Chennai vs. Lahore Lions: CLT20 Date, Live Stream, TV Info, Preview

The Champions League Twenty20 has reached the point where every game matters as teams begin to scramble for a spot in the next round.

Venue: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore

Dates: Thursday, September 25

Start time: 3:30 p.m. BST (8 p.m. local time)

TV and live stream: STAR Cricket (India), Ten Sports/PTV Sports (Pakistan), SuperSport (South Africa), Eurosport (UK/Europe), Sky TV (New Zealand), Network Ten/Fox (Australia), CSN/Star Cricket (Sri Lanka), Star Cricket (Bangladesh), ESPN (USA and Caribbean), Willow Cricket (USA)

Weather:  AccuWeather.com says there will most likely be quite a few thunderstorms around during the day and in the evening. This could very well end up being a washout if the weather stays as it is.

Overview

Lahore Lions have been one of the most entertaining teams of the Champions League T20 this year. After a solid showing in the qualifying stages, they came close to beating Kolkata Knight Riders in their only group-stage game thus far.

Now, they are up against another tournament favourite, the Chennai Super Kings. Chennai have played one and lost one, narrowly losing against KKR while romping to a big win over the Dolphins. Ashish Nehra and Mohit Sharma have led the way with the ball while Suresh Raina has been the most impressive with the bat.

In this format, though, nothing is certain. Just as soon as you think you know how a team will perform, something comes along to surprise you and a shock result happens. On paper, Chennai are favourites, not just for the match, but also for the trophy. They have an even balance of handy bowlers and crafty batsmen, but their star players have not yet performed.

Lahore do not pack that same punch, but they showed during qualifying that they jell together well as a team. Every player in this side knows how to contribute when it really matters.

For Chennai, a win will put one foot in the next round while another loss for Lahore will make life quite difficult. It’s all to play for when the two sides meet, so expect some fireworks.

Key players

Chennai

Faf du Plessis hasn't quite managed to carry his illustrious form at international level to this competition. However, it's only a matter of time until the South African plays a match-winning knock. There is no better time than a crunch clash for Du Plessis to do so.

Lahore

Ahmed Shehzad has led the way with the bat for Lahore. He has 124 runs in four games, including one half-century. He's hit more fours (14 in total) than anyone else in the team. His ability to put foot on the gas will be key.

Squads

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (c&wk), Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishwar Pandey, Ashish Nehra, Mithun Manhas, Pawan Negi, Mohit Sharma, John Hastings, Samuel Badree.

Lahore Lions: Mohammad Hafeez (c), Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Siddique Khan, Mohammad Umar Akmal (wk), Nasir Jamshed, Mohammad Salman Ali, Asif Raza, Mustafa Iqbal, Wahab Riaz, Aizaz Cheema, Imran Ali, Saad Naseem, Adnan Rasool, Mohammad Saeed, Ali Manzoor.