Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Jacob Duffy lead RCB’s MASSIVE win in opener vs SRH

IPL 2026 season opener saw defending champion RCB dominate SRH as Jacob Duffy tore through the top order and Virat Kohli-Steered RCB home with a stylish unbeaten 69.

IPL 2026, Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, RCB vs SRH, Jacob Duffy, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Romario Shepherd, Ishan Kishan, Henrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Kavya Maran's SRH, IPL 2026 season opener, Defending Champions RCB, — Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Jacob Duffy lead RCB’s MASSIVE win in IPL 2026 season opener (Source: IANS)

IPL 2026: The IPL 2026 season started with a bang on March 28, at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, where defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) dismantled Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by six wickets in a high-voltage opener.

The match was a batting paradise, with both sides smashing towering sixes, but RCB’s clinical chase and early breakthroughs proved decisive. RCB chased down the massive target easily, finishing in just 15.4 overs and announcing their intent to retain the title.

Rajat Patidar won the toss and invited SRH to bat first. SRH’s innings started on a shaky note as debutant Jacob Duffy, the New Zealand pacer, shattered their top-order with a fiery spell. He claimed three wickets for just 22 runs in his four overs, reducing SRH to 29 for 3 inside the fifth over. Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, and Nitish Kumar Reddy fell cheaply, leaving the visitors at a difficult position.

Ishan Kishan’s 38-ball 80 powered SRH to massive target

Stand-in skipper Ishan Kishan took the charge as he played an impactful knock on his captaincy debut. The explosive left-hander counter-attacked with fearless intent, smashing 80 off just 38 balls, which featured eight boundaries and sixes. His aggressive approach stabilized the innings and injected momentum.

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Kishan received solid support from Heinrich Klaasen who scored 31 off 22 balls. However, the late fireworks came from uncapped batter Aniket Verma, who smashed a 18-ball 43. Despite losing wickets at regular intervals in the death overs, SRH managed to post a competitive 201 for 9 in 20 overs. Romario Shepherd and Suyash Sharma picked up useful wickets alongside Duffy’s heroics.

Kohli-Padikkal stitched together 101-run partnership off 45 balls

Chasing 202 on a flat track at Chinnaswamy, opener Phil Salt managed to score only 8 off 7. However, Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal steadied the innings. The left-hander unleashed a blistering 61 off 26 balls, which featured a quick fifty. He was later dismissed by Harsh Dubey.

Virat Kohli, then took center stage and remained unbeaten on 69 off 38 balls, showcasing his trademark timing and placement. He found strong support from skipper Rajat Patidar, who contributed a quickfire 31 off 12 balls, and later Tim David.

Kohli fittingly sealed the victory with a boundary in the 15.4th over, sending the home crowd into raptures. Harshal Patel and others toiled without much success for SRH. The win not only handed RCB two crucial points but also a massive net run rate boost of +2.907, placing them atop the early standings.

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The Times Of Bengal