Match Centre

Statistics

Best performances - Batsmen

V Kohli
V Kohli
59(36) 4x4 - 3x6
Control %86%
  • Productive Shot
  • slog sweep
  • 11 runs
  • 1x4 - 1x6
1 0 3 5 9 13 9 19
AM Rahane
AM Rahane
56(31) 6x4 - 4x6
Control %62%
  • Productive Shot
  • flick
  • 16 runs
  • 1x4 - 2x6
4 4 16 9 3 1 6 13

Best performances - Bowlers

KH Pandya
KH Pandya
O4
M0
R29
W3
Eco7.25
RHB
OFFLEG
1W
  • FTFULL TOSS
  • YYORKER
  • FFULL LENGTH
  • GGOOD LENGTH
  • SGSHORT OF GOOD LENGTH
  • SSHORT LENGTH
LHB
LEGOFF
2W
JR Hazlewood
JR Hazlewood
O4
M0
R22
W2
Eco5.5
RHB
OFFLEG
1W
  • FTFULL TOSS
  • YYORKER
  • FFULL LENGTH
  • GGOOD LENGTH
  • SGSHORT OF GOOD LENGTH
  • SSHORT LENGTH
LHB
LEGOFF
1W

Match Details

Toss

Royal Challengers Bengaluru , elected to field first

Player Of The Match

Season

Hours of play (local time)

19.30 start, First Session 19.30-21.00, Interval 21.00-21.20, Second Session 21.20-22.50

Match days

22 March 2025 - night match (20-over match)

Reserve Umpire

Match Referee

Points

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 2, Kolkata Knight Riders 0

Scorer: Ranjith P | Commentator: Ekanth and Ashish

RCB's NRR is above two after just one game. The defending champions will travel to Guwahati to face RR, RCB will travel to Chennai to play CSK. Do check out the report, analysis from this game. Hope to see you for the double header tomorrow. For now, it's goodbye from me Ekanth, Ashish Pant who was also on comms, and our scorers, Ranjith P and Venkat Raghav.

Krunal Pandya, POTM: I just wanted to narrow down my focus upon returning in the 11th over. Glad I was able to deliver. You have to go with the flow, right now batters can hit sixes consistently, so you have to find ways to up your game. So, I wanted to bowl quick, changes of pace were useful too. Jitesh knows I can do anything, bowl a wide yorker or bouncer, so he's aware. You have to use what you have in your arsenal. Once I got into the team, I got to know about the madness. Even when I was playing domestic cricket in Bangalore, there were RCB chants. It's been a great feeling in the last ten days with the team.

Rajat Patidar, RCB captain: There was pressure, of course, but it was a good day for me. Hope for more such days. (Bringing back Suyash for the fourth over) It was clear we wanted Russell's wicket, him conceding runs didn't matter. He is our strike bowler, we backed him. All credit goes to Krunal and Suyash, they were 130 off, the bowlers showed courage and determination. Feels great to captain Kohli, he supports a lot, great opportunity to learn from one of the best. (On the shot on 14.6 - a lifted square drive off a length ball) It was a pre-determined shot, I wanted to go over cover.

Phil Salt: Kohli and I haven't batted together much, to put on a partnership like that was key. It's a ground I know, had a simple game plan coming in. Wanted to go on longer, but not to be. Batting second here makes a bit of difference, you have to hit through the line.

Ajinkya Rahane, KKR captain: We went well till the 13th over, 2-3 wickets changed momentum. We have to learn from our mistakes,. We thought 210-220 was par when Venky and I were batting but we lost wickets. There was dew but they had a very good powerplay. We couldn't get early wickets. We don't want to think too much about this game, just want to improve as a unit.

Saty: "Supporting RCB is an emotional rollercoaster--one day it's 'we will never improve,' the next it's 'this is our year!' The struggle is real!"

10:47pm: A comprehensive win for RCB. They were behind 10 overs into the game, but Krunal Pandya helped them stage a comeback with the ball. With the bat, Phil Salt blew the hosts out of the water with powerplay power-hitting. Kohli's sixes off Johnson in the fifth over were great too. Ten fours and four sixes, 80 for 0 in six overs, that was way too big an advantage on a pitch that was batter-friendly. There was a slight slowdown with the first two wickets but Patidar batted like an artist, caressing and whacking the ball with sheer effortlessness. Kohli stayed on till the end, and the visitors completed the win with 22 balls to spare.

16.2
4
Johnson to Livingstone, FOUR, Whacked to the right of mid-on and 17 years after RCB were thumped by KKR in an IPL opener, they return the favour. It finishes with a length ball outside off that was heaved across with a semi-horizontal bat.
16.1
6
Johnson to Livingstone, SIX, Hooked over RCB's dugout. Livingstone greeted with another short ball, this wasn't bad. Around top of shoulder height, fourth-stump line. The batter went across, got inside the line of the ball, leant to the off side and swung in front of his face. Went very fine, and well over deep fine leg

Final over of the game? Johnson is back

END OF OVER:
16 | 10 Runs 1 Wkt | RCB: 167/3 (8 runs required from 24 balls, RR: 10.43, RRR: 2.00)

  • Liam Livingstone5 (3b)
  • Virat Kohli59 (36b)
  • Vaibhav Arora3-0-42-1
  • Harshit Rana3-0-32-0

Partha Chatterj: "KKR have looked really rusty tonight except for the first 10 overs, no plan and no desperation evident from the players, even the fielding was average"

15.6
1
Arora to Livingstone, 1 run, Length just outside off, square driven to deep point

Replays showing Kohli clutching his back after completing a run earlier. He's okay to continue as of now though

15.5
0
Arora to Livingstone, no run, Under-edged to the keeper on the bounce. Was a length ball on fifth that Livingstone tried to slap to the leg side with a horizontal bat
15.4
4
Arora to Livingstone, FOUR, Pulled just behind square. Half-tracker at chest-height, Livingstone's head turned leg side as the bat swooshed across, but it was in one full motion

Prasanna : "RCB should send Jitesh next, their designated finisher.." It'll be Livingstone, who's also a finisher

RaoP: "wish the IPL had the concept of bonus points. would make one sided chases like this even more interesting. "

Tcj: "14.6 - That's the shot of the match right there."

Timeout

15.3
W
Arora to Patidar, OUT, Pulled, timing's not bad but he finds deep midwicket. Great innings nonetheless, just 13 now needed off 27. Was a length ball around off, another languid bat swing, Rinku ran in and took it on the move

RM Patidar c Singh b Arora 34 (17m 16b 5x4 1x6) SR: 212.5

RCB 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st95V KohliPD Salt
2nd23V KohliD Padikkal
3rd44V KohliRM Patidar
4th15V KohliLS Livingstone