The Eden Gardens crowd responded with a thunderous roar, a testament to Kohli's legendary status and unwavering dedication
If Punjab goes for a flat deck, there is no guarantee that the bowling unit can defend anything in the 220 range, especially when KKR have the likes of Sunil Narine, Rinku Singh, and Venkatesh Iyer in their ranks.
Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have begun their pre-season preparations with a week-long domestic players' training stint in Mumbai, ahead of their main camp in Kolkata starting March 12 at Eden Gardens. The Mumbai camp, running from February 21-28, features nine domestic players, including Venkatesh Iyer, who was re-signed by KKR for a staggering Rs 23.75 crore after being released, making him the third most expensive player in the IPL auction.
Reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders will hope that their strife-ridden batting unit will tighten its act against in-form table-toppers Gujarat Titans in the IPL match in Kolkata on Monday.
For the home side, it has been a season of mixed returns so far. After early defeats to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Mumbai Indians, KKR roared back to form in their last outing -- a commanding win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.
'He's obviously a very clever bowler, understands conditions well, understands how he needs to bowl and can mix it up, and I suppose we were desperate for that little bit of control and he's been able to do that in all three games that he's played so far.'
Kamindu Mendis bowled both left-arm spin and right-arm off-spin in the same over, delighting the crowd with his versatility.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India handed a three-month suspension to Uttar Pradesh left-hander Rinku Singh for playing in an unsanctioned T20 league in Abu Dhabi, which has now led to his withdrawal from the India 'A' team.
Beginning with the Eden T20I, the two teams will fight it out in a full white ball series, comprising five T20Is and three ODIs, which will serve as a crucial warm-up for the Champions Trophy, slated to begin on February 19 in Pakistan and Dubai.
'It's really important, if you can save 10-12 runs on the field it's great.'
With new rivalries, fresh team colours, and familiar faces reunited, this isn't just the start of a new season-it's a blockbuster waiting to unfold.
Kolkata Knight Riders have named left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya as a replacement for speedster Umran Malik ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season.
Suryakumar Yadav to announce the winner, and Yadav playfully approached Samson with a handshake before unexpectedly declaring Tilak Varma the winner.
His performance in Pune was a powerful response to his recent struggles in the Ranji Trophy, where he had been dismissed for ducks in both innings during Mumbai's loss to Jammu and Kashmir.
Riding high on their new-found confidence, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will be hoping to finally get it right at home and keep their play-off hopes alive when they take on a struggling Rajasthan Royals in their IPL match in Kolkata on Sunday.
Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad find themselves in troubled waters, having lost two of their last three games
A clinical Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) thrashed a completely disoriented Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by eight wickets in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match in Chennai on Friday.
Krunal Pandya, Josh Hazlewood, and Sunil Narine emerged as rare bright spots-combining discipline, guile, and experience
Magnificent fifties by openers Virat Kohli and Phil Salt guided RCB to a comfortable seven-wicket win over defending champions KKR.
Having got off to a start so typical of themselves in the Indian Premier League, Mumbai Indians will hope for a quick turnaround when they take on defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders in Mumbai on Monday.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Chandrakant Pandit has said that his team is focused on the game and not the frenzy surrounding MS Dhoni's possible farewell at Eden Gardens.
PHOTOS of the IPL 2023 match between Gujarat Titans and Kolkata Knight Riders played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday
Sunil Narine turned party pooper in stunning fashion-delivering a ruthless all-round performance to dismantle Chennai Super Kings.
Shami last played for India in the 2023 World Cup final in Ahmedabad after which he was sidelined because of an ankle injury which needed surgery.
He also shed some light on backing the team's aggressive approach with the bat, while emphasising that they can take learnings from this performance.
Sunil Narine was the pick of the Kolkata Knight Riders bowlers, snapping three wickets and conceding just 13 runs in his spell of four overs. He did well with the bat too, scoring 44 runs from 18 balls, which included five maximums and two boundaries.
While it's a do-or-die game for KKR, who must win all their remaining three matches to stay in playoffs contention, the match will be more about celebrating Dhoni's legacy than the result.
Yuzvendra Chahal led a stunning comeback for Punjab Kings with 4/28 as they defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 16 runs in their low-scoring Indian Premier League thriller on Tuesday.
Given India's batting collapses in the last two matches, key changes to the playing XI are anticipated.
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Shreyas Iyer lavished praise on Rinku Singh for showing "outstanding" calmness under pressure, calling him an "asset" for the team.
spinner Washinton Sundar was also in focus, especially during the Super Over, where he restricted the Sri Lankans to just two runs, which India won comfortably.
With four fours and six sixes, Russell has finally made his presence felt this IPL season!
Mohammed Shami's first white ball outing since 2023 World Cup final was below par but Bengal survived a fine all-round effort by Arshdeep Singh
Harshit Rana has been part of India's white-ball squads since his impressive 2024 IPL season with the Kolkata-based franchise, where he claimed 19 wickets at an average of 20.15 over 13 matches.
Mayank Agarawal's unbeaten 139 took Karnataka over the line against Punjab by one wicket,
IMAGES from the IPL match between KKR and LSG at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Tuesday
It is understood that Yashasvi Jaiswal has a bright chance of making it to the ODI squad. His inclusion would ensure a left-handed batter in the top four.
When Iyer managed just 9 runs across his first two games in IPL 2025-and didn't even get to bat in the second-questions began to surface. Was he worth the money?
Bee Gees' 'Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive' could've been the soundtrack of the night - because Sunil Narine made sure Kolkata Knight Riders were doing just that.
