The Royal Challengers Bengaluru are gearing up for the first IPL 2026 match against Sunrisers Hyderabad scheduled to take place in Bengaluru on Saturday. With this clash, RCB will also begin their title defence in this edition. In a video posted on the official account of Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Virat Kohli is spotted bowling to Phil Salt in the nets.
The first phase of the IPL 2026 will begin on March 28 and will run till April 12. Traditionally, the two finalists of the previous edition play the inaugural match of the next edition but the BCCI has broken the trend and RCB will now be playing SRH in the opener. The Rajat Patidar-led side defeated Punjab Kings in the previous year’s edition in the final in Ahmedabad.
𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙮 🤝 𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙪𝙤 𝙞𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚. 🥹
Virat throwing it down to Salt…openers looking out for each other already. 🤩
It’s these 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 that matter over a long campaign. ❤️🔥
🎥 Enjoy the full video on… pic.twitter.com/JxZqIi6mgG
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) March 24, 2026
Partnership of Virat Kohli and Phil Salt
Virat Kohli and Phil Salt have provided some of the most explosive starts in the previous edition piling up 565 runs in 13 innings. One of their standout partnerships came against the Kolkata Knight Riders, where they stitched together 95 runs in under nine overs while chasing 175.
Salt scored 56, while Kohli remained unbeaten on 59.
Phil Salt’s Recent Form
The aggressive England batter Phil Salt didn’t really have a great run in the T20 World Cup 2026 where he scored 130 runs in 8 matches. Salt’s only good knock came against Sri Lanka where he smashed 62. While he hasn’t been among runs, Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, has downplayed concerns over Salt’s form.
“Someone like Phil Salt is still ranked in one of the top. Not recently, but the top two or three T20 batters in the world. So there is enough depth of confidence there. He also really enjoys being with RCB, his partnership with Virat,” Bobat said.
RCB Players to Wear Jersey No. 11
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru players will be wearing jersey no.11 during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 opening fixture against Sunrisers Hyderabad at home, the franchise CEO Rajesh Menon announced. This comes as a gesture from the franchise in memory of the 11 people who died during a stampede that occurred outside M Chinnaswamy Stadium when RCB were celebrating their maiden title triumph last year.
RCB will also be placing a memorial plaque near the stadium’s inner entrance. “We’ll be unveiling a memorial plaque near the entrance and reserving 11 seats in the stadium in memory of the victims of the stampede. I can’t reveal much details right now. I suppose we will share further details about it in the press conference later in the day,” news agency IANS quoted sources as saying.
Apart from this, 11 seats will be kept empty to honour the lives of those who died in the stampede.
Also Read: EXPLAINED | Why RCB Players Opt For Jersey No. 11 in IPL 2026 Opener vs SRH at Chinnaswamy— Details
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