Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], March 22: Bollywood superstar and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) co-owner Shah Rukh Khan extended his heartfelt best wishes to the team ahead of their opening match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the IPL 2025 season.
In a video shared on KKR’s official Instagram handle, Shah Rukh Khan was seen greeting each player individually in the dressing room. He warmly embraced the players and said, “God bless you. Please be healthy, be happy. And thank you, Chandu sir, for looking after them. Welcome aboard to the new members. Thank you, Ajinkya, for joining us and being a captain. God bless you, and I hope you will find a good home here and play well with all of us. Have a good evening, a good match, and be healthy.”
The video post was captioned: “King Khan ka pyaar, Knights ke naam, Shahrukh Khan | #AmiKKR | #TATAIPL2025 | #KKRvRCB.”
On Friday evening, Shah Rukh Khan arrived in Kolkata to attend the grand opening ceremony of IPL 2025 at Eden Gardens. Dressed in a white T-shirt and denim jeans, the actor made a stylish entrance and greeted his excited fans at the airport with waves and kisses.
KKR’s opening match against RCB brings back memories of the inaugural IPL game in 2008, when Brendon McCullum played a historic knock of 158 runs for KKR against RCB.
Both teams enter the 2025 season with new leadership. Ajinkya Rahane is taking over as KKR’s captain, while Rajat Patidar will lead RCB. RCB is looking to break its four-match losing streak against KKR.
Spin bowling will likely play a significant role in the contest, with KKR boasting a formidable spin attack featuring Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine, supported by Moeen Ali and Anukul Roy. RCB, on the other hand, will rely on Krunal Pandya to lead their spin department, assisted by Swapnil Singh, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, and young Suyash Sharma, who previously played for KKR in 2023.
The batting line-ups of both teams promise an exciting contest. RCB’s explosive batting unit includes Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Liam Livingstone, Phil Salt, and Jitesh Sharma. KKR’s batting order features Quinton de Kock, Rinku Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, and Venkatesh Iyer.
KKR Squad:
Ajinkya Rahane (c), Venkatesh Iyer (vc), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, Ramandeep Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Quinton de Kock (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Mayank Markande, Anrich Nortje, Vaibhav Arora, Manish Pandey, Luvnith Sisodia (wk), Anukul Roy, Rovman Powell, Moeen Ali, Chetan Sakariya, Spencer Johnson.
RCB Squad:
Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar (c), Swastik Chikara, Devdutt Padikkal, Jitesh Sharma, Philip Salt, Manoj Bhandage, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Liam Livingstone, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Swapnil Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Dar Salam, Suyash Sharma, Mohit Rathee, Abhinandan Singh.