Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), finalists of IPL 2024, are set to face each other this season for the first time. The match will take place at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Here’s the pitch report of the venue:
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) are scheduled to lock horns against each other today (April 3) in the 15th match of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The caravan of the cash-rich league returns to Kolkata after it witnessed the hosts go down to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the tournament opener on March 22.
A lot has been said since then about the pitch, with the curator of the venue – Sujan Mukherjee – being in the spotlight for his comments in the media. After dishing out a surface that didn’t suit the home team, the pitch for the KKR vs SRH clash is reportedly dry and will help the spinners. KKR desperately need two points, having won only one match in their three outings so far.
SRH, led by Pat Cummins, are also in a similar position. They began their campaign with a solid win over Rajasthan Royals by 40-odd runs but have lost their way since, losing to Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals. Small boundaries at the Eden Gardens might help their batters go for runs right from ball one.
Eden Gardens, Kolkata Pitch Report
Eden Gardens has hosted just one match so far in IPL 2025. RCB chased down 175 runs in just 16 overs in that game, but the scores could be significantly down in today’s clash as the pitch is likely to assist the spinners and be on the slower side. Chasing was the preferred option last season as four out of six matches were won by teams bowling first. Even when the team batting first won two matches, the winning margins were 4 runs and 1 run.
Eden Gardens – Kolkata IPL Numbers Game
Matches Played – 7 (Since IPL 2024 – Considering only completed games – 20 overs)
Matches won batting 1st – 5
Matches won bowling 1st – 2
Average first inns score – 200
Squads
Sunrisers Hyderabad Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Aniket Verma, Heinrich Klaasen(w), Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins(c), Wiaan Mulder, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Zeeshan Ansari, Adam Zampa, Sachin Baby, Eshan Malinga, Simarjeet Singh, Jaydev Unadkat, Kamindu Mendis, Rahul Chahar, Atharva Taide
Kolkata Knight Riders Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Spencer Johnson, Varun Chakaravarthy, Anrich Nortje, Vaibhav Arora, Anukul Roy, Luvnith Sisodia, Moeen Ali, Rovman Powell, Mayank Markande, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Chetan Sakariya
