MI vs KKR IPL 2025: Despite an easy win over Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium on March 31, Rohit Sharma’s form remains a concern for MI. Rohit, Mumbai Indian’s 5-time IPL-winning former captain, scored only 13 runs of 12 balls with an over boundary. The only over-boundary hit by Sharma was cheered by the spectators in the loudest way possible.

According to stat, it was the loudest 'Shor' recorded—129 db—of the season when he sent the ball out of the boundary line for a maximum. The intense cheer yet again established why Rohit Sharma is called the ‘Hitman.’ Last night, it was an absolutely lackluster performance by the Kolkata Knight Riders, the away team; in every department, they were dominated by the home team, the Mumbai Indians. Batting first, KKR put only 116 runs in before losing all of their 10 wickets in 16.2 overs. 

129DB LOUD AFTER THAT SIX BY ROHIT SHARMA 🥶pic.twitter.com/6TecOWQU2x

— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) March 31, 2025

This match marked the rise of another young star, Ashwani Kumar, who took 4 wickets as a debutant IPL player for the Mumbai-based side. By clean-bowling Knight skipper Ajinkya Rahane in his 1st delivery, Kumar announced his arrival at the grandest stage of franchise cricket. The young left-arm seamer removed Rahane, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey, and Andre Russell.

When Mumbai Indian came into the field to chase the easy target, South African Ryan Rickelton scored an unbeaten 62 runs against 41 deliveries. He single-handedly destroyed the KKR bowling unit with four 4s and five 6s. When the team score was 46, Sharma lost his wicket to Andre Russell; before that, he hit an over-boundary with a record-breaking, loudest cheer by the crowd. Harshit Rana bowled a full toss, well outside the off-stump, allowing Sharma to slice the ball over the rope for that infamous six. 

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders: Ashwani Kumar, another rising star of Indian cricket, scouted by Mumbai Indians, took 4 wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders at Wankhede Stadium on the evening of March 31. The young seamer claimed his very first IPL wicket on his debut ball for MI. 

Read More: https://www.cricketwinner.com/cricket-news/first-indian-to-take-4-wickets-on-ipl-debut-ashwin-kumar-makes-history/

First ball, first wicket for Mumbai Indians; history had been written when Kumar dismissed KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane. Along with Rahane, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey, and Andre Russell fall prey to the 23-year-old left-arm medium pacer. Crowds at the Wankhede stadium were on their feet when he completely fooled Russell to hit the stumps. A historic evening for Ashwani Kumar, a historic night for the Indian Premier League. 

But it was not the first time that a Mumbai Indians bowler cleared a batter on their debut match. According to the stats, before Kumar, there were 2 more MI bowlers who did wonders before. Kumar became the third bowler for the Mumbai Indians to take a wicket on IPL debut. Ali Murtaza and Alzarri Joseph bagged a wicket on their very first IPL delivery. 

Back in 2019, Alzarri Joseph had a fairytale beginning for the Mumbai Indians in his IPL career. He delivered a maiden and dismissed David Warner in his debut over. Ali Murtuza was the first MI bowler to achieve this all-time record. He dismissed Naman Ojha from Rajasthan Royals in his first IPL ball back in 2010. 

Khaleel Ahmed, IPL 2025: Once badly reputed for inconsistency, Khaleel Ahmed, arguably at his career-best form, is taking wicket after wicket and chasing the purple cap in the IPL 2025. Khaleel Ahmed, now with 6 wickets in total with his name, took 2 wickets against Rajasthan Royals last night in the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jofra Archer. With these couple of wickets, Ahmed is now in third place, just behind Delhi Capitals Mitchell Starc (8 wickets) and Chennai Super Kings' Noor Ahmed (9 wickets).

Read More: MI vs KKR: Sunil Narine's underwhelming performance vs Mumbai Indians in last 5 matches

Khaleel Ahmed's current form begins after a fine performance in the Ranji Trophy, where he took wickets in a regular manner for team Rajasthan. In the last 5 matches, Khaleel has taken 17 wickets for his respective teams. He took 2 against Rajasthan Royals, 1 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and 3 against Mumbai Indians—6 IPL 2025 in total.

Before the beginning of the ongoing Indian Premier League, the pace bowler had a significant domestic season for Rajasthan. He claimed a total of 5 wickets against Andhra Pradesh and 6 against Vidarbha. So, in his last 5 matches, Ahmed added 17 wickets to his name. Silently but steadily, the 27-year-old left-arm pace bowler is rejuvenating his performance by adopting the pitch conditions and bowling according to the batsman. His ability to swing the ball has created a lot of attention nowadays.

According to ESPNcricinfo, Khaleel Ahmed has played 60 IPL matches so far to take 80 wickets. So far, his best IPL season was back in 2024, where he grabbed 17 wickets in 14 matches for the Delhi Capitals, with an economy rate of 9.58; in this season he has bowled with an economy rate a little below 8, which is his best economy rate so far in his IPL career. For CSK, Khaleel Ahmed is now not only taking wickets but also putting pressure on batsmen to play risky shots to rotate the strike rate, and then Ahmed strikes.

RCB vs CSK: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Chennai Super Kings: battle of two fierce rivals. Things were getting more heated when these two teams faced off against each other at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on March 28 (Friday) evening. From ball one, cricketers from both teams were looking in a mood to overtake each other with style.

Khaleel Ahmed almost took the wicket of Phil Salt, missing the edge from the blade by only some inches. The new ball swung away from the right-handed English batter. Salt, who misjudged the ball, swung the bat without any result but produced some raw emotions from Khaleel Ahmed, Ahmed knows it was very close.

 The 27-year-old right-arm fast bowler takes a few more steps for a little chat with Salt. Both the bowler and the batter had some exchange of words—Ahmed with an intense look and Salt with a smile. Ahmed did not manage to get the Phil Salt wicket. It was Noor Ahmed who dismissed the dangerous T20 batter with the help of MS Dhoni, who, again, smartly took the bails off from the wicket.

 Despite missing a chance to score a half century, Salt did his job by scoring 32 runs off 16 balls, at a strike rate of 200.00; an over boundary and five boundaries came off from his bat. On the other end of the wicket, Virat Kohli was there when Phil Salt and Khaleel Ahmed were engaged in that intense moment. A video of this moment is already on the internet; take a look-

pic.twitter.com/BezQ3VJPOp

— Drizzyat12Kennyat8 (@45kennyat7PM) March 28, 2025

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Indian Premier League 2022, Match 49: Royal Challengers Bangalore went up against Chennai Super Kings at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis, the RCB openers, march out to the middle. Mukesh Choudhary will take the stage first. Mukesh Choudhary bowled a solid first over, but he was a little legside-ish. He discovered a smidgeon of swing. He focused on getting the ball into the batter’s hands. Kohli got off to a good start with a flip to fine leg on the first ball. With a single to fine leg, Du Plessis also got off to a good start. The next couple of balls are defended by Kohli. For a FOUR, he flicks one on the pads to fine leg. After a DOT, Faf flashes at a wide one and edges it to third man for a FOUR in the fourth over.

He then scampers through for three runs after clipping one past midwicket. Kohli then misses a bouncer pull and mistimes his punch, resulting in a cover. He then goes for a SIX with a wide one over the covers. RCB are ramping up the pace now, scoring 18 off the fifth over. CSK’s lines aren’t quite right. For a FOUR, Du Plessis drives one into the middle of the field. He chases a wide one after a DOT and gets an edge to third man for another FOUR. After that, he clips one to the leg side for two and then mistimes his loft over point for two more. The next one comes off the centre, and he lofts a slower one over long on for SIX. Because Moeen struck in his first over and sent back Du Plessis, the eighth over was a successful over for CSK. He sensed a turn coming on and focused on bowling outside off. This over produced 4 runs and a wicket. Kohli knocks a pair of FOURS in the following over, making it an exciting over for both teams. His self-assurance was building. However, they misread a run on the final ball, and Maxwell was run out.

The Jadeja over yielded 10 runs and a wicket. For CSK, it was a huge wicket. CSK has had a great couple of overs. They’ve fought back valiantly here. Moeen has a terrific over. He gets off to a slow start, only scoring three runs on the first three balls. With a magnificent off-spinner, he then takes Kohli’s wicket. Only gives up three runs. After that, Jadeja bowls another disciplined over, giving up five singles. The lCricket AddictorRCB vs CSK Head to Head Records, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s …

As a cricketer, there’s no greater feeling than representing your country at the highest level. Venkatesh Iyer’s dream of making his dream come true appears to have come true after he emerged into the spotlight during the UAE-leg of this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL). In October, after concluding the T20 league and getting India’s first call-up for the T20I series against New Zealand, Iyer revealed the conversation he had with ‘idol’ Sourav Ganguly.

In an interview with Sports Tak, the KKR all-rounder said that he got to meet Ganguly after the IPL 2021 final against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Following Iyer’s impressive performances to date, Dada gave him some tips that could boost his career at the highest level. “When I was young, I used to bat right-handed while watching Dada. I wanted to be exactly like him so I became a left-hander. It feels nice when people compare me to him,” Iyer told Sports Tak.

The seam-bowling all-rounder has been selected for the Indian cricket team. It is expected that his role in the Indian team in 2021 will be quite different from what he did for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2021. Given the number of players already included in the Indian team as openers, Iyer is likely to be groomed to finish games for the team as well as bowl a few overs.

Hardik Pandya, who has reportedly not been considered for national selection due to form and fitness issues, has been replaced by the 26-year-old ahead of the World Cup!

The Indian Premier League (IPL) cemented its status as cricket’s biggest brand after two new franchises sold for an eye-watering $1.7 billion on Monday, underlining the tournament’s pulling power and heft of India’s all-conquering governing body. Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners paid 56 billion rupees ($745 million) for an Ahmedabad-based team, while the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, which owned the now-defunct Pune franchise for two IPL campaigns, bid 70.9 billion Indian rupees ($945 million).

Even close observers were gobsmacked by the final figures, perhaps underestimating the behemoth of the gaudy IPL, in many ways an Americanization of the staid British bat and ball sport, and the eagerness of the filthy rich to get in on a rising tournament that appears set to globalize and conquer the cricket landscape. The staggering numbers certainly help erode cricket’s unwanted perception in non-traditional playing countries of being a dull, never-ending game played in all-white attire.

The glitz and glamor of the IPL, which only started in 2008, has become a marketing triumph and rocketed a brand estimated to be around $7 billion to make it clearly cricket’s most valuable product – much more so than the sport’s various World Cups. But apart from that, and of course, lining the pockets of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and cricketers worldwide, is this money-spinner actually benefiting and developing cricket worldwide? As underlined by not allowing their players to play in other T20 franchise leagues worldwide and shamefully banning Pakistani players to compete in the IPL since its inaugural edition, the BCCI is warding its product closely.

In a bid to maximize its gold mine, which of course the BCCI is entitled to do and makes total business sense, the IPL is set on expansion – teams, games, and possibly entering new markets. It has already marked out two months of the calendar – traditionally in April and May – where international cricket essentially grinds to a halt so the world’s top players can make their fortune. Lured by enormous pay packets, up to $2 million for the most coveted, players are increasingly discarding loyalties to their national teams to play in the IPL. Knowing its swaying power, national governing bodies do little to stand in the way.

Must Read: Scotland vs Namibia T20 World Cup 2021 Today Match Prediction

Our main motto is to make cricket more popular throughout the world.

It’s created a major shift where cricket had long been almost an outlier in major team sports worldwide with the prestige and popularity centered at the international level – country vs country. But the IPL has changed the game and created fanatic fandom through domestic franchises much like sports in the U.S. Perhaps a little fatalistic, but it is not too hard to envision one day the IPL dwarfing over cricket much like the NBA does with basketball leaving that sport’s governing body FIBA scrambling for out of the box initiatives such as creating a 3-on-3 pro circuit.

With so much history and residue, international cricket might be able to endure with the IPL’s tentacles not really spreading beyond home shores. Although surely in a bid to continue to globalize, the IPL will start playing matches abroad – the U.S. looms as a logical landing spot. Expanding the IPL leads to an eroding of an already congested cricket calendar, filled with a myriad of franchise T20 competitions worldwide aiming to somehow mimic the giant trendsetter, which means even more jockeying for countries to play India – which is basically the only guaranteed profit in bilateral cricket for many nations.

Almost the entire financial backbone of the sport is dependant on India, which is aided by having the lion’s share of the International Cricket Council’s current cycle surplus from 2015-2023. The BCCI receives $371 million well ahead of next-best England ($127 million), while the Associate members made up of 94 nations receive a relatively paltry $180 million. With its next IPL broadcast rights projected to nudge billion, the BCCI keeps on getting richer and more powerful. Australia and England, the other cricket powers, also have billion-dollar broadcast deals but don’t have India’s gravitas globally.

Chennai Super Kings vanquished Kolkata Knight Riders on the 14th season of the grand tournament at the Dubai International Stadium On Friday by 27 runs. CSK won the IPl trophy for the 4th time in 2021.

Kolkata Knight Riders’ slight mistakes cost them heavily at the Dubai International Stadium on Friday. Dinesh Karthik failed to stump Du plessis when he made just 2 runs, which gave Faf the opportunity to make 87 runs off 59 deliveries. He is yesterday’s face and the player of the match with 7 fours and 3 sixes.

Dhoni showed his “Thala’s Charisma” in the first qualifier against DC. After yesterday’s match, he was snapped with his wife and daughter where Sakshi was seen in tears hugging Dhoni and Ziva. Dhoni is the first cricketer in the world, captaining a team of 300 T20 matches amongst tournaments. As legends can never be washed off, no matter how old they are!

The Super Kings made a target of 192/3 which kept the Knights at a tough pressure, as they knew it would be difficult for them to make easy runs against Shardul and Jadeja. Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer tried their best to keep the match in their hands, but after the dismissals of Shubman and Iyer, KKR’ batting line up fragmented under pressure. After them, Jadeja and Hazelwood kept on sending the KKR army to the pavilion one after the other. Furguson’s gave a very poor performance of 56 runs in just 4 overs. Not to forget about Rituraj Gaikwad, was awarded the Orange Cap for his splendid performance for making 636 in this tournament.

KKR’s strength was always their spin, which didn’t show up on the final day. Had Narine not shown his little shrewdness, KKR would have lost the match with a much higher margin. Dhoni’s captaincy, wisdom and self confidence has again made CSK the IPL trophy winner for 2021! CSK fans and the entire team must be elated with this outstanding win.

Not all misses are costly, especially for Chennai Super Kings. But if such glaring errors are committed in the final of a tournament, there is every possibility of being doomed. Kolkata Knight Riders found that out at the Dubai International Stadium on Friday. Cashing in after Dinesh Karthik failed to stump him when he was only on 2, Faf du Plessis smashed his way to a brilliant 86 to lay the foundation for Chennai Super Kings’ fourth IPL crown, as they thumped the Knight Riders by 27 runs in the summit clash of this edition.

Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who will now be getting ready for his role as Team India mentor in the upcoming T20 World Cup, couldn’t have asked for a better result in his 300th T20 appearance as captain, being the first to achieve such a feat. Last Sunday, against Delhi Capitals in Qualifier I, the 40-year-old Dhoni played a cameo that was crucial in earning the Super Kings a final berth. And in the all-important final, Du Plessis, 37, delivered what certainly was a title-winning knock for the Super Kings, who proved they are actually an army of legends. And legends can never be written off, no matter how old they are.

Thanks to Du Plessis, the Super Kings posted 192/3, a formidable enough total. And for the Knight Riders to chase it down, they needed something special from their in-form openers. Thanks to dropped catches and a bit of fortune, the in-form Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer tried to make a match of it. But once Shardul Thakur (3/38) dismissed both Iyer and Nitish Rana in a span of three balls in the 11th overs of their run chase, the Knights’ batting simply crumbled under pressure.

As if the middle order’s struggle and captain Eoin Morgan’s wretched form with the bat weren’t enough, Rahul Tripathi’s hamstring injury hamstrung the Knights further as all they could manage in the end was 165/9. Once the Shubman-Iyer pair was separated, the likes of Ravindra Jadeja (2/37) and Josh Hazlewood (2/29) had no problems in adding to their tally of wickets.

Must Read: CSK Vs KKR, A Recall of the 2 Thrilling Finals Played by the Two Sides

Kings finishes off in vintage best

Going back to Du Plessis, he started slowly with Ruturaj Gaikwad doing the bulk of the scoring after the Super Kings were put in to bat. But soon after that let-off, the former South Africa captain ensured he was at his vintage best. The high back-lift being a characteristic of his batting, it certainly helped Du Plessis unleash those aerial strokes, particularly off Lockie Ferguson. New Zealand quick had a torrid time with the ball in the game that mattered most, going for 56 off his four overs.

Besides, on a pitch that was far better for stroke-making, Du Plessis adjusted his game accordingly against the Knight Riders spinners. There were no half measures if the ball was in his arc and strike rotation was a cakewalk for him, which also made acceleration easier for Robin Uthappa and Moeen Ali. His rollicking 60-plus stands with Uthappa and Moeen were certainly crucial elements of the decider.

Du Plessis’ fluency and dominance almost led him to take the Orange Cap (reserved for the tournament’s highest run-getter) away from teammate Ruturaj, who had overtaken KL Rahul earlier in the game. This quality knock might as well make the Proteas realize the mistake they made by not picking him for their T20 Cup squad.

Spin was KKR’s strength. But barring Sunil Narine (2/26), Varun Chakravarthy and Shakib-al Hasan struggled in finding the right length. It seemed as if they were mentally still at Sharjah, where sluggishness of pitches made strokeplay tougher. Of course, one can argue Shakib’s figures could have been better if not for the reprieve Du Plessis got, but even then he offered the opposition batters the room they were looking for. The same goes for Chakravarthy. Had it not been for a little bit of guile that was on offer from Narine, the margin of defeat would surely have been bigger for the Knights.

CSK vs KKR Preview

On Friday, October 15 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Chennai Super Kings will face Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2021 Indian Premier League Final. Seven years after the 2014 edition, the Knight Riders, led by Eoin Morgan, have qualified for an IPL final. At the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, the Men in Gold and Purple defeated the Delhi Capitals by three wickets. KKR just needed 11 runs in the final three overs to win, but the DC bowlers came back spectacularly.

From two balls, the Capitals’ bowlers increased the goal to six runs. In the end, KKR won thanks to Rahul Tripathi’s six off Ravi Ashwin. KKR must be cautious heading into the final after losing both of their league meetings against the Super Kings. CSK qualified for the final after defeating the Capitals by four wickets on Sunday in Dubai, led by MS Dhoni.

Match Details

Match – Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders – Final

Venue – Dubai International Cricket Stadium

Time – 7:30 PM IST, 02:00 PM GMT

Where to watch live – Star Sports Network, Hotstar

Pitch Report

In Dubai, the batting surface has been outstanding. However, the track has recently shown indications of slowing down. The pursuing teams have won nine of the eleven matches in the current IPL. Chasing should be the preferred strategy for teams.

Avg first innings score: 152 (11 matches in the IPL 2021 at Dubai)

Record of chasing teams: Won – 9, Lost – 2, Tied – 0

Weather Report

Fans and players should expect a clear sky and pleasant weather in Dubai for this exciting match. The temperature should be approximately 33 degrees Celsius on average.

CSK vs KKR Playing 11

CSK Predicted Playing 11

Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, Faf du Plessis, Robin Uthappa, MS Dhoni (C & WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo, Josh Hazlewood, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu

KKR Predicted Playing 11

Venkatesh Iyer, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Shakib Al Hasan, Dinesh Karthik, Shivam Mavi, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy, Eoin Morgan (c), Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana

Head-to-Head

Overall

Played – 27 | Chennai Super Kings– 17 | Kolkata Knight Riders– 9 | N/R – 0

In the UAE

Played – 3 | Chennai Super Kings– 2 | Kolkata Knight Riders– 1 | N/R – 0

CSK vs KKR Key players

Venkatesh Iyer— Kolkata Knight Riders

In the IPL 2021 season, Venkatesh Iyer has been a fascinating prospect for the Knights. With 320 runs scored at an average of 40 and a strike rate of 125, he formed an unbeatable foundation. With three half-centuries under his belt, the southpaw must be feeling pretty good about himself. Iyer struck a stunning fifty in Qualifier 2 to help KKR over the finish line.

Varun Chakravarthy – Kolkata Knight Riders

The off-incentive is presently the leading gate-taker for the Knights, having taken 18 lattices at a frugality rate of6.40. The tweaker has been tough to get down on the slow and low lattices in the UAE. In the former game, he picked up two lattices and looked in great meter.

Team News

Chennai Super Kings

• Chennai Super Kings beat Delhi Capitals by four wickets in a nail-biting finish to book their place in the finals. This is their 9th IPL final, the most by any team in the tournament’s history.
• Every single person has made a significant contribution to Chennai’s victory in this season. Ruturaj Gaikwad is a contender for the Emerging Player of the Year title, and he demonstrated his value in Qualifier 1 by hitting a crucial 70 runs in the winning cause. he is just 24 runs away from becoming the IPL’s highest run-scorer this year. He had a fantastic run in the IPL 2021, scoring 603 runs at an average of 46.38 in 15 matches.
• Sir Ravindra Jadeja, in addition to him, has been in excellent form this season. He can bowl 3-4 overs for his captain in fast succession without allowing the batters any time to react. So far in the IPL, he has 11 wickets at an economy rate of 6.86 and 227 runs at an average of 75.66 with the bat.

Kolkata Knight Riders

• Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, kept their cool against Delhi Capitals in Qualifier 2 and won by three wickets in the final over, securing their final position. They have a perfect record in the IPL finals, and they are hoping to win the trophy for the third time. The IPL’s second leg has been incredible for them, as they have fully evolved into a formidable team.
• Varun Chakravarthy will undoubtedly earn a spot in the final eleven of the T20 World Cup if he continues to perform like this in the IPL. In this round of the IPL, he had 18 wickets at an economy rate of 6.4 in 16 matches.

CSK vs KKR Match Tips

This season, Dhoni and the team have appeared to be the calmer side, and they are likely to be a touch too good for KKR in the final. CSK appears to be in fine form, with a relaxed demeanor. They appear to have started moving in the correct direction at the appropriate moment. Dhoni looked terrific the other night, and he’s done a wonderful job leading his squad. Their batters are looking fantastic, but we believe KKR will face a stronger team in the final. We think this time csk will add another cup to their collection.

Today’s match prediction: Kolkata Knight Riders to win the match.