Krunal Pandya made his debut for RCB in the IPL 2025 opener at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. His first ball in the match was sent into the stands by Sunil Narine. He conceded 15 runs in his opening over but made a strong comeback to turn the game around. The Ahmedabad-born all-rounder dismissed Ajinkya Rahane for 56 in his second over and broke KKR’s momentum.
Krunal Pandya bowls a bouncer to Venkatesh Iyer
In his third over, Krunal engaged in a mind game with Venkatesh Iyer. The newly arrived Iyer was batting without a helmet against the off-spinner and left surprised by an unexpected bouncer. Krunal pitched the ball halfway down the pitch, and it sailed past Iyer at head height, forcing wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma to jump to collect it.
The umpire called it a wide, prompting Iyer to call for his helmet after assessing the bounce. However, on the very next delivery, he chopped one onto his stumps and fell to Krunal’s clever bowling. Krunal Pandya continued to impress RCB fans on his debut as in the final ball of his spell, he castled Rinku Singh and finished with figures of 4 overs, 29 runs, and 3 wickets.
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After 10 overs, KKR was cruising at 107 and looked set for a 200+ total. However, Krunal Pandya’s game-changing spell turned the tide and restricted them to 174. Josh Hazlewood also delivered an excellent spell, conceding just 22 runs and taking 2 wickets in his 4 overs.
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RCB acquired Krunal Pandya for ₹5.75 crore in the IPL 2025 auction. He made an immediate impact with a heroic performance in the opening match. As the team’s only experienced off-spin all-rounder, he is expected to feature regularly while also playing a key role in the middle order.
