Watch: Shah Rukh Khan, Sourav Ganguly hug each other like old buddies | KKR vs PBKS, IPL 2026

On 6 April, a reunion between Shah Rukh Khan and Sourav Ganguly grabbed attention at Eden Gardens. It was during the IPL 2026 match between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Punjab Kings.

SRK, who arrived with his daughter Suhana Khan, was seen interacting with Ganguly on the field during a rain delay. Before that, they hugged like old buddies. Harshit Rana, who is out of the tournament due to injury, was also seen with them.

KKR shared a video of the Dada-King reunion on social media. It wrote: “When the KING met the PRINCE OF BENGAL.” Within a few hours, the video has garnered nearly 1 million views and over 60,000 likes.

Ganguly is currently serving as President of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB). He was actively involved in inspecting the outfield and discussing conditions with officials.

The match, however, was heavily affected by rain and eventually abandoned. Only 3.4 overs were possible.

Both teams were awarded one point each. Punjab Kings moved to the top of the points table with five points while KKR opened their account this season.

Despite the washout, the SRK-Ganguly reunion became the biggest talking point of the evening. Thousands of fans reacted to the viral video.

Many of them took the opportunity to give suggestions on team combinations. Some had outrageous ideas like sacking Ajinkya Rahane and Venky Mysore. Others suggested that Sunil Narine should open with Finn Allen.

Many social media users requested the KKR management to rope in Sourav Ganguly as the mentor.

“Bench Green - use Seifert as another opener alongside Fin Allen. Use Rachin in the middle order, bowling advantage. Use Sarthak in themiddle order. Replace Vaibhav with Saurabh Dubey/Navdeep Saini. Replace Ramandeep with Tejasvi,” came one detailed suggestion.

Ganguly-KKR history

The relationship between Sourav Ganguly and Kolkata Knight Riders remains one of the most emotional chapters in IPL history. There were highs, conflict and eventual separation.

Ganguly was the face of KKR in 2008 as captain and icon player. He performed well individually, but the team finished 6th.

Tensions rose in 2009 when coach John Buchanan introduced a “multiple captaincy” system. It reduced Ganguly’s leadership role. The move failed badly, with KKR finishing last. Ganguly later blamed the system and the lack of freedom.

In 2010, after Buchanan’s exit, Ganguly returned as captain and scored 493 runs. However, KKR missed the playoffs again.

The biggest turning point came in the 2011 auction. Under CEO Venky Mysore, KKR decided to rebuild and did not bid for Ganguly.

This shocked fans across Kolkata, prompting protests with slogans such as “No Dada, No KKR”. Team owner Shah Rukh Khan later described it as a “divorce” needed for a fresh start.

In 2012, Ganguly returned to Eden Gardens as captain of Pune Warriors India. The crowd was divided, with many supporting him over KKR. That year, KKR won its first title under Gautam Gambhir’s captaincy.