Royal Challengers Bengaluru made a strong impression on the inaugural night of IPL 2025 by decisively defeating the reigning champions, Kolkata Knight Riders. RCB’s bowlers played a crucial role in the team’s resurgence during the latter part of KKR’s innings, successfully limiting the home side to 174 runs for 8 wickets on a favorable batting pitch. The pursuit of the target seemed remarkably straightforward, as RCB’s newly formed opening duo of Phil Salt and Virat Kohli both scored explosive half-centuries, leading to a significant victory over the champions.
Ajinkaya Rahane and Sunil Narine help KKR get a phenomenal start
It was remarkable to observe the unfolding of the PowerPlay for KKR. Josh Hazlewood showcased significant movement and bounce on the pitch, creating challenges for Sunil Narine and Quinton de Kock, ultimately dismissing the South African batsman. After three overs, KKR found themselves at 9 for 1, with Narine particularly struggling, having scored just 5 runs off 11 balls. However, Ajinkya Rahane entered the fray with aggressive intent, quickly turning the tide by hitting Rasikh Salam for two sixes and a four in the fourth over. Narine finally found his rhythm against Krunal Pandya in the subsequent over, after which Rahane continued his boundary-hitting onslaught, propelling KKR to accumulate 41 runs in the latter half of the PowerPlay.
With Narine at the crease, RCB had to restrain Krunal, but the opener managed to hit Suyash Sharma for a massive six over extra-cover, followed by another shot down the ground. Rahane also targeted the leg-spinner, launching a six over mid-wicket to bring up the first fifty of IPL 2025. Narine was relentless as well, racing to 44 runs off 25 balls before Salam finally broke the threatening partnership. At the halfway mark, KKR stood at 107 for 2, well-positioned to aim for a total of 220. However, this marked the beginning of RCB’s resurgence as Krunal returned to the attack and made a significant impact. He first dismissed Rahane and then followed up by getting rid of Venkatesh Iyer in his next over. In his final over, he bowled a quicker delivery that breached Rinku Singh’s defense, placing the responsibility on Andre Russell and young Angkrish Raghuvanshi to finish the innings.
Suyash, who had struggled earlier, returned for his final over as RCB continued to employ spin following Krunal’s success. This strategy paid off when Suyash bowled a cleverly disguised googly that knocked over Russell’s stumps. Hazlewood played a crucial role in the comeback, conceding only 15 runs in his last two overs. He effectively denied Ramandeep Singh the strike during the final over, frustrating KKR as they managed to score just 29 runs in the closing overs.
Phil Salt and Virat Kohli carry RCB to the first victory of the season
The audience at Eden has become accustomed to witnessing Salt’s exuberant performances. He previously formed an exhilarating opening partnership with Narine during KKR’s championship run. This time, however, he was on the opposing side. He commenced the chase with a cover drive that resulted in a boundary and followed it up with an impressive over against Vaibhav Arora, scoring two fours and a six. To further astonish the home crowd, he launched a remarkable attack on Varun Chakaravarthy, hitting him for 4, 6, 4, 4. Kohli was not far behind, matching him with consecutive sixes off Spencer Johnson. Ultimately, RCB amassed 80 runs during the PowerPlay, effectively sealing the match.
Salt reached his half-century right after the first six overs, but KKR’s spinners gradually managed to rein in the scoring rate. However, this was insufficient as they needed to take wickets. Chakaravarthy succeeded in getting Salt to mistime a shot, leading to his dismissal, which brought relief to KKR, while Devdutt Padikkal also fell to a fielder positioned at deep mid-wicket. Kohli continued to assert his dominance, launching Chakaravarthy over long-on for another six and reaching his fifty off just 30 balls. For most of this period, RCB’s run rate remained slightly above six, but captain Rajat Patidar provided a significant boost with an impressive cameo. After hitting Narine over long-on, Patidar unleashed a barrage of four boundaries in a single over against Harshit Rana, reducing the target to just 18 runs from 30 balls.
Following another boundary in his quest to conclude the match swiftly, Patidar eventually found a fielder in the deep, departing after scoring 34 runs off 16 balls. Nevertheless, he had inflicted enough damage, leaving KKR with little hope of a comeback. By this stage, Kohli had taken a step back as Liam Livingstone entered the fray, determined to finish the game with ease.
SCORECARD: Kolkata Knight Riders174/8 in 20 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 56, Sunil Narine 44; Krunal Pandya 3/29) lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru 177/3 in 16.2 overs (Virat Kohli 59*, Phil Salt 56; Sunil Narine 1/27) by 7 wickets
