Thanks to the rain-abandoned match, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will at best achieve 14 points, which would fail to take them through. Reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have been eliminated from the race for the playoffs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 following the abandonment of their match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by rain.
No ball was bowled in the first match after the resumption of IPL 2025, as continual and heavy rain showers covered the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium all through Saturday night. So, both RCB and KKR earn one point apiece. This indicates that KKR can have a maximum of 14 points, which is insufficient to make them eligible for a playoff place.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru, on the other hand, move closer to a playoff position. The lack of results propels RCB to 17 points and provisionally at the top of the IPL 2025 standings. But a mathematical miracle may still relegate them. Should RCB lose both their remaining games, DC win two games, PBKS win one and MI win both, then three teams would be on 17 points, and qualification would be determined by net-run-rate.
KKR has had a disappointing campaign. Having romped to a convincing title victory in 2024, the purple brigade lost three key cogs during the mega auction, in the shape of captain Shreyas Iyer, pacer Mitchell Starc and opener Phil Salt. KKR have struggled with consistency all season.
They lost five of their initial eight matches with new captain Ajinkya Rahane at the helm. An abandoned home match against Punjab Kings hit KKR hard earlier in the season, and now another abandoned match has seen them get eliminated. In the meantime, Gujarat Titans and Punjab Kings are one win away from earning qualification into the playoffs, while Mumbai Indians require two victories to surely advance.
