The Indian Premier League returns for its 19th season on Saturday, March 28. It’s been a slow, slightly disjointed build-up to the league, which has come on the back of India’s historic title defense at the FIFA T20 World Cup 2026. Multiple injuries, late arrivals and even the Iran-Israel war have all played their part in disrupting what is usually a smooth transition into the tournament.
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It was also to be an 84-game season where the teams played each other twice in a true round-robin format. But like the Indian Cricket Board, we’ll skip that conversation and not dwell too much on why the league continues to be a 74-match affair despite promises of 10 more games.
But before I get into cricket, it would be remiss not to remember those who they lost their lives last season when they took part in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s victory parade. It’s hard to just move on and talk about the new season without realizing that what should have been a celebration for the city ended in tragedy for several families.
Bhoomik, Sahana, Poornachandra, Prajwal, Chinmayi, Divyanshi, Shravan, Kamatchi Devi, Shivalinga, Manoj Kumar and Akshata Pai lost their lives after playing the game they loved. One can only hope that cricketers, fans and the organizers learned from the incident, and that such a tragedy never happens again in Indian sports.
Whatever the government, organizers and franchise can do for these families will never really be enough. But in an effort to ensure it doesn’t happen again, steps have been taken to refurbish the stadium and improve spectator safety. Royal Challengers Bengaluru, as a mark of respect, will also keep 11 seats vacant to remember those who have passed away.
Against this backdrop, cricket returns to Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium for the first time in almost a year, with the league opting to skip the usual opening ceremony as a mark of respect, a small but significant decision that reflects the mood in the city.
IPL 2026: RCB vs SRH
The defending champions will face 2024 finalists SunRisers Hyderabad in the opening encounter of the tournament. Matches between these two teams have tended to be high-scoring in recent years, and there’s no reason to expect anything different this time around. If anything, the conditions and team combinations point even more strongly in that direction.
RCB vs SRH is shaping up to be a battle of the batting units, given that both sides currently have two of the thinnest fast bowling line-ups in the league.
RCB will be without Josh Hazlewood and Yash Dayal, both were integral to their winning campaign last season. On the other hand, SRH are without captain Pat Cummins, with the Australian not expected to join until midway through the tournament.
In these circumstances, it wouldn’t be surprising if RCB’s Virat Kohli and Phil Salt, along with SRH’s Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, go to bed already half-stuffed, ready for the new ball. On what is expected to be a better field, these lineups have the ability to overwhelm most offenses in the contest.
Virat Kohli in limelight
A significant part of RCB’s construction has centered around Virat Kohli, and that’s understandable. With Kohli now playing only one format, the IPL becomes the primary window for fans to watch him in action.
He has noticeably increased his intensity in international cricket since the end of the 2025 season and RCB will be hoping that this translates into the IPL as well. If he is able to replicate even part of that form, it gives the side a strong foundation at the top.
RCB head coach Andy Flower spoke enthusiastically about Kohli’s preparation at the beginning of the season.
“Virat is in a really good space mentally. He’s very comfortable with himself but he’s still incredibly hungry and watching him bat in training he looks at the top of his game,” Flower said.
Virat Kohli vs Jacob Duffy during the RCB intra-squad practice match.
Kohli batted alongside Phil Salt and the two looked very good and built a solid partnership batting for about 6-7 overs. Virat Kohli in particular looked in top form, smashing around 4–6 pic.twitter.com/UFYgCk4ynG— Sonu (@Cricket_live247) March 25, 2026
Apart from Kohli, there is a lot of intrigue around how RCB structure their batting. Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, Jacob Bethell, Tim David and even Venkatesh Iyer are all in the mix. Fitting them all into one XI isn’t realistic, meaning the first few games should offer some clarity on what the think tank is trying to build this season.
Ishan Kishan’s Test of Leadership
SunRisers Hyderabad will be led by Ishan Kishan At least for the first half of the season, it was a decision that came as a bit of a surprise given his short tenure with the franchise. The management has overlooked the more established options in the team like Abhishek Sharma or Nitish Kumar Reddy and thus comes with an element of risk. Ishan Kishan will lead SRH in the early parts of IPL 2026 in the absence of Cummins. (Photo: PTI)
To be fair, Ishan led Jharkhand to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title last season, but the IPL presents a very different challenge. This opening game should offer a clearer idea of the kind of leadership and attitude he brings to the side.
RCB Team News
RCB have something of a big problem in their batting unit. Key decisions revolve around players like Jacob Bethell and Venkatesh Iyer who both bring quality but may struggle to find a place if the team sticks to last season’s structure.
If this template is followed, Phil Salt, Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal are likely to be in the top order, with Rajat Patidar (c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd and Krunal Pandya in the middle order. RCB’s batting line-up for IPL 2026 is packed with Bethell, Kohli and more. (Photo: PTI)
It’s a lineup loaded with firepower and not easy to break into.
Bowling, however, is much more straightforward – largely due to the lack of options. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is expected to lead the attack alongside debutant Jacob Duffy. One of Mangesh Yadav or Rasikh Salam should slot in as India’s second pacer, while Suyash Sharma is likely to be the sole spin specialist.
SRH team news
SunRisers Hyderabad made only one major recruitment in their batting line-up at the start of the season. Fresh from a bust with the England Cricket Board, England all-rounder Liam Livingstone will be eager to prove the world wrong this season.
Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Reddy and Heinrich Klaasen will remain the mainstays.
SRH are short on bowling attack. Having Jaydev Unadkat as the leader of your pace attack sounds ominous because it is. Unadkat, as great as he is, has not had a great record in the IPL and at the age of 34, it is not fair to expect him to peak this season. Can SRH rely on Unadkat to be their game-changing bowler this season? (Photo: Reuters)
Unadkat will have the support of Harshal Patel, Eshan Malinga, Brydon Cars and Harsh Dubey in the opening match and possibly Nitish Kumar Reddy who didn’t win much last season.
RCB vs SRH: Match Details
The opening match of IPL 2026 between RCB and SRH will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru from 19:30 IST.
The match will be telecast on Star Sports Network and available for live streaming on JioStar in India.
RCB vs SRH: Boom and Weather Report in Bengaluru
The match will be played on a central ground which has not seen competitive cricket for almost a year. This makes it a bit difficult to predict how he will behave, at least in the early stages of the game. The M Chinnaswamy Stadium is all set to welcome back top cricket. (Photo: PTI)
Chinnaswamy’s surface has traditionally favored batsmen and this is unlikely to change drastically, although both teams may take a cautious approach initially.
The weather in Bengaluru is hot and humid and dew is not expected to play a significant role in the contest.
RCB vs SRH: Predicted XI and Impact Subs
RCB Predicted XI: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Suyash Sharma, Mangesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy
Impact Sub: Venkatesh Iyer
SRH Predicted XI: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (c & wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Liam Livingstone, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Brydon Carse/Ehsan Malinga, Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat
Impact players: Salil Arora/Krains Fuletra
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
– The end
Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
28 March 2026 06:45 IST
