With just a few days left for the start of the Indian Premier League 2026, preparations are in full swing for all the teams. At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru played their first warm-up match ahead of their title defence. Virat Kohli Looking in good touch with 29 off 12 balls. Jitesh Sharma Stole the show with a blistering 81 off just 37 deliveries.The teams are led by new recruits Venkatesh Iyer (Team Venky) and Krunal Pandya (Team Kronel), in a solid outing, and according to the scorecard, it was a run fest. Batting first, Team Venki scored 234 runs for seven wickets. Apart from Jitesh and Kohli, Tim David scored 36 off just 14 balls, while skipper Iyer scored 36 off 16 balls.
In reply, chasing 235, Devdutt Padikal – who will be pushing for a place in the playing XI – scored 63 off 33 balls. Pandya scored 58 runs in 33, but it was RCB’s captain. Rajat Patidar Who scored a brilliant 74 runs off 25 balls to win the team Krunal.Reflecting on the outing, head coach Andy Flower said, “It’s always nice to get out of the nets and get into competitive situations, so it was a really productive evening. Some of the highlights were seeing guys like Jitesh hit 80 off 35 balls, and Rajat hitting beautiful shots as we know him.”Phool was also impressed by the youngsters, especially Abhinandan Singh, who was selected by RCB in the IPL 2026 auction last December. Singh made his mark playing for Lucknow Falcons in the UPT20 league. “Some of the youngsters also did well. Abhinandan was good with the ball, Rashikh [Dar] Bowled well, and good to see Vicky Ostwall and his skills with left-arm spin. So it was a great night’s work for everyone in the squad,” Flower said. Krunal Pandya was happy with how Virat Kohli looked in the middle, batting with intent. “Yes, from the batsmen, I guess Jitesh played very well today. Some of the shots were amazing. Tim David played really well. Venkatesh [Iyer] Good batting, Virat batted really well, you know, coming out and intent and some shots. What Virat played today was amazing, looked good, which is a big sign for us. So fingers crossed!” she added. RCB will begin their title defense at home on March 28 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru with the season opener against their trans-Cauvery rivals Sunrisers Hyderabad.
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Both the teams are dealing with player unavailability. RCB will be without Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood in the early stages of the tournament.2016 champions Hyderabad have appointed Ishan Kishan as the interim captain in his absence. Pat Cummins. They also have injury concerns, with Jack Edwards ruled out of the tournament and uncertainty over Sri Lankan pace recruit Ishan Malinga.
