IPL 2026: Why RCB skipper Rajat Patidar not playing against Punjab Kings? – EXPLAINED

Rajat Patidar (BCCI/IPL photo)

NEW DELHI: Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru entered the crucial IPL 2026 clash against Punjab Kings at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala without regular skipper Rajat Patidar. In Patidar’s absence, wicket-keeper batsman Jitesh Sharma led the way.RCB are the defending IPL champions as they beat Punjab Kings in the 2025 final to win the title. Jitesh walked into the toss as alternate captain after Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to field first.“We will bowl. I don’t follow the stats, we can clearly see how the matches are going. If we bat and bowl well, the toss doesn’t matter. I seriously had no idea it was my 100th match as captain, but I feel great. It feels like a great opportunity to win my 100th match (as captain),” Iyss said.“The bowling has been fantastic but there are moments of pressure when you need to perform and so you can’t change the past nor can you predict the future. The beauty is staying in the moment and seeing the moment and enjoying the pressure. Two changes for us (Harpreet) Brar and Lockie (Ferguson) are coming in,” he added.Meanwhile, Jitesh gave a major update on Patidar’s fitness status.“We would like to bat first but the wicket is good and should play well in 40 overs. Rajat is doing fantastic and we should see him in Hyderabad. Every game is important, this win can change a lot for us and other teams. Suyash will replace Rajat and Romario will replace Duffy,” said Jitesh.

Why is Rajat Patidar not playing against PBKS?

According to sources, Patidar did not travel with the team to Dharamsala and also missed both the training sessions ahead of the RCB-PBKS clash.Jitesh confirmed during the toss that the RCB skipper is recovering well and could return for the team’s next match.“Rajat is doing fantastic and we should see him in Hyderabad,” said Jitesh.RCB will face Sunrisers Hyderabad in their last match of the league stage on May 22.Patidar has enjoyed an outstanding IPL 2026 season so far, scoring 326 runs in 10 innings at a staggering strike rate of 195, including three half-centuries.Attention will now shift to Jitesh who has struggled with the bat this season. The keeper-batsman managed only 90 runs in the tournament so far.RCB are currently at the top of the IPL 2026 points table with 16 points from 12 matches. They have won eight games and lost four while maintaining a healthy net rate of +1.053.They have played 12 games, won 8 and lost 4 and have 16 points with a solid net rate of +1.053. Playing XI:Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Venkatesh Iyer, Jitesh Sharma (w/c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma.Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh (w), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Suryansh Shedge, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harpreet Brar, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.Here are the Impact substitutes for both teams:Royal Challengers Bengaluru Impact Subs: Rasikh Salam Dar, Jordan Cox, Abhinandan Singh, Swapnil Singh, Kanishk ChouhanPunjab Kings Impact Subs: Marcus Stoinis, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Musheer Khan, Praveen Dubey