MI vs KKR highlights, IPL 2025: Ryan Rickelton, Ashwani Kumar help Mumbai Indians beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 8 wickets

MI vs KKR highlights, IPL 2025: Ryan Rickelton struck a fine unbeaten half-century after young debutant pacer Ashwani Kumar had destroyed Kolkata Knight Riders with a 4-24 haul as Mumbai Indians bagged their first points of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 with an eight-wicket win at the Wankhede Stadium here on Monday.

Rickelton, who had struck a record double hundred for South Africa recently, capitalised on the conditions that had eased out to storm to his maiden IPL 50 off 33 balls as Mumbai Indians reached 121/2 in 12.5 overs after bundling KKR for 116 in 16.2 overs.

Rickelton scored 62 not out off 41 balls, hitting four boundaries and five maximums, raising 46 runs for the opening wicket with Rohit Sharma (13) and 45 with Will Jacks (16) for the second wicket. Suryakumar Yadav, who sealed victory with a six, remained unbeaten on 27 off nine balls as Mumbai romped to victory with a lot to spare.

The day belonged to Ashwani Kumar, who claimed the best figures by an Indian bowler on IPL debut to set up Mumbai Indians for victory.

Ashwani Kumar made a dream debut, claiming a four-fer in his first match as Mumbai Indians capitalised on the assistance offered by the Wankhede pitch as they bundled out defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders for 116 in Match 12 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 here on Monday.

Ashwani (4-24) bowled to a plan, banging it short to extract extra bounce from the lively wicket and reaped the rewards as he became the first Indian bowler to claim four wickets on IPL debut. His 4-24 is the best figures by an Indian bowler on debut in IPL.

The 23-year-old left-arm seamer from Jhanjeri, a town near Mohali in Punjab, claimed Ajinkya Rahane's wicket off his first ball and then added the scalps of Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey and Andre Russell as he bagged his first-ever four-wicket haul.

Deepak Chahar claimed 2-19 while Trent Boult, Hardik Pandya, Vignesh Puthur and Mitchell Santner took a wicket each as the defending champions failed to last their quota of 20 overs and barely crawled into three figures.

Earlier, Sunil Narine's return to the playing XI was extremely short-lived as Trent Boult uprooted his middle-stump on the fourth ball of the match while Quinton de Kock (1) fell to Chahar off the first ball of the second over.

Ashwani was into the act soon after, bagging a wicket in the ball of his debut match as Ajinkya Rahane (11), who despatched Chahar the boundary over the non-striker's head and then pulled a short one from Boult over long-on for the first six of the match, skied one to Tilak Varma at deep backward point. KKR were down to 25/3.

It became worse soon as Venkatesh Iyer edged behind to Ryan Rickelton one from Chahar, and Hardik Pandya sent back Angkrish Raghuvanshi after a 16-ball stay that fetched him 26 runs.

Rinku, the dasher from Uttar Pradesh, failed to capitalise on the chance of building an innings as he fell for 17, going after a delivery banged short, becoming Ashwani's second wicket -- the left-arm seamer having the last laugh after being hit for a boundary.

Ashwani had his third wicket soon as Impact Substitute Manish Pandey (19), who hammered Puthur for a six, played on to his stumps after hitting a boundary off the left-arm pacer.

The 23-year-old from Punjab, who also dropped two catches, completed his four-fer by setting up Andre Russell with two short ones, followed by a fullish delivery, the West Indian falling prey to the superb tactics by the young bowler, and KKR slumped to 88/8. Ramandeep Singh and Harshit Rana struck a couple of sixes as the defending champions reached 100 before getting all out for 116, which the Mumbai Indians chased easily.

19:11 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: Playing XIs

Kolkata Knight Riders: Quinton de Kock(w), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Spencer Johnson, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy

Mumbai Indians: Ryan Rickelton, Will Jacks(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Ashwani Kumar, Vignesh Puthur

19:05 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'We wanted to bowl first as well but I was confused looking at the wicket' - Rahane

We wanted to bowl first as well but I was confused looking at the wicket, generally Wankede is a good batting surface so I feel it's a good toss to lose. There's a little breeze going on, no dew factor going on. We are playing good cricket, every games gives a good opportunity to play good cricket. Lovely ground, we are looking to play cricket. Sunil comes in in place of Mooen.

- Ajinkya Rahane, KKR captain

19:03 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'We gonna bowl first, looks like a good track' - Hardik Pandya

We gonna bowl first, looks like a good track.

Knowing Wankhede, dew may or may not come. There might be some early swing, it plays well so we thought chasing is a good option. We want to get into good rhythm and kickstart. Overall, we want to play better cricket, we need to stay calm. Will comes back and we have a debutant Ashwini.

- Hardik Pandya - Mumbai Indians skipper

19:01 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: TOSS!

TOSS!

Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya wins the toss, opts to field against Kolkata Knight Riders

18:58 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: PITCH REPORT!

We have an absolute belter. We have a beautiful covering of grass and underneath it's really hard, it means it's a batter's paradise. I'm looking forward to the spin twins, Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine. The better bowlers always find a way to defend on these kind of surfaces. But, the faster and faster you bowl, the farther you will travel. You are playing dead-center of the ground and you have options to play with. A bouncer is a good option to suprise batters and to not allow them to line you up.

- BY Eoin Morgan and Nick Knight.

18:09 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'I learned a lot from Sunil Narine' - Kuldeep Yadav

India wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav is indebted to West Indies stalwart Sunil Narine for instilling in him the importance of bowling length balls, which, he says, has helped him become a more potent tweaker. Kuldeep and Narine were team-mates at Kolkata Knight Riders for a long time, following which the Indian spinner made a switch to Delhi Capitals, while the West Indian all-rounder continues to be with the defending champions for more than 10 years.

"As a bowler, you must aim to dominate. Players like Jasprit Bumrah and Sunil Narine have done that consistently. I learned a lot from Sunil Narine when I was with KKR. He was ahead of his time. He always emphasised the importance of bowling length," Kuldeep, who was part of India's Champions Trophy-winning squad recently, told JioHotstar.

"Back then, I believed I could rely solely on my skills, but now I realise he was absolutely right. Since returning from injury, I've focused a lot on my length, and that has made a significant difference," said Kuldeep, who played a crucial role in DC's nerve-wracking one-wicket win against Lucknow Super Giants, grabbing two wickets for 20 runs in Visakhapatnam.

The 30-year-old left-arm spinner added that it's extremely difficult to maintain a good economy rate in the IPL given the presence of top-notch power hitters in the tournament.

"The IPL is very tough for bowlers - it's highly competitive. You may pick up wickets, but you can't always expect to maintain an economy of just 6 or 7 runs per over. It's a challenging format with high-quality players," he said.

After playing as a support bowler to Narine, Kuldeep is now partnering Axar Patel as the duo aim to guide DC to their maiden IPL title.

The wrist spinner says his bonding with Axar is at a different level.

"Axar and I have been playing together since our U-17 days, so our understanding is very smooth. We have a very clear-cut communication style. I remember during the U-19 World Cup in 2012, when we won in Australia under Unmukt Chand's captaincy, we were both in standby. We've been together since then, which speaks volumes about our bond.

"Our bowling partnership has always been simple. I have always been an attacking bowler, while Axar provides control, which creates pressure on the batsmen.

"That pressure often converts into wickets - either for him, for me, or for someone else bowling at the time. The pressure Axar builds in the middle overs is crucial, and our communication is seamless when discussing plans," he added.

17:01 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'Rohit is at a stage in his career where he has to push himself every morning'

Former India player Sanjay Manjrekar has painted a grim picture of Rohit Sharma's current form, saying "things are slipping away" from the senior batter who has reached a point in his career where he has to "push himself every morning". The Mumbai Indians star has flopped in the first two matches of the Indian Premier League, getting out for eight in the team's latest game against Gujarat Titans on Saturday.

"Rohit Sharma is clearly going through a phase. He's not the Rohit Sharma of, say, three to four years ago. He's at a stage in his career where he has to push himself every morning - train hard and be at his best - because things are slipping away for him. He's still relying on his natural talent and instincts," Manjrekar said on JioStar. MI lost the game to GT by 36 runs.

Analysing Mumbai Indians' performance with the bat in the last two matches, Manjrekar said, "Ryan Rickelton, being a South African, will take time to adjust to Indian pitches. Very few South African batters, barring AB de Villiers and Heinrich Klaasen, have truly flourished on Indian pitches. So, we'll have to give him time.

"Apart from that, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav, along with Robin Minz and some of the other players, form the batting line-up. However, to me, it still looks a little unconvincing. And a lot of them rely on pitches where the ball comes onto the bat nicely.

"There's pace and bounce, and even in that chase where they needed 12 or 13 runs, if it had been at Wankhede Stadium, they would have likely come very close to the target."

Manjrekar, however, remained optimistic about Mumbai Indians' campaign despite their early losses. Set a challenging target of 197, MI were stopped at 160 for six on Saturday.

"Mumbai Indians didn't look in the race when they lost two wickets for 35. In comparison, Gujarat Titans had around 129 runs for their first two wickets. After that, it seemed like Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav were trying to build a partnership.

"The challenge with building a partnership in a chase of over 190 is that the required run rate starts to suffer, and that's exactly what happened. In the end, you have to say that Gujarat Titans batted better - I thought they got maybe 15 to 20 runs over par.

"The dew never came in, which made Mumbai's job even more difficult. But despite all that, two losses are quite typical for Mumbai Indians. They still seem to be on the right track to go on and win the title," Manjrekar concluded.

16:59 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'Narine is fit, available for MI game'

KKR head coach Chandrakant Pandit confirmed that veteran all-rounder Sunil Narine has recovered from illness and is available for clash against Mumbai Indians.

"Sunil is 100 per cent fit. He has definitely recovered well and he has been practicing since yesterday. Today, he is practicing as well. So, he is absolutely fine at the moment," he said.

With Mumbai Indians losing both their contests so far in the IPL, Pandit said his side would want to put further pressure on the hosts.

"More than anything else, I would definitely think about the way our team has played the last game. Mumbai Indians have not been doing that (winning) so that is another advantage that we can put a pressure on them.

"But the game is being played in Mumbai and we have to adapt immediately to the conditions here and that is what we have been planning, (hopefully) we would be able to do that," he said.

16:59 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: 'Who will not want home advantage'

Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Chandrakant Pandit on Sunday supported the idea of teams having greater control over the nature of pitches at their home venues, saying they too "expect something to be provided" at Eden Gardens. The nature of the pitch at KKR's home venue has been in discussion ever since captain Ajinkya Rahane wished getting more support for his spinners at the Eden Gardens.

"As a coach, as a team management, we always… whatever the surface has been provided to us, we play. The control, of course, that will be under curator," Pandit told the media here on Sunday.

Pandit, who refrained from making any definite comments on the topic, said any team including KKR would like to play on pitches that support their skills.

"At this moment, my focus is definitely going to be in the next game tomorrow which we are playing," he said ahead of the clash against Mumbai Indians here.

"At the moment, I am definitely not thinking on what has to be done, what is in whose control. But, let us focus on tomorrow's game which is very crucial for us.

"I don't know what is the system in different states or different grounds where the control is over the franchise. But, at the moment, what I understand is the surface which is given to us, probably, of course, as a team management, as a coach, as a captain, we expect something to be provided. That's all," he said.

When asked if IPL teams in general should receive more favorable pitches at their home venues for seven out of 14 league matches, Pandit replied, "Who will not be happy about that? I mean, this is a simple answer."

16:58 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: KKR Eyeing Back-to-Back Wins

After bouncing back from an opening loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru with a convincing win over Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders will aim to build on that momentum.

Led by Ajinkya Rahane, KKR boasts a formidable batting lineup featuring Rinku Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, and Angkrish Raghuvanshi. However, the decision to open with Moeen Ali in the absence of Sunil Narine looked unconvincing, with Quinton de Kock still searching for a solid partner at the top.

KKR’s finishing power remains a strong suit, thanks to the presence of Rinku Singh and Andre Russell in the death overs. Their bowling attack is equally threatening, with Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora leading the pace unit alongside Australian left-armer Spencer Johnson.

However, KKR’s biggest strength lies in their spin duo of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy, who have the ability to choke opposition batters even on good surfaces. Narine, recovering from illness, trained on Saturday, signaling a potential comeback—an exciting prospect for KKR given his importance in their past IPL triumphs.

Head-to-Head and Previous Meeting

KKR will take confidence from their 24-run victory over Mumbai Indians at Wankhede last season—their first win at the venue in 12 years. With MI struggling at home in recent seasons, KKR will look to capitalize on their opponent’s vulnerabilities.

16:58 (IST) Mar 31

MI vs KKR IPL Live Score: Hello and welcome!

Hello and welcome to the Live coverage of IPL 2025 match between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders.

Mumbai Indians, known for their slow starts in the Indian Premier League, will look for a quick turnaround when they face defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at home on Monday. After suffering back-to-back defeats against Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans, MI will be eager to open their account in IPL 2025.

Despite their reputation for bouncing back to claim titles, Mumbai Indians will need better execution from their bowlers and greater consistency from their batters—especially given their lack of specialist finishers in the lower order.

Key Concerns for MI

Rohit Sharma has had an inconsistent start, registering two single-digit scores, including a duck. Meanwhile, Ryan Rickelton, playing his first IPL season, has yet to find his rhythm despite flashes of promise.

Suryakumar Yadav showed signs of form with a 48-run knock against GT, but he has yet to deliver a trademark match-winning performance. Tilak Varma remains Mumbai’s most dependable batter so far, and his partnership with Suryakumar could be crucial for MI's revival.

Squad rotations have left MI searching for the right balance, but the absence of a proven finisher—like Tim David in previous seasons—has made their lower order vulnerable.

Hardik Pandya, leading MI at Wankhede for the first time since taking over from Rohit Sharma, will be keen to impress, especially after facing a hostile reception from fans last year. Meanwhile, MI’s bowling attack continues to miss Jasprit Bumrah, with Deepak Chahar now sharing pace responsibilities alongside Trent Boult and Reece Topley.

MI vs KKR highlights, IPL 2025: Mumbai Indians’ rising star Ashwani Kumar announced his arrival in style, delivering a sensational 4/24 on his IPL debut to decimate Kolkata Knight Riders' batting lineup. His heroics paved the way for Mumbai Indians' emphatic eight-wicket victory at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.

The 23-year-old left-arm pacer from Jhanjeri, near Chandigarh, carved his name into IPL history, becoming the first Indian bowler to take four wickets on debut. His remarkable spell played a crucial role in restricting KKR to a mere 116 in 16.2 overs.

Ashwani's debut heroics place him in an elite list of IPL debutants, alongside Alzarri Joseph (6/12) and Andrew Tye (5/17), reinforcing his potential as a future match-winner.

With this dominant win, Mumbai Indians not only strengthened their campaign but also introduced a promising left-arm pace sensation in Ashwani Kumar. As the tournament unfolds, all eyes will be on this young pacer, who has already made a lasting impact on the grand stage.

KKR’s innings started on a disastrous note as Sunil Narine was bowled for a duck by Trent Boult in the very first over. The collapse continued when Quinton de Kock (1) followed in the next over, caught by Ashwani off Deepak Chahar.

With KKR reeling at 2/2, skipper Ajinkya Rahane (11) attempted to stabilise the innings but fell victim to Ashwani, edging one to Tilak Varma at deep backward point. While Angkrish Raghuvanshi (26 off 16) showed some promise with fluent stroke play, he too perished, courtesy of Hardik Pandya (1/10). KKR's powerplay ended at 41/4, leaving them in a dire situation.

Ashwani continued his carnage, striking in the 10th over by dismissing Rinku Singh (17), who holed out to Naman Dhir at deep point.

Two deliveries later, the debutant bowled Manish Pandey (19) with a beauty.

KKR's last hope, Andre Russell (5), also succumbed to Ashwani’s brilliance, clean bowled as he attempted an aggressive shot.

With Ashwani leading the attack, supported by Chahar (2/19), Boult (1/23), Pandya (1/10), and Vignesh Puthur (1/10), KKR’s innings never found momentum. They were eventually bowled out for 116 in 16.2 overs, with only Raghuvanshi managing a respectable strike rate.

Chasing a modest 117, Mumbai Indians openers Rohit Sharma (13 off 12) and Ryan Rickelton (62 off 41)* provided a solid start. While Rohit fell to Andre Russell (2/32) in the sixth over, Rickelton played a sublime knock, finding gaps with ease and rotating the strike effectively.

Will Jacks (16 off 17) was Russell’s second victim, but by then, Mumbai Indians were firmly in control at 91/2 in 10.4 overs. Suryakumar Yadav (27 off 9)* finished the chase in style with a flurry of boundaries, ensuring Mumbai Indians reached 121/2 in just 12.5 overs.

Russell was the only effective bowler for KKR, taking 2/32 in 2.5 overs, while Varun Chakravarthy (0/12 in 3 overs) kept things tight but lacked support from the other bowlers.