IPL History: Who played who in the first game of each edition

The BCCI announced the fixtures for the first two weeks of the 2019 season. The opening game will be played between the defending champions against RCB in Chennai on the 23rd of March.

The Indian Cricket Board will announce the remaining fixtures once they receive the dates for the 2019 elections. In total 17 matches will be played in the first two weeks. Each team will play a minimum of four games with two at home and two away games.

It is also confirmed that the 2019 IPL finals will be played in Chennai. The opening game always raises expectations, and the IPL committee usually keeps big matches on the opening day. Keeping this in mind, there have been no changes for the 2019 season too.

Let's roll back to the days to see who played against whom in the opening game of each season.

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#1 2008: RCB vs KKR- KKR won by 142 runs

Brendon McCullum

No one can forget the first game of the inaugural IPL held at Bangalore. Brendon McCullum went berserk and smashed 158*, including 13 massive sixes.

It has been the lone century for KKR to date. KKR posted a total of 222 runs, and beat RCB by 140 runs as the home team got bowled out for 82 runs.

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#2 2009: (CSK vs MI)- Mumbai won by 19 runs

The second season of the cash-rich league moved to South Africa due to the central elections.

CSK played against arch-rivals Mumbai Indians at Cape Town. Sachin Tendulkar smashed a half century, and Mumbai posted a decent 165 runs on the board.

CSK choked in the chase, as they managed to score only 146 runs and lost the game by 19 runs. Malinga took 3/15, including the crucial wicket of MS Dhoni.

#3 2010: (DC vs KKR)- Kolkata won by 11 runs

Chennai Super Kings

The first game of the third season was played between the defending champions Deccan Chargers against Kolkata at Mumbai.

The Bengal- based team was struggling at one stage at 31/4, but thanks to English cricketer Shah and Matthews, a shared 130 run partnership the for the fifth wicket helped them reach 161/4 in 20 overs.

Deccan had a great start, with the captain Adam Gilchrist smashing a half-century including three sixes, but none of the following players converted the start into a big score, and the defending champion lost the game by 11 runs.

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#4 2011: (CSK vs KKR)- CSK won by 2 runs

The opening game of 2011 saw a thriller. CSK elected to bat first, after winning the toss and posted a moderate 153 runs on the board. Only Anirudha Srikkanth scored a half-century for them.

Chasing a small target, Kolkata got a good start with openers adding 64 runs for the first wicket. But the Chennai bowlers kept bowling tight, and the visitors had to score five runs in the final ball. Southee bowled a brilliant yorker, and CSK clinched a thriller by two runs.

#5 2013: (KKR vs DD)- KKR won by six wickets

KKR and Mumbai played the most opening games in IPL

Just like the previous season, it turned out to be a low scoring affair. Delhi could not read Narine's mystery bowling and eventually bowled out for 128 runs.

Narine took 4/13 in four overs. Kolkata, who had won the previous season reached the target without much hassle and won the game by six wickets.

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#6 2014: (KKR vs MI)- KKR won by 41 runs

It was Kolkata again in the opening game, this time against Mumbai Indians. South African veteran Kallis and Manish Pandey shared a 131-run partnership for the second wicket.

They manage to score 163 runs in 20 overs. It was Sunil Narine again in the opening game, with yet another four-wicket haul, taking a 4/20 which helped Kolkata beat the defending champions. A second consecutive opening game win for Kolkata.

#7 2015: (KKR vs MI)- KKR won by six wickets

Rising Pune Supergiants

The Bengal based Kolkata Knight Riders played the opening game for the third consecutive time, and this time too it was Mumbai at the other end. Rohit Sharma kick-started the season with a scintillating 98* runs, including four massive sixes.

But that was not enough for the visitors, as they lost the game by six wickets. Suryakumar Yadav helped the home team with a 20 ball-46, including five sixes.

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#8 2016: (RPS vs MI) Pune won by nine wickets

Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals were suspended for two years. The new franchise Rising Pune Super Giants, led by Dhoni played against Mumbai in the opening game.

The home team had a shocking start, as they lost six wickets for 51 runs. Veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh helped them reach a respectable 121 runs with an unbeaten 45 runs. Chasing the small target, Pune reached the target inside 15 overs and won the game by nine wickets.

#9 2017: (SRH vs RCB): SRH won by 35 runs

It was Dwayne Bravo show in 2018 opening game

Sunrisers Hyderabad won their maiden trophy by beating RCB in 2016 finals. Both of them met again in the opening game of next season.

Veteran batsman Yuvraj Singh gave them a blockbuster start with a 27 ball-62, and the home team posted over 200 runs. The Kohli-less RCB struggled to chase the score, and lost the game by 35 runs.

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#10 2018: (CSK vs MI) CSK won by one wicket

In the first game for CSK after two years of suspension, the expectations were sky-high, and they played the arch-rivals Mumbai Indians in the opening game.

The visitors posted 165 runs after batting first. It's the identical score to the one they posted during 2009 opening game against the same opponent.

Chennai was one stage reeling at 118/8 in the chase. But a special innings from a special Dwayne Bravo helped them clinch a thriller on the last ball.

Bravo scored 68 runs in 30 balls, including seven sixes. Chennai fans can't expect a much better result than this from CSK on their return to IPL