Who is Moeen Ali replacing in the playing XI for KKR in the IPL 2025 game vs SRH?

The 15th game of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season is set to see defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) play their second home game of the season. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), who were the runners-up last season, will be gunning for revenge after losing the finals last year. 

Both sides come into the game on the back of massive losses in the last game. KKR were trounced by Mumbai Indians by eight wickets on Monday at the Wankhede Stadium. Sunrisers Hyderabad had lost to Delhi Capitals in their previous encounter as Mitchell Starc took a fifer. 

Pat Cummins won the toss and chose to bowl first on what looked a great wicket for batting. Moeen Ali, who had played against Rajasthan Royals, came into the game for left-arm seamer Spencer Johnson, who has been disappointing with the ball so far. Moeen Ali had replaced Sunil Narine against RR, which the defending champions went on to win with ease. 

Sunrisers Hyderabad came up with a surprising move as Travis Head was named as one of the impact players. Sri Lankan star Kamindu Mendis was named in the starting XI to make his IPL debut. Simarjeet made his way back into the team while Zeeshan Ansari, who made a tremendous debut in the last game, kept his place in the side. 

Can KKR continue their purple patch against SRH?

Kolkata Knight Riders beat SRH in all three games during the IPL 2024 season. KKR beat SRH at home to start the season with a bang before defeating them in the playoffs and the finals. Ajinkya Rahane and his side began the 2025 season with a loss to Bengaluru in the first game of the season at home. 

Speaking at the toss, Pat Cummins said, “Looks like a good surface, but I'm terrible at reading it. They outplayed us in the final, but a bit of a change on both sides. We've spoken about our batting, we've been at our best while being aggressive, but we can't be reckless”

KKR skipper 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. We sat together, discussed how we can get better, but this is a long tournament, and it was one bad day”