Royal Challengers Bengaluru haven’t beaten Kolkata Knight Riders on home turf since 2015. Last year, KKR triumphed over RCB on both occasions.
New Delhi: The rivalry between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challenger Bengaluru is one of the most-talked-about rivalries in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and former cricketer Gautam Gambhir’s latest RCB remark rolled the eyeballs of the internet. On the eve of their high-octane IPL 2024 clash at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Friday, Gambhir named RCB as the team to beat even in his dreams.
Gambhir, who led KKR to two IPL titles and is currently a mentor with the franchise, termed RCB as underachievers despite having the biggest of names on their side over the years. In 16 seasons of IPL so far since 2008, RCB weren’t able to put their hands on the trophy. The only times they came close to winning the title were in 2009, 2011 and 2016 when they finished second best.
“One team which I wanted to beat every time, probably even in my dreams, was RCB. Probably the second most high-profile team, flamboyant team with the owner and with the squad – Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers. Honestly, not won anything, still thought that they won everything, that kind of attitude and I can’t take that,” Gambhir told Star Sports.
.@GautamGambhir thinks @RCBTweets have massively underachieved in the past despite having @imVkohli, @henrygayle and @ABdeVilliers17 😬
Gambhir dreams of getting back on the field and beat Kohli & team yet again! 😱
Don’t miss Gambhir’s Kolkata take on Virat’s Bangalore! 💥… pic.twitter.com/Vvx6YNmqNS
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) March 29, 2024
KKR’s rivalry started with the first IPL game when Brendon McCullum smashed an unbeaten 158 in 2008. Thereafter there were several interesting matches where KKR dominated RCB and are 18-14 ahead of their rivals on head-to-head count.
At the Chinnaswamy Stadium, KKR also hold edge over RCB, winning all the last five games by big margins from 2016 to 2023. Last year, Gambhir mentored Lucknow Super Giants before joining hands with head coach Chandrakant Pandit at KKR.
Gambhir also recalled the significant games KKR won against RCB over the years. “The three best wins that KKR have ever had in IPL have all been against RCB. The first time was the very first game of the IPL, Brendon McCullum against RCB, then 49 all out against RCB, and six overs 100, probably the only time in IPL where in the first six overs, 100 runs were scored. One thing I would love to have is again go on the cricket field and beat RCB,” Gambhir added.