KKR vs RCB Match Prediction: Who will win today's IPL 2025 match?

Rain and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will stand between the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and their first points in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL). The defending champions, who will commence their title defense at the Eden Gardens on Saturday, March 22, could reportedly be thwarted by rain as they attempt to get off the mark in the new campaign.

Ignoring the forecast, which doesn't look too promising, an RCB-KKR clash promises to be a thrilling start to the world's biggest franchise competition. Both teams are stacked with superstars and play an exciting brand of cricket that brings the best out of the myriad power-hitters in their arsenals.

Kolkata, who added a third star to their jersey last year, have gone through a few changes. Ajinkya Rahane has taken over from Shreyas Iyer, while Anrich Nortje and Quinton de Kock are expected to replace Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc from their title-winning side. Otherwise, they've managed to retain most of their valued core.

Bengaluru, meanwhile, have undergone a near-complete overhaul. Among the big names, only Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar remain, with the latter being appointed the skipper. Yash Dayal, who was retained as an uncapped player, will also feature.

KKR's squad for IPL 2025: Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Luvnith Sisodia, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Quinton de Kock, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Moeen Ali, Varun Chakaravarthy, Mayank Markande, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Anrich Nortje, Spencer Johnson, Chetan Sakariya.

RCB's squad for IPL 2025: Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Tim David, Manoj Bhandage, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chikara, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Krunal Pandya, Swapnil Singh, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Mohit Rathee, Suyash Sharma, Abhinandan Singh, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Salam, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi.

Can KKR get their title defense off to a positive start? Or will RCB make their intentions clear early in the season?

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IPL 2025: Defending champions KKR seek solid start in front of home crowd

Kolkata Knight Riders Training Session IPL 2025 In Kolkata - Source: Getty

KKR look much weaker than they did last year. Rahane, who was picked in the accelerated round of the auction, looks slightly out of place at No. 3, especially if he comes to the crease post the powerplay. Angkrish Raghuvanshi, another player who's more comfortable against pace, will then need to bat at No. 4 if Kolkata want to use a batting impact player.

The bowling attack still looks good, with Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy likely to ask the RCB batters plenty of questions. KKR would dearly love to have a third spin option, with only Rajat Patidar and Jitesh Sharma being explosive hitters of spin among the Bengaluru batting unit.

Meanwhile, the Royal Challengers have assembled a squad that has a high ceiling and a low floor. Almost all of their batters are high-variance, and while that is one of the requirements of modern T20 cricket, it's questionable whether their unit is versatile enough to be successful against well-rounded opposition.

Key players like Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone haven't been in great form. Meanwhile, Krunal Pandya and Livingstone might be RCB's only two spin options for this clash. The three-time IPL finalists will be reliant on Kohli to anchor the innings at a good clip post the powerplay while the more attacking batters try to inject momentum into the innings.

A lot will hinge on the Eden Gardens pitch, and if rain and overcast conditions are involved, RCB's swing-dominant bowling attack could have a ball. Bengaluru have three solid powerplay options in Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal and Josh Hazlewood, and if they can dismiss the KKR openers early, the defending champions could be in serious trouble.

On the whole, RCB look better than it did last year and certainly have more match-winners. But KKR's superstar duo of Narine and Andre Russell won't be easy to get past, with Chakaravarthy being a big factor as well.

Bengaluru would probably be the favorites if they can negate Kolkata's spin duo, but given the high-risk approach they are primed to employ, it can't be said with certainty that they will be able to.

The scales are close to even for this one, with KKR being given a slight edge because of the fact that they have a settled unit that know what it takes to play together and win matches. It might seem like an intangible factor, but it could mean a lot at the start of a new campaign. Rain, however, might have the final say.

Prediction: KKR to win Match 1 of IPL 2025.