IPL 2013- Delhi Capitals (DC) v Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
IPL 2013 season opener saw Delhi Capitals (DC), then Delhi Daredevils taking on defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) led by Gautam Gambhir in Eden Gardens on April 3, 2013.
It was again a low-scoring encounter as Delhi batting first after losing the toss could muster just 128 runs with captain Mahela Jayawardena making 66 and David Warner making 21. Sunil Narine announced himself in style, picking 4/13 for KKR.
"One of those days when you can't do anything wrong": Gayle recalls his epic 175* in IPL 2013
In reply, Gambhir’s 41 and contributions from Jacques Kallis and Manoj Tiwary were enough for KKR to win the match by 6 wickets and 10 balls to spare. Shahbaz Nadeem picked 2/22 to give KKR a light scare.
IPL 2014- Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) v Mumbai Indians (MI)
The defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) took on Kolkata Knight Riders in the season opener of IPL 2014 which was played in Abu Dhabi, as general elections in India led to the first half of the IPL 2014 being played in UAE.
Gautam Gambhir won the toss and chose to bat first. Manish Pandey’s 64 and Jacques Kallis’s 72 took KKR to 163/5. Lasith Malinga starred for MI on 4/23.
"I wanted to make it through and not give up," Suresh Raina relives his 25-ball 87 in IPL 2014
This was MI’s first season without Sachin Tendulkar, who retired from the game after they won the IPL in 2013. Ambati Rayudu fought valiantly scoring 48, while Aditya Tare and Rohit Sharma made valuable contributions. But they fell 41 runs short, finishing on 122/7 as KKR’s Sunil Narine starred with 4/20.
IPL 2015- Mumbai Indians (MI) v Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
The IPL 2015 saw the now two-time IPL champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) taking on Mumbai Indians (MI) in Eden Gardens. This was an exciting match that saw MI batting first after losing the toss and Rohit Sharma showing his class on a difficult pitch.
Sharma made 98* with 12 fours and 4 sixes when the next best score was Corey Anderson’s 55*, as the duo added 131 runs for the 4th wicket. Morne Morkel picked 2/18 in his 4 overs and KKR kept MI to 168/3.
WATCH - Harbhajan Singh shares a video of his three consecutive sixes against KXIP in IPL 2015
The reply saw Gautam Gambhir scoring 57 and Manish Pandey and Suryakumar Yadav scoring 40s each, as KKR reached the target with 7 wickets in hand and 9 balls remaining. Suryakumar hit 5 sixes in his 46* showing what was to come in following IPLs.
