The toss for Match 6 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 took place, bringing bad news for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), who are playing their second game against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati.
It was announced that top-order batter and mystery spinner Sunil Narine would not be playing in this match〞the same player who scored a century against RR in the previous season.
At the toss, which KKR won, Ajinkya Rahane opted to bowl and said, "The wicket looks really good. If we bowl first, we'll get an idea of how this wicket plays. The dew factor is huge here. It's about staying positive〞this format is all about being fearless and playing with intent. We played very good cricket, and T20 is all about giving your best every day. We are looking forward to this game. We learned a lot from the last match. We want to stay in the moment. I don't look at the stars that much; for me, it's all about contributing."
However, what Rahane said next left fans distressed. He added, "Sunil Narine misses out; he's not well. Moeen Ali comes in."
It is worth noting that the last time Sunil Narine missed a match for KKR in the IPL was in 2021 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Chennai. Since then, he has played 58 consecutive matches for the Knight Riders
Many took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to speak about how this would be a major setback for the KKR unit as?Sunil Narine gives the team the boost at the start with the bat and is also their major wicket taker with the ball.?However, some fans were skeptical about the "not well" update regarding Narine, believing that he was "purposely rested."
One wrote, "King Sunil Narine not well and not playing today. Huge Loss for KKR!!"
Another said, "Sunil Narine missing out is a huge huge blow".
One wrote, "People who have Sunil Narine As Their Team Captain And Not Watching The Match RN"
Another said, "KKR?what are u thinking guy's when he scored 42 runs and take a wicket with good economy. How can u dropped a player like Sunil...?"
Kolkata Knight Riders?(Playing XI): Quinton de Kock(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Spencer Johnson, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy
Impact Subs:?Anrich Nortje, Manish Pandey, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Anukul Roy, Luvnith Sisodia.??
Rajasthan Royals?(Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag(c), Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
Impact Subs:?Kunal Singh Rathore, Shubham Dubey, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Kwena Maphaka.??
For more news and updates from the world of?OTT, and?celebrities?from?Bollywood?and?Hollywood, keep reading?Indiatimes Entertainment.