IPL 2025, Match 6: Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders Match Preview

Having suffered a significant loss in their first match, Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) face each other in the sixth match of the IPL 2025. Their match is scheduled to occur in Guwahati's Barsapara Stadium on March 26 at 7:30 PM (IST). Both teams will be looking to return to winning ways and open their account in the season. 

In their previous match, RR faced SRH and conceded the second-highest total in the history of the league. Jofra Archer bagged an unwanted record and gave away 76 runs in his spell of 4 overs, the most for a bowler in the history of the league. RR took away a lot of positives from the game, mostly from their batting unit. Despite conceding 286 runs, RR scored 242 runs in the second innings.

The royals have a lot to worry about their subpar bowling and fielding. They probably lost the match against SRH due to the failure of these two departments. On the other hand, KKR was outplayed by RCB in their backyard in all facets of the game. Despite being in a dominant position at one stage, KKR gave away the momentum and posted a below-par total to hand advantage to the visiting side.

With the ball, KKR did not do a great job either, as the new-ball attack conceded a lot of runs in the Powerplay overs. While the spinners made a decent comeback in the middle overs, the game was long done. KKR will hope to perform better with the bat in the middle overs and improve their line and lengths early with the ball. One can expect a good match between the two sides.

Pitch Report

The match will take place at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati. The venue hasn't hosted a lot of IPL matches. It has hosted some of Rajasthan's matches every season after the pandemic. Usually, it is a good surface to bat on, especially during the start of the season. The Pacers do have some assistance early in the innings. But the wicket would get better to bat with the progression of the match.

Spinners might have something in it as well. The key for the bowlers would be to operate in a good line and length. Even minute errors could be costly, as the batters will dispatch them to different parts of the stadium. One could expect a run-fest at the venue, as both teams have a strong batting lineup. Dew might not be a factor and toss might not play a big role.

Head-to-Head Record 

KKR and RR have faced each other in the IPL in 29 instances with some thrilling games. Neither teams have any advantage as they have 14 wins each with their most recent game witnessing a washout. Two of their games went to the Super Over and RR won both.

Predicted 11s:

Rajasthan Royals - Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag (C), Nitish Rana, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Fazalhaq Farooqi.

Impact Substitute: Sandeep Sharma

Kolkata Knight Riders - Sunil Narine, Quinton De Kock (WK), Ajinkya Rahane (C), Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Spencer Johnson, Varun Chakravarthy.

Impact Substitute: Vaibhav Arora