Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will tackle Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) within the opening conflict of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 on the iconic Eden Gardens on Saturday (March 22). Whereas KKR lifted the trophy final season with a dominant marketing campaign, RCB as soon as once more fell quick, struggling an Eliminator exit, extending their lengthy watch for a maiden IPL title.
In a serious management shift this 12 months, KKR have entrusted veteran cricketer Ajinkya Rahane with captaincy, hoping his expertise will information them to back-to-back titles. Alternatively, RCB has handed over the reins to rising star Rajat Patidar, marking a daring new period for the franchise as they proceed their pursuit of elusive IPL glory.
Match Particulars: IPL 2025, Match 1
- Date and Time: March 22, 07:30 pm (IST)/ 02:00 pm (GMT)
- Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Eden Gardens Pitch Report:
Eden Gardens in Kolkata is widely known for delivering thrilling, high-scoring encounters, making it a dream venue for batters. The pitch historically favours free-flowing stroke play, providing a great platform for aggressive shot-making and boundary-hitting. Whereas spinners might come into play because the match progresses, the floor primarily encourages big-hitting spectacles, setting the stage for an electrifying contest between the groups.
KKR vs RCB Dream11 Prediction Picks:
- Wicketkeepers: Quinton de Kock, Phil Salt
- Batters: Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh
- All-rounders: Sunil Narine, Andre Russell
- Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazelwood, Varun Chakravarthy
KKR vs RCB Dream11 Prediction Captain and Vice-Captain:
- Alternative 1: Sunil Narine (c),Virat Kohli (vc)
- Alternative 2: Varun Chakravarthy (c), Josh Hazelwood (vc)
KKR vs RCB Dream11 Prediction Backups:
Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma
KKR vs RCB Dream11 Group for at this time’s match (March 22, 02:00 PM GMT):
Squads:
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rinku Singh, Quinton de Kock, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Ramandeep Singh, Andre Russell, Anrich Nortje, Harshit Rana, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Mayank Markhande, Rovman Powell, Manish Pandey, Spencer Johnson, Luvnith Sisodia, Ajinkya Rahane, Anukul Roy, Moeen Ali, Chetan Sakariya
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rajat Patidar (captain), Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Dar, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee