🏏IPL 2025 Match 53: KKR vs RR at Eden Gardens @ 3.30 PM IST🏏

🏏IPL 2025 Match 53: KKR vs RR at Eden Gardens on 4th May 2025 @ 3.30 PM IST🏏

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are set to face off against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 53rd match of the IPL 2025 season. The encounter will take place at the historic Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, May 4.

KKR find themselves in a challenging position, placed seventh on the points table with just four wins from ten matches. Although they are still mathematically in the hunt for a playoff spot, any further slip-up could end their campaign, making this game a must-win.

Rajasthan Royals, meanwhile, have already bowed out of the playoff race after securing just three victories in their first eleven outings. With qualification no longer a possibility, RR will look to salvage some pride and finish the season on a positive note by spoiling KKR’s slim playoff hopes.

Big picture: Time running out for KKR

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) aren't out of the playoffs race yet, but the margin for error has all but vanished. They can still reach 17 points, but that requires a perfect run in their final four games. Two of these games are at Eden Gardens, where they've managed just one win in four completed matches this season. Saturday afternoon's match marks their penultimate home game.

To stay in the hunt for a top-four finish, KKR need to break new ground this season by stringing together back-to-back wins for the first time. Their last game, against Delhi Capitals (DC), wasn't perfect, but a few performances offered some hope that there's still fight left in them. Rinku Singhand Andre Russell found their spark, Sunil Narine dismissed three high-quality batters, and the openers finally laid a solid foundation. For KKR, replicating all of that - and getting more out of Venkatesh Iyer - is essential for their playoff hopes. A loss wouldn't eliminate them outright, but it would leave them hanging by a thread.

Up against them are Rajasthan Royals (RR), already eliminated, but a side that's hurting. The Vaibhav Suryavanshi - Yashasvi Jaiswalshow against Gujarat Titans was scintillating, but what followed was a tame submission against Mumbai Indians, when they went down by 100 runs.

Lifting themselves up to produce a performance with Sanju Samson still injured and Sandeep Sharma out of the tournament will be difficult, but a hurting side with nothing to lose can be a dangerous unit. And as their bowling coach Shane Bond suggested on the eve of the game, there'll be some players waiting to make full use of any opportunities afforded to them in their last few fixtures, with the management having one eye on IPL 2026 and beyond.

The big question

KKR have three overseas players locked in: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Narine and Russell. But how do their best use their fourth? It appears Spencer Johnson and Anrich Nortje are not in the mix right now. Rovman Powell, the current preference, has been carded at No. 8 for their last two games, and a batter at that position averages fewer than six balls per game.

In the spotlight: Venkatesh Iyer and Dhruv Jurel

Venkatesh Iyer is being plagued by inconsistency. In seven innings this season, a struggling top order has offered him ample opportunity. But he has been out in single digits four times, and has crossed 40 only once. Compared to last season, Venkatesh's average has dropped from 46.3 to 20.3, while his strike rate has fallen from 159 to 139. Only Rishabh Pant and and Abdul Samad have poorer averages this season (minimum 100 runs). With the batters above and below Venkatesh beginning to stitch together scores, it's time for KKR's vice-captain to do the same with qualification for playoffs still a possibility

RR have shown a lot of faith in Dhruv Jurel, but his role this season has been a bit muddled. He has always been inventive and attacking against pace, but at both No. 4 or No. 5, his game against spin has been tested. Jurel strikes at only 110 against spinners this season, and it's 179 against pace while boasting an average of 81.5. Is it time for RR to utilise him differently?

Team news and probable XIIs

With only two right-handers in the RR top five, and KKR trusting Russell more with the ball, Anukul Roy, who picked up 1 for 27 against DC, might make way for Ramandeep Singh to get more batting power. Ajinkya Rahane had his right hand bandaged after being injured against DC, but Powell suggested he should be available.

Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Sunil Narine, 3 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 4 Angkrish Raghuvanshi, 5 Venkatesh Iyer, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Andre Russell, 8 Rovman Powell/Moeen Ali, 9 Ramandeep Singh/Anukul Roy, 10 Harshit Rana, 11 Varun Chakravarthy, 12 Vaibhav Arora

Akash Madhwal got his first opportunity with Sandeep's injury in RR's last game, and should keep his place. Left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya remains a tempting option against KKR's line-up. Wanindu Hasaranga could be back for his googlies against Russell.

Rajasthan Royals: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Vaibhav Suryavanshi, 3 Nitish Rana, 4 Riyan Parag (capt), 5 Dhruv Jurel (wk), 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Shubham Dubey, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Maheesh Theekshana/Wanindu Hasaranga, 10 Fazalhaq Farooqi/Kwena Maphaka, 11 Akash Madhwal, 12 Yudhvir Singh/Kumar Kartikeya

Pitch and conditions

A look at the surface showed rough marks outside both off and leg stump, and it could be a drier pitch that assists spin just a bit more. The last few days have been hot, with a short stormy period to cool the city down every evening. Chances of the game being affected by rain remain high.

Stats and trivia

• RR's spinners have the second-lowest average (36.7) and economy (9.4) this season. Only SRH are worse.
• While Angkrish Raghuvanshi has a dazzling strike rate of 170 in his first ten balls in IPL 2025, it dips to 106 by the time he moves on to play his 21st ball and beyond.
• Jaiswal has struck four fifties in his last six outings. He has also hit the most sixes (18) in the powerplay this season. It has helped RR maintain the highest powerplay run rate (10.8) this time.
• The middle-order struggles for KKR and RR are evident in their dot-ball percentage between overs 7 and 16: KKR (37.2%) are the worst, while RR (32.9%) are right behind them.

KKR vs RR Probable Best Performers

Probable Best Batter of the Match: Yashasvi Jaiswal

Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal had a slow start to the season, but he has been in stellar form in the recent matches for the Royals. The southpaw has aggregated 439 runs from 11 matches at an average of 43.90 and a strike rate of 154.04. He will be the batter to look out for on Sunday.

Probable Best Bowler of the Match: Sunil Narine

The willy off-spinner has been delivering consistent performances throughout the season. Sunil Narine might not have taken too many wickets in every game, but he has been hard to score runs off. The veteran has taken 10 wickets from nine games at an average of 25.40 and a strike rate of 19.80. He has an economy rate of 7.70. Narine's four overs will be crucial on Sunday.

Today's Match Prediction: Kolkata Knight Riders to win the match

Scenario 1

• Kolkata Knight Riders win the toss and bowl
• PP Score - 65-75
• RR - 210-220
• Kolkata Knight Riders win the match

Scenario 2

• Rajasthan Royals win the toss and bowl
• PP score - 55-65
• KKR - 200-210
• Kolkata Knight Riders win the match

What to expect: A slightly cloudy afternoon seems to be on the horizon, but the probability of rain is really low. The par score has been around 200 at the Eden Gardens, with the only previous afternoon game of this season being a run-fest where more than 500 runs were scored cumulatively. Expect another good batting surface that isn't going to offer much turn.

Head to Head: KKR 15 - 14 RR. Not a lot to separate these two sides in the IPL. This year, KKR were comprehensive winners when they played RR in Guwahati. Last season, a Jos Buttler century gave RR a one-wicket win over KKR at the Eden Gardens.