathi has stroked 19 from seven balls.

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Dinesh Karthik has won the toss and elected to bat against Rajasthan Royals at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The hosts have made one change as young fast bowler Shivam Mani is brought in to replace Piyush Chawla.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan have made as many as three changes with Ish Sodhi, Anureet Singh and Rahul Tripathi brought into the playing eleven.

It's a must-win match for both teams as a loss in the penultimate league round match may virtually sound the death knell for either of them.

Welcome to the coverage of the 49th match of the Indian Premier League between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals in Kolkata, on Tuesday.

A buoyant Kolkata Knight Riders will lock horns with a charged up Rajasthan Royals in a battle for survival in IPL-11.

Their fate hanging in balance, a loss in the penultimate league round match may virtually sound the death knell for one of the two teams.

It's a mad scramble for the two available play-off berths with five teams including KKR and RR, who are tied on 12 points, remaining in the hunt.

To make the competition stiffer, both the teams have picked up late momentum in the business end of the tournament.

Down after back-to-back defeats, KKR bounced back with a bang, posting the fourth highest total of the IPL -- 245/6 -- to down Kings XI Punjab by 31 runs in their last match.

From being on the verge of elimination, RR too have returned to the reckoning with a hat-trick of wins, thanks to the imperious form shown by Jos Buttler who was adjudged man-of-the-match in all the three victories.

The RR opener struck an unbeaten 94 to seal an easy seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians on Sunday. This was the English wicketkeeper-batsman's fifth consecutive half-century -- an IPL record jointly held with Virender Sehwag.