IPL 2025: KKR vs RCB opening match to be cancelled? Here's why

Kolkata Weather, IPL 2025: Ajinkya Rahane-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), defending champions, is all set to knock horns with Rajat Patidar-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the opening match of Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. However, the opening day of the 18th season of IPL could be affected by bad weather.

The IPL 2025 is set to begin with an opening ceremony on Friday, March 22, followed by the first match between defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Eden Gardens. However, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for some parts of West Bengal from March 20 to March 22.

The Regional Meteorological Centre Kolkata has predicted thunderstorms with lightning and strong gusty surface winds are very likely to occur in some districts of West Bengal during March 20- March 22, 2025.

The IMD says that “light or moderate" rainfall is likely over West Bengal from March 19 to 22.

“A trough runs from central Odisha to Vidarbha, and there is wind confluence over east and adjoining central India due to the above trough and anticyclonic circulation over the Bay of Bengal at lower tropospheric levels," read a statement from IMD.

Accuweather predicts a 74% chance of rain in Kolkata on Saturday, with cloud cover likely to be at 97%. The chance of rainfall increases to 90% in the evening. This means the Eden Gardens is likely to receive plenty of showers on the opening day of the 18th edition of the IPL. It remains uncertain whether the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will be able to play enough overs to produce a result.

Meanwhile, one match at the Eden Gardens has been rescheduled. The Knight Riders' home game against Lucknow Super Giants on April 6 is set to be shifted to Guwahati. The decision was made due to the police's inability to provide security for the IPL contest due to 'Ram Navami' celebrations in the city on that day, according to CAB president Snehasish Ganguly.

However, it will be interesting to see that under captainship of  Ajinkya Rahane, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will begin their title defense with the hopes of retaining the trophy. The three-time champions won their third IPL title last year under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer, who has since joined the Punjab Kings.