KKR vs RCB: No Mercy! Virat Kohli and Phil Salt Pulverise Defending Champions in IPL 2025 Curtain-Raiser

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Like the proverbial 'Lambs to slaughter' Virat Kohli hammered the floodlights out of defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2025 head bangers' ball contest at the Eden Gardens on Saturday night (March 22).

Riled and ridiculed for not winning an IPL title till now, RCB were in turbo boost mode with King Kohli and Phil Salt destroying the defending champions. For Kohli to open and hammer the white ball was hell for KKR.

The IPL is in its 18th year and Kohli has been part of each edition with the same passion. His batting was magic, as he smashed sixes with the ferocity of an angry Alsatian. For those trolls who have been unkind to Kohli and his wife in recent years, this was the perfect answer, hammer with no mercy.

The 59 runs of 36 balls studded with four boundaries and three sixes lit up the Kolkata night skyline. Just before the demolition act in the middle, Kohli had jived with Shah Rukh Khan at the opening ceremony.

Well, Punjabi By Nature, dancing is no big deal for Kohli. But what he did with the bat was a criminal assault on the KKR bowlers. They were made to look club class. For the record, this was Kohli's 400th T20 match. He is getting old, said some heartless hacks.

Man, he looks younger, fitter and much more hungry. He is not retiring and he is not leaving. There are a lot of things he still has to showcase in his career. He does not need captaincy and the way he stitched two partnerships with Salt and new RCB skipper Rajat Patidar was important.

King Kohli knows, he belongs to the elite league, he knows he can keep his T20 career going in the IPL. He was born for it. To be with the same team for 18 years and still be relevant is a gift to the franchise. Imagine, each decision which RCB made on the field from toss to finish, there was this Kohli imprint. For those who think he is old or of no use, see the change, see the hunger. He is not going to ease off.

At this rate, if he is going to push his career till the ICC ODI World Cup in 2027, it's no big deal. Hang on, if he is going to bat like this, he can be brought back for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Kohli is in the zone. This ferocity is scary. If he can do this to KKR in Kolkata, then Kohli will be the man to watch this season. Early days, yes, but the burst of brilliance from Kohli has rubbed salt into the KKR wounds!