"At home, you should…": Ajinkya Rahane drops bombshell on Eden pitch controversy at toss

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Ajinkya Rahane dropped a colossal statement on the pitch amid the Eden Gardens curator controversy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.

Kolkata Knight Riders are currently taking on the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 15th match of the Indian Premier League 2025 on Thursday, April 3.

Also Read: Watch: 'Shocked' Sunil Narine refuses to walk back despite clear dismissal off Mohammed Shami in IPL 2025

I'm really happy with the pitch - Ajinkya Rahane

After losing the toss and being invited to bat first by SRH, KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane was asked by the former English cricketer Nick Knight if he was happy with the pitch amid all the controversy.

Rahane looked quite surprised by the question asked by the presenter, and he stopped briefly before smiling and saying that he was 'really happy.' He bluntly added that a home team should always get whatever pitch they demand. Ajinkya Rahane said:

"Looks good, I'm really happy with the pitch, we were also bowling first. It will suit our spinners, at home, you should get what you want, but we'll need to assess the situation quickly with the bat," he said after KKR were put to bat first at home.

What is the Eden Gardens pitch row?

After Kolkata Knight Riders' defeat in the Indian Premier League 2025 opener against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the team management was unhappy with Eden Gardens curator Sujan Mukherjee refusing to provide a pitch that would aid their spinners.

There was a war of words between the two parties as Mukherjee fired back by saying that the BCCI guidelines state that IPL teams and players should not have a say in pitch preparations.

However, many former cricketers and experts advised KKR to switch their home ground if they were not getting the pitch they demanded at home.

Following this, Mukherjee said that he was open to having a discussion with the KKR head coach Chandrakant Pandit and skipper Ajinkya Rahane, before curating the pitch.

The talks between the two parties seemed to have materialized as a spin-friendly track was on the offer and Kolkata Knight Riders named 3 spinners in their playing XI - Moeen Ali, Sunil Narine, and Varun Chakravarthy - against SRH.

Sunrisers Hyderabad backed to win the match against Kolkata Knight Riders

Speaking on ESPNcricinfo ahead of the KKR vs SRH clash, Aakash Chopra picked the Sunrisers Hyderabad as the favorites to win the match. He said:

"I don't think it will be easy to choose a favourite this year. It is going to be the most unpredictable IPL. But still, For the sake of it, I am going with Sunrisers Hyderabad. We should get (high scoring match) because the curators are not agreeing with KKR. There is a match in Eden Gardens.

"They are asking for a turner but they won't get it, they will get a flat pitch, it means a lot of runs. Because since the rule of the impact player has come, Eden Gardens is one of those grounds where the scoring rate has gone north. So I don't think there will be any change in it."

Meanwhile, Sanjay Bangar also backed Sunrisers Hyderabad to win the match, saying that they have a good fast-bowling unit. He elaborated:

"Even I will go with SRH. Because SRH is a settled team. And even after two consecutive failures, they will play in the same way which is still fine for this format. Because of this, I still feel that SRH, their fast bowling is very good. Harshal Patel is there, who can bowl very well at death. There is Shami. Pat Cummins is a very intelligent captain. He is an intelligent bowler. So overall, good bowling lineup. There is an option to play two wrist spinners. If Simarjit is not allowed, Zeeshan can play."