Credit: IPL/X
In the first match of the double-header Sunday on May 4 in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, the defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are hosting the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in a reverse fixture at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. However, the Royals are playing for pride after getting eliminated from the tournament, the Knight Riders will have to win all their remaining fixture in order to seal a place in the final four.
As the two captains walked out for the toss, it was the host skipper, Ajinkya Rahane who came out on top and decided to bat first. “We are going to bat first, looks a little dry. Not sure if it slows down in the second innings. We want to put a total on the board and defend it. Need to keep it simple,” Rahane said at the toss.
Nitish Rana misses out due to niggle; Hasaranga comes in along with Kunal Rathore and Yudhvir Singh
When inquired about the changes in the XI, Rahane comfirmed two changes as Harshit Rana and Anukul Roy both have been included in the Impact player list, and Moeen Ali and Ramandeep Singh comes in their place. On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals have also called in for a couple of changes as Nitish Rana, Kumar Kartikeya and Tushar Despande all have been out.
“Three changes in our team. Nitish Rana has a niggle, he goes out. Hasaranga comes back for Kumar Kartikeya. Kunal Rathore and Yudhvir are in,” Riyan Parag said at the toss.
KKR vs RR IPL 2025 Playing XI
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Vaibhav Arora
Impact Subs: Manish Pandey, Harshit Rana, Anukul Roy, Rovman Powell, Luvnith Sisodia
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Riyan Parag(c), Kunal Singh Rathore, Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Akash Madhwal
Impact Subs: Kumar Kartikeya, Shubham Dubey, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Ashok Sharma
