Bengaluru makes a stunning start by defeating Kolkata.

Royal Challengers Bangalore made a brilliant start to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 by defeating the defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders, in the opening match.

Bengaluru secured a commanding 7-wicket victory over Kolkata in their home ground on Saturday. Chasing a target of 175 runs, Bengaluru reached the total in just 16.2 overs, losing only three wickets.

Virat Kohli led the charge with an unbeaten 59 runs, smashing 4 fours and 3 sixes in his 36-ball innings. He built a solid 95-run opening partnership with Phil Salt.

Salt played an explosive knock of 56 runs off 31 balls, hitting 9 fours and 2 sixes before getting out. Captain Rajat Patidar contributed 34 runs off 16 balls with 5 fours and a six. Devdutt Padikkal fell for 10, while Liam Livingstone remained unbeaten on 15 off 5 balls.

For Kolkata, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy, and Sunil Narine took one wicket each.

Earlier, after losing the toss, Kolkata batted first and posted 174/8 in their 20 overs at Eden Gardens.

Captain Ajinkya Rahane top-scored with 56 off 31 balls, hitting 6 fours and 4 sixes. He built a 103-run partnership for the second wicket with Sunil Narine, who scored 44 off 26 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes.

Despite a strong start at 107/1, Kolkata’s middle-order struggled to capitalize, failing to build on their momentum.

However, Kolkata's middle-order collapse saw them lose 7 wickets for just 67 runs. In the last five overs, they managed only 29 runs while losing 3 wickets.

Angkrishna Raghuvanshi contributed 30 runs off 22 balls, hitting 2 fours and 1 six before getting out.

For Bengaluru, Krunal Pandya was the standout bowler with 3 wickets, while Josh Hazlewood claimed 2. Yash Dayal, Rasikh Salam, and Suyash Sharma picked up one wicket each.