2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by KKR in their IPL 2025 match vs RCB ft. Sunil Narine

A packed crowd at the Eden Gardens watched on in disappointment as their favorite Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) suffered a rough start to the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL). The defending champions were soundly beaten by seven wickets in their first game of the competition against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Kolkata, who retained a good portion of their core from last year, didn't play with the same comfort in the season opener. They made a number of questionable tactical decisions, and both their batting and their bowling were shocking at times. The three-time IPL winners will want to forget this performance in a hurry, as captain Ajinkya Rahane remarked at the post-match presentation.

On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by KKR in their IPL 2025 match against RCB.

---

#3 Mistake - Ajinkya Rahane waited too long to bring on Sunil Narine

2025 IPL - Kolkata Knight Riders v Royal Challengers Bengaluru - Source: Getty

Phil Salt and Virat Kohli ran away with the game in the powerplay, hammering 80 runs in the first six overs without ever seeming like they'd lose a wicket. KKR were left without answers as all of the fast bowlers and even Varun Chakaravarthy were carted around the park.

Despite that, however, Rahane didn't bring on his team's most economical and consistent bowler, Sunil Narine, until the eighth over. By then, the required run rate had fallen to 6.84, and the RCB batters didn't need to take any risks against the West Indian.

Given how dangerous Salt and Kohli are, and how they aren't always comfortable against spin, Narine should've been brought on in the powerplay. KKR didn't have enough runs to play with to delay his entry.

---

#2 Masterstroke - Rahane timed his attack exceedingly well

2025 IPL - Kolkata Knight Riders v Royal Challengers Bengaluru - Source: Getty

In contrast, KKR struggled at the start of their powerplay as Josh Hazlewood and Yash Dayal hit the right areas. They managed just nine runs in their first three overs, with Rahane and Narine at the crease.

The Knight Riders skipper, who came to the crease in the first over, timed his attack to perfection. He played out the remainder of the first half of the powerplay, not taking any risks against the metronomic Hazlewood. Rahane then cut loose against Rasikh Salam in the fourth over, carting him over the leg-side for a few boundaries.

Even when spin came on, Rahane picked the right areas to target and played a couple of sumptuous shots. If not for his calculated recovery towards the end of the powerplay, KKR could've suffered an even heavier defeat.

---

#1 Mistake - Picking Vaibhav Arora as the impact player was perhaps not the right call

2025 IPL - Kolkata Knight Riders v Royal Challengers Bengaluru - Source: Getty

KKR brought in Vaibhav Arora as the impact player in the second innings, which didn't seem like the worst call at first glance. The swing bowler did well for the franchise in IPL 2024 and could've asked a few questions of opposition batters under different circumstances.

However, on Saturday, it didn't make much sense to bring Arora in. Both Salt and Kohli are perfectly comfortable against swing, and without any appreciable lateral movement on offer to bother them, they found it all too easy to put RCB ahead of the chase early on.

Anukul Roy, who would've had favorable matchups against both RCB openers, would've been a better choice. Even in the first innings, Krunal Pandya, Suyash Sharma and Liam Livingstone extracted more deviation off the deck than the fast bowlers. KKR should've acknowledged that and tried to target their opponent's weaknesses.