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KKR vs RCB, IPL's oldest rivalry, kicks off the 2025 season on March 22 at Eden...
Indian Premier League (IPL)’s oldest rivalry, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) versus Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will kick off the 2025 season on March 22 at the iconic Eden Gardens. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed the full schedule of the tournament on Sunday (February 16). This clash also inaugurated the IPL in 2008 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
KKR, led by Brendon McCullum’s rollicking 158* (73) smashed 222/3 in the first innings before bowling the hosts out for just 82. Overall, the franchises have played 34 IPL matches against each other with KKR winning 20 and RCB 14. Last season, Shreyas Iyer’s KKR triumphed over Faf du Plessis’ RCB home and away.
While the match at the Chinnaswamy was a straightforward, seven-wicket win for KKR, RCB came quite close to chasing 223 at the Eden Gardens, only falling short by one run. Eventually, KKR went onto win the final and RCB also took belief from this match to get on an unprecedented run from 10th place to playoffs. No Gautam Gambhir, but will the KKR-RCB passions continue? The oldest rivalry had a bit of an extra needle last year when Star Sports released old footage of Gautam Gambhir, now India men’s head coach and KKR mentor in IPL 2024, talking about RCB.
“One team which I wanted to beat every time, probably even in my dreams was RCB," Gambhir says in the video. “Probably the second-most high profile team, flamboyant team with the owner and probably the squad – Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers. Honestly not won anything, still thought they won everything.
That kind of attitude. I can’t take that. Probably the three best wins that KKR ever had was against RCB.
" “One thing that I want in my cricket career is to go on the field and beat RCB." Gambhir is no longer KKR’s mentor and RCB have mellowed down on the flamboyance by releasing superstars like Du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green from the team and appointing Rajat Patidar as the captain over Virat Kohli. However, they would want to avenge the IPL 2024 losses while KKR would be desperate to start their title defense under a new captain, at home, with a win.
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