IPL 2025: Mumbai Indians continued their strong record against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2025. Their return to home ground was successful as they secured a dominant 8-wicket win with 43 balls to spare. This victory not only marked MI’s first win of the season but also gave their net run rate a big boost.
Ashwani Kumar’s Record-Breaking Debut Performance
Hardik Pandya won the toss and chose to bowl first. MI’s pace attack, led by Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar, and debutant Ashwani Kumar, put KKR under pressure from the start. Boult dismissed Sunil Narine for a 2-ball duck, while Chahar quickly sent Quinton de Kock and Venkatesh Iyer back to the pavilion during the Powerplay.
But the standout performer was Ashwani Kumar, who took 4 wickets for 24 runs in just 3 overs—the best debut bowling figures by an Indian in IPL history. Hardik Pandya, Mitchell Santner, and Vignesh Puthur also contributed as MI bowled out KKR for just 116 runs.
Chasing 117, MI lost Rohit Sharma early, but Ryan Rickleton kept things steady. The left-hander smashed an unbeaten 62 off 41 balls, hitting 4 fours and 5 sixes, and reached his maiden IPL fifty. Suryakumar Yadav played a quickfire 27* off 9 balls, ensuring MI cruised to an 8-wicket win over KKR.
IPL 2025: Ajinkya Rahane Reflects on KKR’s Batting Collapse After Loss
After the match, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane admitted that the team’s batting collapse led to their defeat. He stated that a target of 180-190 runs would have been ideal. Rahane said:
“Collective batting failure. It was a good wicket to bat on as I mentioned in the toss. 180-190 would have been good on this wicket. It has a very good bounce. Sometimes you have to use the pace and bounce.”
Ajinkya Rahane further stressed the importance of learning from the loss against Mumbai Indians and focusing on the long tournament ahead. He elaborated:
“We got to learn really fast from this game. Couldn’t do much with the ball. They tried their best. But not much runs on the board. We kept on losing wickets.
“Four wickets in the powerplay. It was difficult to consolidate and get that total on the board. You need that partnership going. You need one batsman to stay till the end.”
IPL 2025: Ashwani Kumar’s Debut Performance Earns Praise from Hardik Pandya
Speaking after the match, Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya expressed his satisfaction with how the game unfolded. He stated:
“Very satisfying to win, especially at home. The way we did it, as a group, everyone chipped in – can’t be happier. It’s always a challenge of picking one guy here and there.
“With our team it’s pretty sorted with the players who we are backing. This wicket just offered a bit more and we thought Ashwani can come in and bowl the way he bowled.”
Hardik Pandya also praised Ashwani Kumar and credited the renowned MI scout team for discovering a new pace-bowling sensation. He further expressed his delight that multiple players contributed to MI’s victory. Hardik Pandya elaborated:
“First of all, it’s all because of the scouts. All MI scouts have gone all the places and picked these young kids. We played a practice game and it looked like he had that zip and late swing, had a different action and plus he is a leftie.
“The way he took that wicket of Russell was a very crucial wicket. And especially, how he started with that catch of Quinton. Was great to see a fast bowler jumping that high. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a great sign for everyone to chip in and kick off the tournament for us.”
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