Kolkata Knight Riders Triumph Over Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025 Match

Kolkata Knight Riders Secure Victory Against Rajasthan Royals

In a thrilling encounter at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) clinched an impressive eight-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the sixth match of the IPL 2025 season.

This win marked KKR's first points in the ongoing 18th edition of the lucrative league, while the Royals faced their second consecutive defeat.

Chasing a target of 152 runs, KKR's opening pair, Moeen Ali and Quinton de Kock, got off to a strong start, accumulating 40 runs during the powerplay. At the end of six overs, Moeen was on 4* and Quinton had scored 34*.

However, the Knight Riders lost their first wicket in the seventh over when Moeen Ali was run out after scoring just 5 runs off 12 balls.

KKR reached the 50-run milestone in the eighth over, courtesy of a single by Ajinkya Rahane off leg spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.

In the 11th over, KKR lost their second wicket as captain Rahane was dismissed by Hasaranga for 18 runs off 15 balls.

Quinton de Kock reached his half-century on the second last ball of the 11th over, hitting a six off Hasaranga's bowling.

The team crossed the 100-run mark in the 13th over, with de Kock contributing significantly to the score. He finished the match with a six in the 18th over, remaining unbeaten at 97 runs off 61 balls, alongside Angrish Raghuvanshi, who scored 22 runs off 17 balls.

For Rajasthan Royals, only one wicket fell to a leg spinner, who bowled three overs for 34 runs, while the other wicket was a runout.

Earlier, KKR's bowlers restricted the Royals to 151 runs for 9 wickets in their 20 overs, with Tushar Deshpande and Maheesh Theekshana remaining not out at 2* and 1*, respectively.

In the first innings, KKR made an early breakthrough, dismissing RR captain Sanju Samson for just 13 runs, setting the tone for a disciplined bowling performance.

Yashasvi Jaiswal and stand-in captain Riyan Parag tried to stabilize the innings with a 34-run partnership, but Varun Chakravarthy struck, sending Parag back for 25 runs.

Jaiswal soon followed, scoring 29 runs before being dismissed by Moeen Ali, who replaced Sunil Narine due to illness.

The Royals continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, with Wanindu Hasaranga managing only 4 runs before becoming Chakravarthy's second victim. With RR struggling at 76/4 in 9.5 overs, KKR tightened their grip on the match.

Former KKR player Nitish Rana had a disappointing outing against his old team, bowled out by Moeen Ali for just 8 runs.

RR reached the 100-run mark in 13.2 overs, but their batting woes persisted. Impact player Shubham Dubey could only muster 9 runs off 12 balls.

Dhruv Jurel showed some resistance with a score of 33, but he was eventually dismissed by Harshit Rana. Shimron Hetmyer also struggled, scoring just 7 runs before falling to Rana, who took his second wicket.

The final blow came when Jofra Archer was bowled by Spencer Johnson for 16 runs, leaving RR with a modest total of 151/9 in their 20 overs.

KKR's bowlers delivered a commendable performance, with each bowler contributing at least one wicket. Chakravarthy was the standout, with figures of 2/17, while Moeen Ali took 2/23. Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora also claimed two wickets each, and Spencer Johnson added one to his tally.

Brief Score: Rajasthan Royals 151/9 in 20 overs (Dhruv Jurel 33, Yashasvi Jaiswal 29, Varun Chakravarthy 2/17) vs Kolkata Knight Riders 153/2 in 17.3 overs (Quinton de Kock 97*, Angrish Raghuvanshi 22*, Wanindu Hasaranga 1/34).