RCB vs SRH Highlights, IPL 2026: RCB off to dominant winning start, Kohli and Padikkal chase down 202 inside 16 overs

RCB vs SRH LIVE Score, IPL 2026: RCB's playing XI – no massive shocks, as reports of Abhinandan Singh playing prove to be true. Tim David ahead of Jacob Bethell, and Padikkal and Iyer on the bench as impact players.

Playing XI: Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Abhinandan Singh, Jacob Duffy, Suyash Sharma

Impact players: Devdutt Padikkal, Jacob Bethell, Rasikh Dar, Kanishk Chouhan, Venkatesh Iyer

RCB vs SRH LIVE Score, IPL 2026: News from the middle! Rajat Patidar wins the toss, and no shock as he opts to bowl first! SRH will be batting first and looking for a big score – team news next.

RCB vs SRH LIVE Score, IPL 2026: For the broadcasters, Pietersen and Morrison with the pitch report, and runs are to be expected. A layer of grass over the surface which might offer early movement, but significantly will ensure the ball comes onto the bat easily. For these lineups, that could mean 200+ os easily par.

RCB vs SRH LIVE Score, IPL 2026: Approaching the toss in Bengaluru! Chase first, bat first, lineup news – all of it so so significant for the first game of a new IPL season. Wait is nearly over!

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: For SRH, the majority of the top 8 is almost without a question – the dynamite power and skill on show makes it a no-brainer. But Liam Livingstone's inclusion comes down to the balance of the bowling: do they believe they need an extra overseas bowling option just to round out the team a little more? With Eshan Malinga and Brydon Carse both in their squad, they might want to pick both for security, and trust R Smaran ahead of Livingstone in the middle. Key selection decision for them.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: The big selection question for RCB to answer will be the makeup of their batting – they have Jacob Bethell fresh off a T20 World Cup semifinal century, and the incumbent Tim David, who is dangerous at number four or five in the batting but not in the hottest form. Who do they opt for in that position, particularly given Bethell's ability to roll his arm over? Do they stick with what worked last year?

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: There is definitely a little bit of darkness to this match, in a way – since the June stampede last year during RCB's title celebrations, where 11 fans lost their lives. The Chinnaswamy had to undergo a massive audit to upgrade security and their fit-for-purpose rating from the Karnataka state government. This was a process that saw a conclusion on a couple of weeks before the start of the tournament – but has meant that Bengaluru didn't host the men's T20 World Cup, the women's ODI World Cup, any India games, or even the Ranji Trophy final earlier this year, where Karnataka were hosts.

A big moment – and safety will be of the utmost importance.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: The Chinnaswamy is famed as one of the higher-scoring venues in India, thanks to relatively flat pitches, but especially due to the smaller boundaries. Batters on both sides aren't the kind to pull their punches – this IPL is on track to get going with some absolute fireworks, as competitive elite level cricket returns to Bangalore after 10 months.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: Virat Kohli is one of the four players to have played every season of the IPL – since he was a teenager, and now as he inches closer to his forties. If his ODI form is anything to go by, Kohli still has it – and in fact, might have gained a step in white ball cricket after a step back from Tests.

He won the Orange Cap two seasons ago, and has shown no indication of slowing down at the top of the order. With an opening partner in Salt tailor-made for him, Kohli will be responsible for bulk runs – but still has that dynamism which allows him to achieve terrific strike-rates while never looking too fussed.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: There is definite value to packing your team full of leaders, as RCB experienced in 2025. Patidar's core group of players around him has endless experience and leadership potential – not least Virat Kohli, but also names like Krunal Pandya and Jitesh Sharma, who have captained domestically and even for India A. Even Phil Salt has captained Manchester in the Hundred – with a core group that has such comfort in being leaders for a team, success is to be expected.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: What a period of six months it has been for Ishan Kishan. At the start of the Indian domestic season, Kishan was low in the pecking order, in the wilderness of Indian cricket. Now, he is an IPL franchise captain, and a world champion as a key member of the Indian squad in the T20 World Cup. Captaincy will be a challenge he relishes – he has become a player who can extend his purple patches into longer and longer periods of time, and that could bring the best out of his batting. But equally, after leading Jharkhand to the SMAT title, the captaincy could bring something even greater out of him. He might be the one player who benefits most from rising to a position of responsibility.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: The team news which we know early on is that the two elite Aussie seamers at the heart of these two teams won’t be in action, for this match and for subsequent games in the early part of the tournament. Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins both missed the T20 World Cup due to injury and continue to rehab: given the importance of both these players to their respective teams, this could prove to be a big blow. A lot of the results in the first part of the season will come down to which team can fill up those gaps more convincingly, and set the table for their superstars when they do return.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: For SRH, there was work to be done after a quiet season, with the sixth-place finish flattering them a touch. Particularly in the bowling, moves needed to be made. It wasn’t a stellar auction on that front, but the plan for the team seemed to be to go all in on Indian youngsters, high-potential pick to support the superstars at their disposal. The big-money acquisition was Liam Livingstone, who further adds to the batting and shores up the middle order. But buys like Shivam Mavi and Salil Arora could prove to be important too.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: SRH were amongst the favourites heading into the 2025 season after making the finals the year earlier, thanks to a truly phenomenal batting unit that only seems to get better and better. That wasn’t quite the story – the batting lagged, and the bowling didn’t have enough bite to make up for it. They lost six of their first eight games, removing them from contention. But the team still had quality and danger – three consecutive wins to close the season will give them plenty of confidence heading into 2026, even without captain Pat Cummins.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: As expected, no major moves for the defending champions, as they retain the majority of their core group from the title-winning year. There were a couple of key additions – Venkatesh Iyer adding some Indian batting depth, capable of filling in anywhere in the top 5. Secondly, Jacob Duffy adding fast-bowling depth, proving crucial as Josh Hazlewood misses out on a chunk of the season due to injury. In addition to these key players, RCB also grabbed a couple of U-19 champions from the latest batch of winners, Vihaan Malhotra and Kanishk Chouhan, who are eager talents in the ranks.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: Last year, it was well and truly RCB’s year. Having pulled off an all-time comeback the year prior to make the playoffs, the momentum was with a confident RCB staff, who kept the ethos even as they handed rookie captain Rajat Patidar the reins. There was no looking back – Virat Kohli still the main man, but the expertise of Phil Salt, Krunal Pandya, and Josh Hazlewood deciding their season. 19 points in the league stage, followed by two comprehensive playoff wins over Punjab Kings – enough to finally bring the title home, after 18 long years of waiting.

RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 LIVE Score: At long last, it's time for the IPL! 10 months on from when RCB beat Punjab Kings to lift their first IPL trophy, they begin their title defence at home, in the shadow of tragedy, but nevertheless with the weight of expectations. They host SRH, the 2025 finalists, who are looking to bounce back from a quiet year under the leadership of Ishan Kishan. Should be a thrilling rollercoaster first up!