Last Updated on 2 months by Charbel Coorey
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have made the perfect start to IPL 2025, hammering defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by seven wickets and 22 balls to spare at Eden Gardens.
The most pleasing aspect of the performance for RCB would be how they bounced back and never let KKR back in the contest. The hosts were seeking 220+ at one stage, sitting pretty at 107/1 in the tenth over before a crucial double strike turned the game.
First, Rasikh Dar had Sunil Narine caught behind. At the start of the next over, man of the match Krunal Pandya had Ajinkya Rahane caught at deep backward square. All of a sudden, the two set batters were both dismissed, and RCB had a foothold in the game.
From there, the RCB bowlers – plus Rajat Patidar as captain – were superb. KKR still had plenty of firepower to get a big score, but RCB did their homework regarding matchups. One example was bowling Suyash Sharma to Andre Russell in the 16th over. Such a move could have been seen as high risk, but RCB knew that Russell is susceptible to legspin bowling.
Since the start of 2023, Russell has been dismissed six times by legspin in the IPL at an average of 13.2 and strike rate of 131.7. After Russell hit him for a boundary, Suyash tossed up the perfect googly, beating Russell’s legside swipe to rattle the stumps.
In the end, KKR were only able to scramble to 174, a total that looked at least 40 to 50 short. And once Phil Salt and Virat Kohli hammered 80 in the powerplay, the match was all but over. After Salt was dismissed for an excellent 29-ball 56, Kohli (59* off 36 balls) steadied the ship, combining with Patidar (34 off 16 balls) and Liam Livingstone (15* off 5 balls) to seal an easy, confidence-boosting win.
IPL 2025 1st Match: KKR vs RCB Twitter Reactions – Perfect start to new season for Bengaluru
Here are the reactions and key talking points from the IPL 2025 season opener between KKR and RCB.
Praise for man of the match Krunal Pandya
Krunal, who went for 15 in his first over, took 3/14 in his next three to finish with 3/29. One of the solid defensive spin bowlers in the IPL, Krunal’s brilliance in the middle overs against KKR showed why RCB invested in him for the 2025 season. He was the deserved man of the match given how important his wickets were of Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer and Rinku Singh.
Josh Hazlewood shows his all-format class once again
The Josh Hazlewood vs. Quinton de Kock matchup was one to watch given the pace bowler’s good record against the keeper-batsman. Hazlewood won that convincingly, dismissing de Kock cheaply after he should have had him caught two deliveries before.
No matter the format, expect Hazlewood to deliver. He is simply outstanding at all phases of the innings, and this was on show again at Eden Gardens. He conceded just eight runs in two overs in the powerplay, followed by 14 in his final two at the death.
RCB as a whole were terrific after the Rahane-Narine partnership. The way they executed their plans and kept their nerve is promising in these early stages.
RCB batting fires with Phil Salt, Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar starting strongly
RCB’s top order was magnificent. Phil Salt peppered (haha) the KKR attack, and Virat Kohli ensured the pressure was unrelenting. Theur 95-run partnership in 8.3 overs was perfect not only to settle any potential nerves, but also get RCB thinking of a big win for net run rate. Thanks also to magnificent spin-hitter Rajat Patidar, they achieved the win easily.
KKR will be looking to bounce back against Rajasthan Royals at Guwahati on Wednesday. RCB will play Chennai Super Kings in a blockbuster clash next Friday at Chepauk.
 at Eden Gardens to kickstart IPL 2025.){kind=link}