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In the IPL 2026 match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) skipper Rajat Patidar has won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Raipur.
The match has been delayed due to rain and will commence at 8.45 pm.
After winning the toss, RCB`s skipper Patidar said, “Obviously, we`ll bowl first. I think it`s a similar wicket that we played last match, so I think it will behave in the same way. And it should be pretty good also, hard surface, but we`ll try to keep them under pressure while chasing. (The colour of the surface looks a little dark.) I don`t think so. As I feel, both the wickets are pretty much the same, and there must be a variable bounce, but let`s see how it goes. I think it was a tight match (vs MI), but I think was a good game for us to be in the game, and everyone has a lot of confidence after the way we played the last game. It was a tight game, but everyone is looking good and looking forward for it. Every game is important. You know, we are not looking at the table, but we are just focusing more on playing a good cricket. Venky (Iyer) comes in place of Shepi (Shepherd)”.
On the other hand, KKR`s captain Ajinkya Rahane said, “We wanted to bowl first as well. (In with a chance for the playoffs?) Absolutely, yes. I mean, last four games have been really good for us as a team. Everyone started to do really well. For us, sometimes the game tells you to keep things really simple. For us, it`s all about taking one game at a time, keeping it really simple. And then, as I said, it`s all about respecting the opponents and winning those small moments. So, just really looking forward to the game. (Improvements in the side?) I think just a belief, probably. As I said, we started winning those small, small moments. This format is all about that. One over here and there can change the game. I thought we`ve been bowling really well as a bowling unit. But, you know, winning those small moments in this format is really important. Every single game is really important. Varun Chakravarthy misses out, unfortunately, with a niggle injury. Saurabh Dubey comes in in place of him”.
Currently, the Rajat Patidar-led men are placed in the second position on the points table. They have a net run rate (NRR) of +1.103 and 14 points. On the other hand, the Knight Riders are in the eighth position with a net run rate (NRR) of -0.169 and nine points.
IPL 2026, Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Confirmed Playing XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane (C), Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (WK), Cameron Green, Rovman Powell, Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethell, Rajat Patidar (C), Jitesh Sharma (WK), Tim David, Venkatesh Iyer, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Jacob Duffy, Rasikh Salam.
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