With the Bengaluru stands already chanting “R-C-B” repeatedly, Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar made what he called the “pretty obvious” call after winning the toss in an IPL match at home, opting to field first and bowl against Lucknow Super Giants. Patidar confirmed a single tweak to the XI: Josh Hazlewood came in for Jacob Duffy. The decision also underlined that Virat Kohli, who is not part of RCB’s bowling lineup for this game, remains available as an Impact Sub—an indication the ankle issue he picked up in his most recent outing against Mumbai Indians is still not fully resolved.
Lucknow captain Rishabh Pant set the tone from the start, urging his group to take clear ownership of their individual responsibilities. While his side’s form has swung through the season, Pant warned that the team will need to reflect after every match if performances don’t improve. In line with that message, he backed the same playing unit that featured in their contest against Gujarat Titans just three days earlier. Even so, there is a strong possibility that fast bowler Mayank Yadav could be used as Lucknow’s Impact Sub in the second innings.
Patidar also pointed out a key condition at the venue, noting that the surface is expected to offer little grass, which could encourage the spinners to play a more central role as the game progresses.
Line-ups and Impact Sub options
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru (to bowl): Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Dar, Josh Hazlewood.
- RCB Impact Player options: Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Mangesh Yadav, Kanishk Chouhan, Jordan Cox.
- Lucknow Super Giants (to bat): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Rathi, Prince Yadav.
- LSG Impact Player options: Mayank Yadav, George Linde, M Siddharth, Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke.
