IPL 2025: Kamindu Mendis makes debut as Hyderabad opt to field first against Kolkata

Kolkata, April 3 (IANS) Sunrisers Hyderabad won the toss and elected to field first against Kolkata Knight Riders in Match 15 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Eden Gardens here on Thursday. Hosts Kolkata Knight Riders have made one change in their playing XI with Moeen Ali coming in for Australian pacer Spencer Johnson, whereas visitors Sunrisers Hyderabad also made a few changes with Kamindu Mendis making his IPL debut in place of Abhinav Manohar. Simarjeet Singh replaces Travis Head.

Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins said, "We are going to have a bowl first. It looks like a pretty good wicket. I'm terrible at reading wickets. Have a crack with the ball. We have played in the final. They played really well last year.

"Little bit of change for both sides. We have spoken about it. We are our best when we are aggressive. Most of those wickets have come with reckless batting. Not think too much about it. Keep moving forward. (On Aniket Verma) He's been amazing. That youthfulness. Who's bowling doesn't faze him? He's taking on nicely. You get a feel of how the game is going, and we are clear of who we want to be our impact subs," he said.

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane said, "Looks good. I am happy with the pitch. Even we were looking to bowl first on this wicket. I hope it will suit our spinners. While playing at home, you should get what you want. I am happy with the pitch. We need to assess the conditions as quickly as we can.

"This format is about playing with freedom. Don't want to think too much. We wanted to be ready for the game. Everyone has assessed their game and are ready. Moeen Ali comes in for Spencer Johnson. Whatever you discuss in the team meetings, at the end of the day, you have to come here, assess the conditions, and play accordingly."

Playing XIs:

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Aniket Verma, Kamindu Mendis, Pat Cummins (c), Simarjeet Singh, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Shami, Zeeshan Ansari

Impact subs: Travis Head, Abhinav Manohar, Wiaan Mulder, Rahul Chahar, Jaydev Unadkat

Kolkata Knight Riders: Quinton de Kock (wk), Venkatesh Iyer (vc), Ajinkya Rahane (c), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy

Impact subs: Luvnith Sujith Sisodia, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora

--IANS

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