Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) posted a commanding 206 for 4 in their IPL 2025 clash against a struggling Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Eden Gardens.

After being promoted up the order, Andre Russell smashing an unbeaten 57 off just 25 balls to propel KKR in the later stages of the innings.

His explosive finish came after useful contributions from skipper Ajinkya Rahane, opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, and youngster Angkrish Raghuvanshi.

KKR got off to a flying start despite an early setback, with Sunil Narine falling in the second over to uncapped pacer Yudhvir Singh Charak.

However, the hosts recovered swiftly, maintaining momentum through the middle overs.

RR captain Riyan Parag chipped in with a wicket but was unable to stem the flow of runs.

KKR had opted to bat after winning the toss.

Rain could interrupt play, as the latest forecast predicts a high chance of showers during the match.

While RR are already out of the playoff race, KKR are fighting to stay in contention.

Having won just four of their ten matches, KKR sit seventh on the table with nine points. RR, meanwhile, have managed only three wins from 11 games and have six points.

With four league matches left, KKR must win all of them to keep their hopes alive. Even then, their qualification will depend on results of other teams.

Playing XI

Kolkata Knight Riders: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Vaibhav Arora

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Riyan Parag (c), Kunal Singh Rathore, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Akash Madhwal

Impact players:

KKR: Kumar Kartikeya, Shubham Dubey, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Ashok Sharma

RR: Kumar Kartikeya, Shubham Dubey, Tushar Deshpande, Kwena Maphaka, Ashok Sharma