IPL 2025, KKR vs RCB: Opening ceremony ends; Bengaluru beat Kolkata

Rajat Patidar won the toss for Royal Challengers Bengaluru and he decided to bowl first which means Ajinkya Rahane's Kolkata Knight Riders' will bat first. 

The IPL 2025 season opener toss has been delayed as KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane and RCB captain Rajat Patidar walk out with IPL trophy. Time for National Anthem followed by fireworks.  

After Virat, it's time for Rinku Singh to join Shah Rukh Khan. The KKR Gen bold, Rinku matches Shah Rukh step for step on his hit song 'Lut Put Gaya.' Virat was also asked to join for a step in 'Jhoome to Pathan'!

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Karan Aujla brings his signature swag to the #TATAIPL 2025 opening ceremony ?#KKRvRCB | @GeetanDiMachine pic.twitter.com/QlVdWbVtCc

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) March 22, 2025

Shah Rukh Khan invites Virat Kohli, the only player to have played for a single franchise from IPL's inception in 2008. King Khan then eggs the crowd to chant Kohli, Kohli...

Karan Aujla is next in line to light up Eden Gardens after Disha Patani. 

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Shreya Ghoshal’s mesmerizing voice lights up the #TATAIPL 2025 opening ceremony! ?#KKRvRCB | @shreyaghoshal pic.twitter.com/cDM8OpOIP3

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) March 22, 2025

Shreya Ghoshal's brilliant performance ended with 'Vande Matram' and it's time for another Bollywood hit, Disha Patani to take over the centre stage. 

The whole crew of violinists and choir alongside Shreya Ghoshal have charmed and mesmerised a packed Eden Gardens with Bollywood hits like 'Dhol Baje,' 'Kar Har Maidaan Fateh,' 'Saami Saami' among others. 

Melodious Shreya Ghoshal is up next and she starts with 'Mere Dholna Sun' followed by 'Ghoomar Ghoomar.'

Bollywood superstar and co-owner of Kolkata Knight Riders, King Khan -- Shah Rukh Khan is here on the stage with his iconic monologue! A jam-packed Eden Gardens welcomes Shah Rukh with huge chants and a roar. 

Lively pitches and a major tweak to the 'two ball' rule in ODIs can restore some balance between bat and ball.

READ SANDEEP DWIVEDI'S SPORTS COLUMN 

The IPL 2025 Opening Ceremony at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata will start at 6 PM IST on March 22.

The Opening ceremony will begin with a monologue by KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan, which will be followed by performances from singer Shreya Ghoshal, actress Disha Patani and rapper Karan Aujla.

Our man on the ground, Sayak Dutta, pings: "A bit of cloud cover over the ground but probably not going to threaten proceedings. The pitch gets covered by the huge IPL sign.'

Most wickets in KKR vs RCB matches among active players

Sunil Narine - 26 wickets

Andre Russell - 17 wickets

Varun Chakaravarthy - 14 wickets

Most runs in KKR vs RCB matches among active players

Virat Kohli: 962 Runs

Andre Russell: 392 Runs

Sunil Narine: 289 Runs

No prizes for guessing who is the player to watch out for KKR. It is going to be Venkatesh Iyer. The all-rounder did have a decent season last year and played a pivotal part in KKR’s campaign turnaround in 2021 in the second hald opening with Shubman Gill. However, with the price tag he has on his shoulders every performance with the bat and ball will be under scrutiny in the upcoming season starting from Saturday.

It is a big season for Rajat Patidar and there is no question about it. However, Phil Salt who had a blistering campaign for KKR last season has been terribly out of form in the last few months. Faf du Plessis played a pivotal role in giving RCB cracking starts last season which in return helped Virat Kohli to take his time initially and accelerate later on. Salt on paper could replicate the role of Faf however, if he were to not have a good campaign RCB might find themselves in a bit of a pickle with their Powerplay batting.

Our reporter on-ground, Saya Dutta pings that the weather looks alright in Kolkata. So, hopefully, we will get to see a no-delay start in the IPL 2025 season opener.  

Just In: IPL 2025: All rounder Shardul Thakur roped in by injury-hit Lucknow Super Giants

READ MORE ON THIS DEVELOPMENT

To accommodate the influx of cricket enthusiasts, the Metro Railway announced special services on the Blue Line and Green Line-2 following the match.

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Eden Gardens has been assisting the tweakers yet again in the last couple of seasons. However, it is highly unlikely that it will be slow from game one as it is a long IPL season hence the conditions on Saturday will be conducive for batting and with the impact sub-rule one can expect high scores. With Dew also playing a part team winning the toss might likely opt to bowl first.

Matches played: 12

KKR won: 8

RCB won: 4

Matches played: 34

KKR won: 20 

RCB won: 14

The Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders Match Live Telecast can be watched on Star Sports Network and Live Streaming of KKR vs RCB can be watched on the JioHotstar App and Website.

KKR: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Rinku Singh, Quinton de Kock, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Ramandeep Singh, Andre Russell, Anrich Nortje, Harshit Rana, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Mayank Markande, Rovman Powell, Manish Pandey, Spencer Johnson, Luvnith Sisodia, Anukul Roy, Moeen Ali, Chetan Sakariya.

RCB: Rajat Patidar (c), 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 Bethel, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee.

The KKR vs RCB IPL 2025 match will take place at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

The KKR vs RCB IPL 2025 match will take place on Saturday, March 22. The match will begin at 7:30 PM IST, with the toss scheduled for 7 PM IST.

Varun Chakravarthy, who was a vital cog in India’s recent victorious Champions Trophy triumph, was the second-highest wicket-taker in last year’s IPL with 21 scalps while the economical Narine stifled the opposition batters and took 17 wickets in 14 innings at an economy of 6.69, averaging just 21.64.

On Friday, practice sessions had to be cut short due to rain. With Eden under covers, the India Meteorological Department predicted that thunderstorms and rain are likely in parts of West Bengal till Saturday owing to favourable wind patterns and strong moisture incursion from the Bay of Bengal.

Mystery spinner Varun Chakarvarthy has been in terrific form in recent times. He has picked nine wickets in the recently concluded Champions Trophy 2025 and played a crucial role in the knockout stages of the tournament. However, after losing a bit of bite in his bowling Chakarvarthy’s resurrection of his career began in the 2024 IPL where he picked up 21 wickets. (Read more)

Mohammad Siraj has been a loyal sevrant for Royal Challengers Bengaluru since 2018. Though he did have some good years for the franchise he also had some forgetabble years with the ball. However, when the Bengaluru-based franchise decided not to retain him for the 2025 season it did come as a bit of surprise. (Read more)

12 Noon: 49 per cent chance of rainfall
1 PM: 20 per cent chance of rainfall, with a cloudy sky
2 PM: Intermittent clouds, 20 per cent chance of rainfall
3 PM: Mostly sunny, 20 per cent chance of rainfall
4 PM: Partly sunny, 20 per cent chance of rainfall
5 PM: Intermittent clouds, 20 per cent chance of rainfall
6 PM: Mostly cloudy, 19 per cent chance of rainfall
7 PM: Mostly cloudy, 7 per cent chance of rainfall
8 PM: Cloudy, 7 per cent chance of rainfall
9 PM – 11 PM: Cloudy, 7 per cent chance of rainfall

The current friendly relationship between Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, highlighted by their recent celebrations after India's Champions Trophy win, with their past intense rivalry and a notable on-field spat during an IPL 2013 match. It also notes the unusual decision by broadcasters to show the altercation live. (Read more)

Quinton de Kock (wicket-keeper), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Anrich Nortje, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy

KKR Impact players: Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Chetan Sakariya, Mayank Markande, Anukul Roy, Luvnith Sisodia

Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar (captain), Krunal Pandya, Jitesh Sharma (wicket-keeper), Liam Livingston, Tim David, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma.

RCB impact players: Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chikara, Suyash Sharma, Manoj Bhandage

Matches played: 34, 

KKR won 20, 

RCB won 14

KKR squad: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Venkatesh Iyer (vice-captain), Quinton de Kock (wk), Rovman Powell (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Luvnith Sisodia (wk), Manish Pandey, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Spencer Johnson, Mayank Markande, Anrich Nortje, Umran Malik, Varun Chakravarthy.

RCB squad: Rajat Patidar (c), 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 Bethel, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee.

Hello and welcome to all the live updates through day 1 of the Indian Premier League. Our correspondent Sayak Dutta will give updates from Kolkata and meanwhile, we will plug in all the changes and squads of each team throughout the day.