Kolkata Knight Riders had a tough start to their IPL 2026 season, losing their first two matches and things did not improve at the start of their match against Punjab Kings at the Eden Gardens on Monday.After opting to bat first, KKR lost Finn Allen and Cameron Green early and reached 25 for 2 in 3.4 overs. Captain Ajinkya Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi were at the crease when the rain stopped play.
Watch
Devdutt Padikkal press conference: Chinnaswamy’s pitch, Tim David’s strength and RCB’s batting strategy KKR, who were looking for their first win of the season, were rattled early as Xavier Bartlett struck twice in the space of three balls.The Aussie pacer showed fine control over swing and seam to remove KKR’s two star overseas recruits Finn Allen (6) and Cameron Green (4), who were promoted to No.3.The decision to bat first in cloudy conditions was questioned by former players Kevin Pietersen, Anil Kumble, Saba Karim and Ravichandran Ashwin.During the rain break, cameras showed KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan in a discussion with team CEO Venky Mysore. The interview looked serious, Mysore was listening while Shah Rukh Khan was talking and using hand gestures.It is not known what the discussion was about. Shah Rukh Khan attended his first match of KKR in IPL 2026. He was present at the venue with his manager Pooja Dadlani and daughter Suhana Khan who was seen watching nearby.“Looks like they are having a similar conversation. Badshah of Bollywood, owner of KKR. Intense conversation with KKR CEO Venky Mysore,” the anchor said during a rain break.For this match, KKR made changes to their playing eleven, bringing in Rovman Powell and Navdeep Saini as Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy were unavailable.Punjab Kings went with the same team from their previous match.
