IPL 2025: Sourav Ganguly Says “It’s Too Early To Pick Title Contenders”

March 22, 2025: Former Indian cricketer and ex-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly recently shared his thoughts on the competitive nature of the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL), emphasizing that it is still too early to predict which teams are likely to contend for the title. Ganguly’s comments come ahead of the IPL 2025 season, which is set to begin on March 22 with the opening match between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the iconic Eden Gardens.

The 2025 IPL season marks a significant change in leadership for both KKR and RCB. Ajinkya Rahane will be taking over as KKR’s captain, while Rajat Patidar will lead RCB. Notably, RCB has struggled in recent encounters with KKR, failing to secure a victory in their last four matchups.

When asked about the title race for IPL 2025, Ganguly, who was part of the IPL during its early years from 2008 to 2012, remarked, “It is too early to say anything right now. The tournament is too long and competitive. All teams are balanced.” His statement reflects the unpredictable nature of the IPL, where any team can rise to the occasion and prove to be a contender.

Ganguly himself was part of the IPL in its inaugural years, playing for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Pune Warriors India (PWI). Over the course of his IPL career, Ganguly accumulated a total of 1,349 runs, including seven half-centuries, in 59 matches.

With the new season just around the corner, both KKR and RCB will look to establish their dominance early on. RCB, in particular, will be hoping to break their losing streak against KKR, which has been a consistent obstacle for them in recent seasons.

As the season progresses, all eyes will be on how the squads, captains, and star players perform in this action-packed edition of the IPL.

Squads:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB):
Virat Kohli, Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (w), Liam Livingstone, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal, Swapnil Singh, Lungi Ngidi, Romario Shepherd, Manoj Bhandage, Rasikh Dar Salam, Nuwan Thushara, Jacob Bethell, Suyash Sharma, Mohit Rathee, Swastik Chikara, Abhinandan Singh

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR):
Quinton de Kock (w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Spencer Johnson, Vaibhav Arora, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Manish Pandey, Moeen Ali, Anrich Nortje, Rovman Powell, Anukul Roy, Mayank Markande, Chetan Sakariya, Luvnith Sisodia.