Defending champion RCB will play its first match in IPL against SRH in Bengaluru on Saturday. RCB, captained by Rajat Patidar, will face the aggressive batting of SRH, which had scored 287 runs here last time.
Bengaluru: The bugle of the new season of IPL has been sounded. This time defending champion Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will play the first match of the tournament against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Saturday. This match will be held at RCB’s home ground Chinnaswamy Stadium, where the team would like to start its campaign with a win.
RCB is looking very strong under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar, as the team has retained most of its old players. However, the absence of injured Josh Hazlewood could be a blow to the team. Former captain Virat Kohli is in great form this time too and is ready to open with Phil Salt. There are players like Venkatesh Iyer, Rajat, Jitesh and Krunal Pandya in the middle order. At the same time, T20 specialists like Tim David and Romario Shepherd strengthen the team. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyyash Sharma and young fast bowler Mangesh Yadav are present in the bowling department.
On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad team is known for its aggressive play. In 2024, at the same ground, SRH had made a huge score of 287 runs for 3 wickets against RCB. This time too a high-scoring match is expected. SRH’s team includes big names like Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, Liam Livingstone and Nitish Kumar.
How will RCB team be? This is the real catch
RCB’s playing 11 is almost certain, but there is a big question regarding foreign players. If Phil Salt opens, then Tim David and Romario Shepherd will play as all-rounders. In such a situation, Jacob Duffy may get a chance in place of Josh Hazlewood. But this combination leaves no room for young star Jacob Bethel. If the team management wants to play Bethel, then they will either have to leave Salt out or give a chance to an Indian fast bowler in place of Duffy in the initial matches.
Probable playing 11
RCB: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Rajat Patidar (captain), Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Suyash Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, Mangesh Yadav.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (captain), Nitish Kumar, Heinrich Klaasen, Liam Livingstone, Salil Arora, Harsh Dubey, Shivang Sharma, Tom Carse, Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat.
Head-to-head record
Total matches: 25
RCB won: 11
Sunrisers won: 13
The match will start at 7:30 pm. It will be telecast live on Star Sports and Hotstar.