KKR will aim to avenge their earlier loss against Punjab Kings and get their Indian Premier League campaign back on track, including witnessing top batsmen such as Ajinkya Rahane and Rinku Singh put up an outstanding performance.
As rain threatens, covers are brought out. A tie would bolster both teams’ playoff prospects; however, an unexpected defeat would reduce PBKS’ hopes significantly.
Fans are eagerly following every update of the kolkata knight riders vs punjab kings match scorecard, as the result could shape the playoff race.
| Date | Winner | Margin | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Apr 2025 | No Result (Rain) | — | Eden Gardens, Kolkata (Sportskeeda, MyKhel) |
| 15 Apr 2025 | PBKS | 16 runs | Mullanpur (Chandigarh) (Sportskeeda, MyKhel) |
| 26 Apr 2024 | PBKS | 8 wickets | Kolkata (MyKhel, Sportskeeda) |
| 8 May 2023 | KKR | 5 wickets | Kolkata (Sportskeeda, MyKhel) |
| 1 Apr 2023 | PBKS | 7 runs (DLS) | Mohali (Sportskeeda, MyKhel) |
KKR vs PBKS Scorecard
KKR and PBKS share one of the fiercest rivalries in Indian Premier League, having competed against each other 35 times over its history and producing some highly-strident matches that feature intense competition between players on both teams. Both sides have produced some stellar performances over these 35 games; watching players unleash their talents on a cricket pitch is always fascinating!
After losing three straight, KKR are eager to turn things around. Their hope lies in improving their batting with Rovman Powell joining them – yet facing off against PBKS could prove an immense test of their resolve.
Both teams are currently competing for a playoff berth in this season’s Indian Premier League tournament, with Punjab Kings currently fourth and KKR seventh on the standings with seven points each. A win against Punjab Kings could be critical in helping KKR make it into the top four spots.
At Eden Gardens, Ajinkya Rahane will lead KKR’s batting effort against PBKS. Joining him are young batsman Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Venkatesh Iyer. KKR hopes to take advantage of Eden Gardens’ ideal conditions in their favour.
Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh laid the groundwork for Punjab with an excellent 120-run opening stand, giving the visitors the hope they were on course for much bigger total before Prabhsimran was dismissed late in his innings. Still, they managed to maintain an acceptable run-rate thanks to some stellar hitting from Angkrish and Rahane – including one six over long-on from Rahane! A switch-hit off the next ball from Prabhsimran secured another boundary but missed out on further innings addition.
KKR vs PBKS Points Table
KKR have lost three out of four matches and must win this game if they want to remain in play-off contention. Kolkata team will look to unleash a more balanced attack against Punjab Kings and return their winning momentum. Batting unit issues have been an issue, yet captain Ajinkya Rahane, Quinton de Kock, as well as youngsters like Angkrish Raguvanshi and Rinku Singh hope that Eden Gardens offers them the perfect surface.
Priyansh gets on strike, opening his bat face and guiding a full outside off delivery through midwicket for one run. Next delivery was slower but still managed a single through point for him to use pace to guide through point. Finally a ball short on pads caused Priyansh to miss his flicking attempt and hit one more run to third man off this over. 14 from it!
Glenn Maxwell and Marco Jansen both scored half centuries for the defending champions, while Prabhsimran Singh made valuable contributions. Although Kolkata bowlers struggled throughout their innings, they managed to secure crucial wickets during its final stages.
CSK’s Noor Ahmad continues his winning ways with 12 wickets from seven matches so far in the race for the Purple Cap, followed by GT’s Khaleel Ahmed and LSG’s Shardul Thakur with 11. Virat Kohli from RCB and Shreyas Iyer of KKR both lie at fifth and sixth positions respectively in terms of total wickets taken so far this year.
KKR’s batting has struggled throughout this season, yet their top order has shown great promise in recent games. Both openers scored over 200 runs in their previous two matches to help their side secure respectable totals and will hope to continue this run-scoring spree against PBKS.
KKR vs PBKS Record
Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings have long been fierce rivals in the Indian Premier League. Over 34 matches, with 21 wins to 13 for KKR; their next meeting will take place April 26 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata; with KKR currently seventh on the points table and having to contend with an upsurge in form from Punjab Kings a win could help boost playoff hopes significantly for either team.
Punjab Kings made history on Tuesday when they successfully defended KKR’s low total of 111 against them – but now face an opponent that can damage them in multiple ways.
Ajinkya Rahane’s team have lost three consecutive matches and face the prospect of falling out of the top four. A win would give them hope of staying competitive against Gujarat Titans after their humiliating loss against them last time out.
This game will take place on a pitch that should provide variable bounce throughout its innings, possibly leading to low scoring with both teams hoping to keep their batsmen under control.
KKR’s bowlers must do everything in their power to contain Punjab’s powerful batsmen, keeping runs under control while bowling wicket-taking deliveries – such as Sunil Narine, Prabhsimran Jadhav, and Mohammad Nabi can do just that for them.
KKR has one of the weaker middle-orders, which needs to contribute more. Meanwhile, Andre Russell and Nitish Rana need to come good again on this occasion for them to give KKR another shot at qualifying for playoff spots; their pairing will be critical in this game against PBKS to ensuring this occurs.
KKR vs PBKS Result
Though KKR had the upper hand in the first half, they couldn’t withstand Punjab Kings’ impressive onslaught and the match has been called off due to rain. Both teams may feel disappointed as both had wanted to win this match in order to boost their playoff hopes.
Earlier, KKR elected to bat first on a dry wicket and made an excellent start, with Rahane and Raghuvanshi sharing an opening partnership of 120 runs at the top of their order. Before Rahane was out for a well-made 107 off just 93 balls, however, his wicket crumbled under pressure and they were all out for just 201 in 14.1 overs.
The PBKS bowling unit had an outstanding first half, not losing any wicket during that period. But their loss of Priyansh Arya and Angkrish Raghuvanshi was a blow, yet they persevered and came within touching distance of chasing down a formidable total in the last overs.
Jansen delivers a short-arm delivery that lands squarely on Narine’s pads and guides it toward third man for a run, before hitting one down the ground from deep square leg for four runs.
But that may have been their only scoring chance as a short-lived shower forced them off the field. Umpires are still assessing the situation and we should know within minutes whether this match will resume.
KKR have only won two of their eight matches this season and a defeat against PBKS could likely end their dreams of reaching the play-offs. On the other hand, victory against Delhi Capitals can provide much-needed confidence heading into the rest of their campaign. For PBKS meanwhile, victory here would ensure their place amongst the top five and should their form remain stable, then it may even enable them to advance all the way into semifinals contention.