Bollywood superstar and Kolkata Knight Riders' co-owner Shah Rukh Khan met with the players after landing in the city of joy ahead of the IPL 2025 opener against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). The veteran Bollywood actor wished all the players good luck ahead of the game and extended special thanks to coach Chandrakant Pandit for looking after the players well.
The Knight Riders had sealed their third title with a commanding eight-wicket victory over the SunRisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2024 final in Chennai. Shah Rukh had been present for almost all the games of the Knight Riders and even encouraged their players in case of defeats by going in their dressing rooms.
In the video posted by the franchise on social media, Shah Rukh said:
"God bless you. Please be healthy, be happy and thank you Chandu sir for looking after them. Welcome aboard to the new members. Thank you Ajinkya for joining us and being our captain. God bless you. Hope you find a good home here and play well with all of us. God bless all of you. Have a good evening, good match and be healthy all of you."
KKR are ahead in head-to-head battle against RCB
Meanwhile, the Knight Riders are ahead in head-to-head battle as they have won 20 matches out of 34 contested between the two sides thus far since 2008.
They had memorably locked horns in the 2008 edition when Brendon McCullum's 73-ball 158* lifted Kolkata to 222 and they eventually won by 140 runs. RCB are also hunting their first title, having fallen short thrice in the final.
The Knight Riders had also beaten the Royal Challengers on both occasions in IPL 2024. However, they both have new captains for IPL 2025, with Ajinkya Rahane leading the three-time champions and Rajat Patidar skippering Bengaluru.
