‘Will Quit Cricket…’: Virat Kohli Forced Into U-Turn in RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Clash — What Changed?

The clash between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Lucknow Super Giants saw Virat Kohli being named as an impact player. The former RCB skipper was made to go back on his words, where he had said that he would rather quit playing cricket than play as an impact player. However, that all changed as an injury-hit Virat Kohli was named as one of the impact subs against LSG at Chinnaswamy Stadium. However, Kohli’s statement about being against playing as an impact sub was not made in front of the public eye. The statement was made by the former RCB skipper during the IPL 2025 season, which was made public by Swastik Chikara in an interview.

IPL 2026: Virat Kohli goes back on his own words after being named impact player in RCB vs LSG

One of the older players who has long opposed the BCCI’s Impact Player rule, which was implemented in the Indian Premier League in 2023, is Virat Kohli. In the RCB camp last year, Kohli made it clear that he would prefer to “quit cricket” than serve as an Impact Player during a period when contemporaries like Rohit Sharma were employed as Impact Players, and discussions were around whether MS Dhoni might be used similarly. That position came full circle on Wednesday at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. For RCB’s encounter against Lucknow Super Giants, a half-fit Kohli was selected as an Impact Player. He went on to write a game-changing 49 that propelled his team to the top of the table and a five-wicket victory.

In an interview with RevSportz, former RCB batter Swastik Chikara revealed that Kohli’s stance remained firm on not playing as an impact player. Chikara said, “Virat bhaiya said, ‘Jab tak cricket khelunga, jab tak main poora fit hoon. Ye Impact Player ki tarah nahi khelunga. Main sher ki tarah khelunga. I will field for the full 20 overs and then bat. The day I have to play as an Impact Player, I will quit cricket’.”

IPL 2026: Why did Virat Kohli play as an impact player in RCB vs LSG?

Five deliveries into the tenth over of RCB’s innings during last week’s encounter at Wankhede Stadium against the Mumbai Indians, Kohli suffered an ankle injury. He did not participate in the second inning after receiving treatment on the field before leaving. Kohli’s availability was questioned as he was spotted training with a severely strapped left leg prior to the LSG match. He did some modest running exercises, but he didn’t seem to be moving freely.

Although Kohli was not mentioned by skipper Rajat Patidar at the toss, the veteran was not included in the starting lineup. But in the second inning, he entered as an Impact Player and opened with Phil Salt. Despite the fitness issues, Kohli appeared to be in perfect form as he attacked Prince Yadav and Mohammed Shami with a barrage of boundaries. He set the tone for the power play by reaching 40 off his first 20 balls, but Avesh Khan removed him just short of a half-century.

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