In a historical milestone Virat Kohli Becoming the first cricketer to feature in all 19 seasons of the Indian Premier League, he achieved the feat during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s season-opening match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday, 28 March 2026. The match was a great stage for Kohli To display your class. After SRH scored 201 for nine, the standing captain Ishan Kishan Starred with 80 off 38 balls, with the help of Henrik Klaasen’s 31 in a fourth-wicket partnership of 97. Jacob Duffy Initially impressed with figures of 3 for 22, taking advantage of the bounce on a pitch that had not hosted top-flight cricket for nearly 10 months. Chasing 202, RCB’s reply was led by Devdutt Padikal and Kohli. Pedicel’s 26-ball 61 and Kohli’s unbeaten 38-ball 69 clinched an emphatic six-wicket win, with the hosts achieving the target in just 15.4 overs. The duo put on a 45-ball 101-run partnership for the second wicket, entertaining the Chinnaswamy crowd with contrasting but equally effective styles — pedicle with wrist, aggressive strokes, and Kohli with precise drives, flicks, and his trademark ‘Swat’ shot. Pedicel completed his fifty in just 21 balls, including 6, 4, 6 from David Payne and later 4 and 6 from Harsh Dubey. Kohli, meanwhile, brought up his half-century in 33 balls, mixing classic drives with blistering boundaries. With the removal of the pedicle only minor hiccups occurred. Rajat Patidar (31 off 12 balls), and Jitesh Sharma, but the chase was never in doubt. For SRH, Kishan’s blitz was the highlight. After early wickets reduced them to 29 for three, Kishan’s fearless stroke play, which included 8 fours and 5 sixes, kept SRH competitive. He fell to a brilliant catch by Phil Salt near deep backward point, with Aniket Verma (43 off 19 balls) looking to build momentum after being dropped by Kohli on 26 in the final overs. RCB’s dominant reply, under the experienced guidance of Kohli, set the tone for their IPL-2026 campaign, marking a remarkable personal milestone for the veteran batsman.
