Shah Rukh Khan, co-owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), praised Ajinkya Rahane and his team after they defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by 80 runs in their IPL 2025 encounter at Eden Gardens on Thursday.

Pat Cummins had won the toss and chosen to bowl first at Eden Gardens. Ajinkya Rahane’s 38 and half centuries by Angkrish Raghuvanshi (50) and Venkatesh Iyer (60), along with Rinku Singh’s 32*, took KKR to 200/6 in 20 overs.

In response, Vaibhav Arora and Harshit Rana demolished the famed SRH top order—Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, and Ishan Kishan—for single-digit scores. Heinrich Klaasen (33) and Kamindu Mendis (27) took SRH to 120 runs, as they lost by 80 runs in the end. Vaibhav Arora and Varun Chakaravarthy took 3 wickets each for the KKR side.

Venky Mysore, KKR CEO, read the message of the boss, Shah Rukh Khan, in the locker room after the game.

"The boss man has sent a long message. He has instructed me to read it out. So, I am going to try with his accent (laughs). No, I am just going to read it. So, he says, Wow! I guess the secret to gameplay like this is that I should come on the screen during team meetings before the match. Then he says, Play like the champions we are,” Mysore said in a video shared by KKR.

Shah Rukh Khan praised the efforts of the batters like Iyer, Raghuvanshi, Rahane, and Rinku.

"Awesome, everyone. Well done, Angkrish (Raghuvanshi). Congratulations. You are sublime. Ajinkya (Rahane) was fantastic. Captain's innings and game strategy. And Venkatesh (Iyer), don't think too far ahead. So, just the time on the crease. That's where you belong. And Rinku (Singh), I am so happy to see you smile. You are a champ," he said.

Vaibhav Arora (3/29) rocked the top order, while Varun Chakaravarthy (3/22) mopped up the tail.

"Bowlers, so well done. Sunil (Narine) and Varun (Chakravarthy), it's magical to see you guys bowl together. And we are fortunate to have two of the best in the business. Harshit (Rana), nice catch, bro, and great bowling. And Vaibhav, you were a star today. Played to a plan and stuck to it.

Congratulations Andre (Russell), Moeen (Ali) bhai, and Ramandeep (Singh). It was such a united effort, and Anukul (Roy), good catch, son. He is not leaving out anything. One learning from this match mainly. Listen to what Quinny (Quinton de Kock) says. All the best. Wish I was there to party with you all. I will join you soon. Love you all,” Shah Rukh’s message read.