The defending champions are currently seventh in the IPL 2025 table
Kolkata Knight Riders didn’t have the best of title defences in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. It was evident from the first game itself as they lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Eden Gardens by seven wickets.
They kept on alternating between a loss and a win before losing two straight games against Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans.
The loss against PBKS was devastating for Ajinkya Rahane’s side as they went from 62/3 to 95 all out while chasing a lowly-target of 112 on a turning track in Mullanpur.
Their performance against table toppers Gujarat Titans was also not up to the mark as they fell short by a bigger margin of 39 runs at home.
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They will be looking to get back at Shreyas Iyer’s men on Saturday when they host them at the Eden Gardens.
KKR all-rounder Moeen Ali wants his team to take inspiration from Mumbai Indians who have found a new gear after losing four of their opening five games. Hardik Pandya’s side are now fourth in the table after winning four games in a row.
“If you look at Mumbai, for example, they had a bit of a bad start. Now, they’ve won four in a row, and they’re flying. So we also need to have that same mindset and do the same thing to win most of our matches. It’s going to take a lot of determination, and belief for us to do that,” Ali said in the pre-match press conference.
There have been few bright individual performances for KKR, but the title holders have lacked collective efforts during the course of the season. Ali felt that the team should remain in control of their play-offs chances and not rely on others to make way.
“We’re in a situation where you can’t feel sorry for yourself, you have to go out and not be afraid to play how you want to play…there’s plenty of batting, but still (we should) not rely on other players to do the work you have to do as a batter, to do the finishing job,” Ali added.
The England all-rounder also spoke about how KKR are looking forward to the Punjab Kings’ clash and aim to redeem themselves.
“Tomorrow is going to be a real test because obviously, it was only two matches ago we had a collapse against these guys, but in the same match, we bowled them out very cheaply, and we were in a position to win. You never forget, but it is just learning,” he said.
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