Virat Kohli, Jitesh Sharma, Tim David and Venkatesh Iyer sang in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s first practice match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday, March 22. The batsmen divided into two teams led by Krunal Pandya and Venkatesh Iyer performed well as they participated in Sunbadris vs Hynbadris friendly before RCB2.
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The defending champions will play the opening match of the Indian Premier League 2026 season, hoping to start their title defense on a positive note. The squad members have assembled in Bengaluru and have already started preparations in full swing.
RCB released a video of their practice session on social media on Monday morning, capturing key moments from the game. Sharing his insights in the video, all-rounder Krunal Pandya said that several batsmen in the team looked superb on Sunday.
“It was a good practice game. Everyone hit well. Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled really well, Abhinandan (Singh) bowled really well, Mangesh (Yadav) bowled really well. Jitesh played really well between the bats – some of his shots were amazing. Tim David played really well. Venkatesh and Virat batted well today. Intention from Virat looks good today. Intention from Virat looks great. sign for us,” said Krunal Pandya.
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Jitesh, Rajat, Devdutt and KP in between runs, exciting cameos from Virat, Venka and TD and some promising spells to round out an exciting practice game.
Watch how it all goes pic.twitter.com/SAaT2kPNox— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) March 23, 2026
JITESH SHARMA STANDOUT IN PRACTICE RCB
Jitesh Sharma was an outstanding batsman who smashed 81 runs off just 37 balls. He is expected to take up the finisher’s role again and will be hoping for a stronger campaign with the bat this season.
Besides Jitesh, Australian Tim David (36 off 14) and Venkatesh Iyer (30 off 16) also impressed with the bat. RCB are still working on finding the right role for the Indian all-rounder who has the ability to play a dynamic role in any T20 setup.
Krunal added that one of the highlights of the day was Virat Kohli’s quickfire 29 off 12 balls where the RCB opener looked in good rhythm from the start. RCB will be hoping for another strong campaign from their talisman as they look to prove that last season’s title win was no fluke.
RCB beat Punjab Kings in a one-sided final in IPL 2025. They begin their campaign at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, playing their first two matches at home before heading out to face Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians in Guwahati and Mumbai respectively.
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Issued by:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published on:
March 23, 2026 11:20 AM IST
