Former Indian bowling legend Zaheer Khan gave a start to much-awaited Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) vs. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) game by sounding the ceremonial bell at Eden Gardens on Tuesday, April 8. Zaheer, India's best fast bowler has an incredible record of 610 international wickets, highest among left-arm Indian bowlers. He has been newly appointed as LSG's mentor for the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Gautam Gambhir was the mentor of the team in 2022 and 2023 in the past, but after his transition to KKR, LSG did not have that role last season, which was their first failure to qualify for the playoffs.

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The bell-ringing ceremony in Eden Gardens began in 2016 when cricket legend Kapil Dev rang the bell prior to a Test against New Zealand. The idea was floated by former CAB President Sourav Ganguly, who had taken inspiration from the legendary tradition at Lord's Cricket Ground. Ever since, it has been a symbolic initiation to big matches in the stadium.

Iconic moment at an iconic venue 🏟️#LSG mentor Zaheer Khan rang the bell at the Eden Gardens to kickstart the #KKRvLSG contest 🔔

Updates ▶ https://t.co/3bQPKnxnJs#TATAIPL | @ImZaheer pic.twitter.com/X7SJliCnKs

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 8, 2025

LSG Openers Take Control Early

KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane decided to bowl first in the day game. LSG batsmen capitalized on the chance, with Aiden Markram unleashing a barrage of forceful shots in the early overs. Mitchell Marsh was cautious in the beginning but started to pick up pace as he settled in.

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Harshit Rana's start was a struggle, with 16 runs and a boundary off the beginning of his next. But he came back well to get Markram out on a canny slower ball that exploited his vulnerability in the 11th over.Despite that, LSG was in a strong position with 99 runs on the board and power-hitters like Nicholas Pooran and David Miller still waiting to bat, aiming to set a challenging total for the home side.