Bhuvneshwar skips RCB training to focus on recovery ahead of IPL 2026 final

Bhuvneshwar Kumar will miss Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s pre-final training session in Ahmedabad on the eve of the IPL 2026 final against Gujarat Titans, choosing rest over repetition as the match draws near. The bowler—RCB’s leading wicket-taker and the franchise’s most prolific in terms of overs—has opted to prioritise recovery ahead of what will be his fifth IPL final and his second appearance with the Bengaluru side. For many in this group, Bhuvneshwar’s understanding of what a final demands is difficult to match.

Why Bhuvneshwar’s absence matters

1. In 2016, Bhuvneshwar played a pivotal role in one of RCB’s most painful near-misses in an IPL final.
2. That night at Chinnaswamy Stadium, RCB were 114 without loss in the 11th over while chasing a target of 209.
3. Chris Gayle was thriving with the bat, while Virat Kohli was in a form so extraordinary that it almost feels out of reach even by modern standards; AB de Villiers and Shane Watson were waiting in the dugout.
4. The chase looked like it was moving toward an RCB title, with the “holy trinity” of Gayle, Kohli and de Villiers close to finishing the job.
5. But Bhuvneshwar changed the tone, and the scoreboard could never quite capture how much control he brought during the decisive death-overs spell.

Despite finishing with figures of 4-0-25-0, Bhuvneshwar was at his sharpest when RCB needed someone to land yorkers with that extra fraction of accuracy. Working alongside Mustafizur Rahman, he squeezed the batting lanes shut and removed nearly every realistic escape route as the match swung against RCB.

A return to the big stage

1. A decade later, Bhuvneshwar is back in a second consecutive IPL final.
2. He helped Bengaluru win the title last year, and—like much of the squad—is now chasing the rare “double”.
3. Among the prominent names aiming for the second trophy is Kohli, his former India captain and RCB skipper.
4. Kohli and Bhuvneshwar were signed as teenagers by RCB—Kohli in 2008 and Bhuvneshwar in 2009—yet their career paths have moved in strikingly different directions.

Bhuvneshwar has spent more time on strength and conditioning than on matchdays between IPL seasons. That lighter competitive load may have helped him extend his playing life, because it also allows him to work his body harder than he could while managing the demands of India duty. The outcome has been a revival that has stood out in a league built on relentless rotation. While conversations often focus on the next young prodigy and when he might reach national colours, there are also murmurs that age could still play a role—especially for a bowler who is 36 and whose last outing for India came in 2022.

A key ingredient in this resurgence has been the presence of Josh Hazlewood. Together, they have become one of the tournament’s most threatening new-ball duos. Recently, Hazlewood likened bowling alongside Bhuvneshwar to operating with Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc in Australia—an assessment that effectively underlined the quality of the pair and the respect Hazlewood holds for what Bhuvneshwar brings.

How the Hazlewood-Bhuvneshwar combination has worked

1. Hazlewood explained that the pair feed off each other’s rhythm and execution.
2. Delhi Capitals felt the impact at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, where Bhuvneshwar produced the kind of banana-swing movement that unsettled the top order.
3. That disruption left DC reeling at 8 for 6.
4. At the other end, Hazlewood then tightened the contest, and DC collapsed to 75 all out.
5. While such outcomes have not appeared as frequently as in 2025, the same combination has repeatedly pushed opponents off balance—such as Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 at Dharamsala this year.

Even on surfaces that can make batting look easier, Bhuvneshwar has remained awkward to face. Mumbai Indians struggled with him on a two-paced Raipur wicket, and even at Chinnaswamy—often considered among the least forgiving places for seam bowlers—he has repeatedly looked one step ahead. The way Sunrisers Hyderabad experienced it on opening night was reflected in his figures of 4-0-31-1, in a match where more than 400 runs were scored.

More than wickets: mentoring and match-defining moments

Bhuvneshwar’s contribution extends beyond his bowling spells. He has become a valuable mentor for the younger fast-bowling group, especially Rasikh Salam, Abhinandan Singh and Mangesh Yadav. Even the team’s net bowlers often work alongside him, and Bhuvneshwar has shown a willingness to pass on guidance during the fast-moving rhythm of IPL preparation days.

There have also been memorable batting contributions. In the final over of RCB’s thrilling win over Mumbai Indians in Raipur, he struck six to help steer the result. After all these years—after thousands of deliveries and hundreds of overs—Bhuvneshwar is still finding personal firsts, and that realisation has even surprised him. He recently joked that he is “ageing like fine wine”, and his season has made that claim hard to dismiss.

On Sunday night at the Narendra Modi Stadium, he will be tasked with protecting RCB’s dream. That mission comes alongside another figure who spent the evening of May 2016 watching his own hopes slip away, with Bhuvneshwar playing a significant part in that heartbreak.

Kohli’s evolution and RCB’s leadership landscape

1. By 2016 Kohli was already a major star, but that season turned him into something even bigger.
2. His 973 runs remain among the most astonishing IPL totals, achieved while he batted through pain and carried injuries, at times appearing determined to drag the team to the title through sheer will.
3. Unlike Bhuvneshwar’s reinvention, Kohli’s story is one of evolution rather than transformation.
4. At 37, he is no longer carrying the same burden that once came with leading every IPL campaign.
5. Rajat Patidar holds the captaincy, while Andy Flower, Mo Bobat and Dinesh Karthik handle many of the key strategic decisions.
6. Although the daily weight of leadership has eased, Kohli’s influence has not faded.

Kohli remains the franchise’s emotional anchor and, in many ways, one of its most important commercial drivers. It is difficult to separate RCB’s rise as a sporting brand from Kohli’s growth as a public icon. For nearly two decades, the two have moved in step—each lifting the other’s stature. To think of RCB is to think of Kohli, and to think of Kohli is to think of RCB.

Still, the intensity is unchanged. This season, Kohli’s scoring has come at an even faster tempo than before. He has attacked the powerplay with purpose, adapted again to the requirements of a format that keeps evolving, and continued to refine his game rather than settling. There have been no signs that the hunger is slowing down.

On Friday, two days before the IPL 2026 final, he was among the most energetic figures during training. He gave the net bowlers a clear instruction: to challenge his body by bowling hard lengths. The plan was specific—he wanted to practise the pull and his signature swivel-flick over square leg by picking out longer-side pockets. A couple of those strokes brought back memories of a previous night against Haris Rauf and Pakistan in Melbourne four years ago.

Off the pitch, Kohli’s celebrations still look unmistakably like Kohli: the clenched fists, the stare, the roar. Yet teammates have noticed a subtle ease in his demeanour. He is still consulted on major decisions and his views still carry enormous weight, but there is a calm that comes from knowing the franchise is not resting solely on his shoulders anymore.

A decade ago, Kohli sat at the centre of RCB’s hopes. On Sunday night in Ahmedabad, he will stand there again. However, unlike 2016, Bengaluru now has an entire squad that understands what it feels like to win—fed by each other’s belief and not relying only on a single superstar.