Desperate Knights seek revival against resurgent Titans:Can Rinku Singh recreate Ahmedabad heroics and break Kolkata’s losing streak?

Gujarat Titans (GT) are set to lock horns with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 25th match of the IPL 2026 on Friday, 17 April. Both teams will face each other twice this season and will look to put on a show at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. The match starts at 7:30 PM IST with the toss scheduled for 7:00 PM. With four consecutive losses, Kolkata stand at the bottom of the points table with one point, as rain played spoilsport against Punjab at Eden Gardens. Meanwhile, on the other hand, Gujarat are standing at sixth spot in the standings with four points and two victories in this tournament so far this year. Last year, in 2025, GT and KKR faced each other only for a single game. Captain, Shubman Gill’s 90-run knock dominated Kolkata for a 39-run victory, defending 199 runs in 20 overs. Ajinkya Rahane was the only one who could score a half-century for the Knights. Desperate Knight Riders aim to taste their first win of this season, defeating the Titans in Ahmedabad. Not many would forget how Rinku Singh unleashed carnage in Ahmedabad three years ago. Facing Yash Dayal with 29 runs needed in the last over, Rinku whacked five sixes to give KKR an unlikely win from the jaws of defeat. Now, KKR would want that version of the big-hitter back and in full flow as they seek to win their first point this season. GT vs KKR, IPL 2026, Match Details Match info: Gujarat Titans vs Kolkata Knight Riders, match 25 Date Time: 17 April, 2026, 7:30 PM IST (Toss at 7:00 PM) Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad How to watch: JioHotstar Star Sports How to follow: Follow the live coverage on the Bhaskar English App GT vs KKR, head-to-head record Gujarat and Kolkata have met five times in the IPL so far. GT hold a slight edge with three wins, while KKR have won once, and one match ended with no result. GT’s scores in this fixture range from 198 to 204, while KKR have posted between 148 and 207, making their contests closely fought and exciting. Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Vaibhav Arora key for KKR’ hopes Knight Riders have had a horrible campaign so far, Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Vaibhav Arora have stood out as their best players. The Indian youngster has struck 182 runs in five matches at a strike rate of 155.55. Vaibhav Arora is the leading wicket-taker with 6 wickets in five matches. He has conceded runs with an economy of 12.00. Hereon, for Kolkata, every match is crucial for the franchise as they will be desperate to bdefeat Gujarat in Ahmedabad. Jos Buttler, Prasidh Krishna shining lights for GT so far The Gujarat Titans are in safe zone as of now with four points and standing at the sixth spot. Jos Buttler has scored 176 runs in four matches with a strike rate of 158.55. However, Prasidh Krishna bagged 10 wickets in four matches and conceded runs with an economy of 9.50. Sunil Narine has had slight edge against Jos Buttler Veteran off-spinner Sunil Narine has had the upper hand over Jos Buttler as he had deceived the English wicket-keeper batter three times in this marquee tournament. Buttler had scored 95 runs, facing 95 balls with a strike rate of 107.95. Meanwhile, Narine had conceded runs with an economy of 6.47 against Buttler. Rinku Singh returns to Ahmedabad, Rashid boast economical spells Finisher Rinku Singh returns to Ahmedabad, where he dominated Gujarat with consecutive five sixes against Yash Dayal. He had scored 23 runs, facing 18 balls with a strike rate of 127.77. However, Rashid couldn’t deceive Rinku even for a single time in the past. He had conceded runs with an economy of 7.66. Narendra Modi Stadium pitch report The Narendra Modi Stadium usually provides a batting-friendly pitch, helping players score easily in the early stages. As the match goes on, the surface slows down, giving bowlers more help. Despite this, set batters can still take advantage of the conditions and put up strong totals. In such conditions, team winning the toss should elect to bat first. Ahmedabad weather report On Friday evening, the weather is expected to be clear for this match and there is no forecast of rain. The temperature for this match will hover between 30-32 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere is expected to be 20% humid in Ahmedabad.