Eyeing to kick off the tournament with authority against the defending champions, Rajat Patidar’s decision to field first on a pitch that was covered the majority of the pre-match day seemed to pay off early. Following Quinton de Kock’s wicket in the opening over, Sunil Narine followed Ajinkya Rahane late in the powerplay as the counter-attack propelled them to 60/1 in six overs. The pair orchestrated 47 runs in the next four overs with the pair losing their wickets around the midway mark. As the momentum shifted towards the visitors, Krunal Pandya’s three-fer and varying pace from the RCB pacers made further inroads in the KKR setup. By the 16th over, the scorecard reflected 151/6 with Ramandeep Singh and Angkrish Raghuvanshi at either end. But this wasn’t the worst as the run rate further deteriorated with KKR managing to fetch just 23 runs in the end with the score 173/8.
Unlike their counterparts, the Bengaluru side got off to a blistering start, initiated by Phil Salt’s carnage inside the powerplay. Even India’s successful spinner in the Champions Trophy 2025 got bashed for 21 runs as RCB stomped to an 80-run powerplay. Despite the wicketkeeper-batter scoring a blitz 56, the visitors reached 104/1 in ten overs, setting the stage for an emphatic victory. Although Sunil Narine outsmarted Devdutt Padikkal in the twelfth over, KKR’s hopes to rise from the shrink seemed doused by Rajat Patidar’s 16-ball 34 under the presence of Kohli’s calmness. Subsequently, a consolation wicket of the RCB captain curtailed the equation to eight off the last four overs before a couple of blows sealed the chase with seven wickets in hand.
Super commanding performance
Commanding performance by RCB to win their first match. The batting looks in good shape. But it’s the bowling unit which is a cause of worry. #RCBvsKKR
— Nitin Mohan (@initin90) March 22, 2025
What a start
#KKRvsRCB@RCBTweets
RCB Win the first match of IPL2025 what a start of the season bro🫡🔥🤙🏽🔥 pic.twitter.com/DjMbTZqcqf— Ravi (@Remoravi555) March 22, 2025
Congratulations
Congratulations team RCB 🔥🔥#KKRvsRCB | #TATAIPL2025 pic.twitter.com/wEXaqLhzaO
— Gulam Raza (@GulamRaza128720) March 22, 2025
Trashed
RCB trashed KKR 🗑️ https://t.co/KWwiWs1shm
— nelson (@VK0ne8) March 22, 2025
Big won
RCB won 😼 pic.twitter.com/jBX4H2Pep2
— 𝔼𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕜𝕦𝕞𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕟🍄 (@elangkumaranuj) March 22, 2025
Yess
RCB is here to stay ♥️🧿
— 𝐁𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐲🫧 (@_bunnyslays) March 22, 2025
Dance
Rcb fans right now #KKRvsRCB pic.twitter.com/ONSNVsz0E4
— Kolaru cheems 💫💥 (@iam_Ranjith_) March 22, 2025
Chased
RCB CHASED DOWN 175 IN JUST 16.1 OVERS AT THE EDEN GARDENS. #RCBvsKKR #RCBvKKR #KKRvsRCB #KKRvRCB #IPL2025 pic.twitter.com/HAyqA2Llfs
— The sports (@the_sports_x) March 22, 2025
Batting powerhouse
Kohli – 59* (36).
Salt – 56 (31).
Patidar – 36 (14).
Livingstone – 15* (5).
E saala cup namde 🏆
RCB CHASED DOWN 175 IN JUST 16.2 OVERS AT THE EDEN GARDENS. 🔥#RCBvsKKR #TATAIPL2025 #TATAIPL #ViratKohli𓃵 pic.twitter.com/UEXnoU5v0u— Narnia (@Narnia4you) March 22, 2025
Owned
Rcb own ipl opener agaist KKR#KKRvsRCB
— The cricket engineer (@Thecricketeng) March 22, 2025
