What happened the last time RCB played KKR at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium before IPL 2025?

The 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will see its resumption on Saturday, May 17, with the clash between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

The tournament will restart eight days after the match between Punjab Kings and the Delhi Capitals was abandoned due to cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan. Following a ceasefire from both countries, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after elaborate talks with the government, decided to get on with the remainder of the tournament.

RCB have been one of the most dominant forces in the ongoing edition of the tournament and will be looking for the top spot when they square off against KKR later on Saturday. The fate of the defending champions is hanging by a thread, and a win today will ensure that they will still remain afloat.

A win for RCB will confirm a place in the playoffs, but they are eyeing the top two spots at the moment. Most of their foreign players have returned, and it will be a tough ask for KKR to beat them in a packed Chinnaswamy Stadium.

When the two teams met each other in Bengaluru back in 2024, it was KKR who dominated RCB and defeated them by seven wickets. However, the scenario is totally different this time around and RCB will start off as the favorites for this marquee clash. However, rain and thunderstorms could play spoilsport as the weather prediction doesn't look good for the day.

KKR defeated RCB by 7 wickets at the Chinnaswamy in 2024

The KKR skipper, Shreyas Iyer, won the toss and put RCB on a wicket that looked an absolute belter from the outset back in IPL 2024. RCB captain Faf du Plessis departed in the second over to leave RCB precariously placed at 17/1. Cameron Green came in at number three and built a solid partnership with Virat Kohli to get the campaign back on track.

The 65-run partnership came in just seven overs, with Green taking the mantle to play the big shots. He scored 33 off 21 deliveries, which included 4 fours and a couple of sixes, before Andre Russell castled him in the 9th over. Glenn Maxwell also provided a quickfire cameo, scoring a 19-ball 28 while Kohli took the singles and the doubles to move the scoreboard.

Rajat Patidar and Anuj Rawat were dismissed early but Kohli kept doing his job at the other end, but he couldn't quite capitalize on the boundary opportunities. Dinesh Karthik provided the late-order impetus for RCB with an 8-ball 20 while Kohli anchored the innings masterfully, remaining unbeaten on 83 off 59 deliveries to take RCB’s score to 182/6 in 20 overs.

KKR killed the game in the powerplay itself, with the opening duo of Phil Salt and Sunil Narine demolishing the RCB bowling attack to all corners of the ground. It was an exhibition of strokeplay from both batters as boundaries just kept flowing one after the other. None of the top three RCB bowlers, including Siraj, Yash Dayal and Alzarri Joseph, had any answer in front of their onslaught.

The duo shared an 86-run stand in just 6.3 overs before Mayank Dagar bowled Narine. However, the damage was done by then, and all RCB needed was to play catch-up for the rest of the game. Salt also quickly followed his opening partner to the dressing room, but their partnership allowed the rest of the batters to pace their innings as they wanted.

The two Iyers - Venkatesh and Shreyas - took the positive approach and continued KKR’s dominance. Despite the departure of the two openers, the RCB bowlers couldn't quite stop the carnage as runs and boundaries kept coming simultaneously. Venkatesh scored a 30-ball 50 while Iyer chipped in with 39. KKR eventually chased down the target in the 17th over, with seven wickets in hand.