NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli was not included in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s starting XI against Lucknow Super Giants in Bengaluru but was named among the Impact Players, meaning he could still come into bat if needed. His absence from the start comes after he picked up an ankle injury in RCB’s previous match against Mumbai Indians, where they secured an 18-run win. Kohli and Philip Salt have been a steady opening pair so his limited role slightly affects the balance of the team.RCB captain Rajat Patidar opted to bowl first and believed the pitch conditions would help early on. “We’ll mix first. It’s pretty obvious. I can see a pretty good surface,” Patidar said at the toss.
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Bombay Sport Exchange: Munaf Patel on Gautam Gambhir, Virat vs Bumrah and Indian bowling.“So we jump first and take advantage of the first innings and keep the pressure on. Not much (on the field). The previous game had a lot of grass. But I think this wicket, I think there’s no grass. So it’s going to be a good track. But yeah, we’ll see.”On the other hand, LSG captain Rishabh Pant sounded confident despite his team’s inconsistent run so far. “We are pretty confident, (it is) a good batting. No matter if we bat first or second, we have to do well,” he added. “We don’t want too much introspection; trust your team and do well. There are many leaders in the group so go out and perform well. Same team for us.”RCB made one change bringing in Josh Hazlewood. Patidar said: “I think everyone is doing pretty well for the team… Just one change. Josh Hazlewood comes in for Duffy.”With Kohli still available as an Impact Player despite his recent injury and both teams eager to climb the table, the match remains even.Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav.Lucknow Super Giants Impact Subs: Manimaran Siddharth, George Linde, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh, Mayank YadavRoyal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam DarRoyal Challengers Bengaluru Impact Subs: Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Jordan Cox, Kanishk Chouhan, Mangesh Yadav
