Will Virat Kohli continue playing as an impact player for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the IPL 2026? The IPL defending champions host the Delhi Capitals (DC) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium and all eyes will definitely be on Kohli, who played the last game as the 12th guy before getting subbed in the second innings to bat. He played a superb knock, top-scoring with 49. He looks in touch but is likely to continue as an impact option.
Spotless RCB needs no shuffle
RCB are playing like true champions. From top to bottom, the team is shining perfectly, as if we are witnessing 2025 again. Phil Salt’s been fiery up top but his fielding has already presented us with multiple jaw-dropping moments. Devdutt Padikkal has taken his T20 game up a notch.
Rajat Patidar has shown a mirror to those who undermine his skills. He has been the heart of RCB, not just leading with calmness but batting with oomph. This season, he has amassed 222 runs at 55.5 and an outstanding strike rate of 213.46. As many as 16 players have scored over 150 runs in IPL 2026 so far, but only Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (263.15) remains the only player to have a better SR than Patidar. It only gets better when RCB have Tim David (216.17), Jitesh Sharma and Romario Shepherd to come out.
Meanwhile, Krunal Pandya has added a lot of variety to his defensive bowling repertoire. Suyash Sharma has complimented him greatly even on a small Bengaluru ground. Josh Hazlewood’s comeback is the final block that RCB needed. Even though Jacob Duffy didn’t do anything wrong, Hazlewood is just on S-tier. He won the Player of the Match in the last RCB game. Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is ageing like a fine wine. He has already taken two three-fers. Rasikh Salam gave a great account of himself.
Virat Kohli update before RCB vs DC clash
As far as Virat Kohli is concerned, he is likely to continue to feature as an impact sub. The Impact Sub rule may have a lot of downsides but it fortunately allows a not-so-fully-fit player to participate with his main skill. In Kohli’s case, he is ready enough to bat for RCB. However, as a precautionary measure, the management may not feel comfortable making him field for 20 overs.
Kohli sustained an ankle injury during the RCB vs MI clash on April 12. It wasn’t something huge that would rule him out of action but then Kohli played on April 15 as an impact sub as Padikkal started in the starting XI for once.
Now, on the eve of the clash against Delhi, Kohli’s teammate Hazlewood had some update on the star player. “I think he’ll definitely play. It’s just whether he’s right to take the field. It’ll be precautionary, and we’ll keep using the Impact Player role for as long as he needs to. He’s probably fortunate we’ve got that option. A lot of teams use it for someone coming back from injury or carrying a niggle. It’s invaluable when your main skill can still contribute.”
Hazlewood’s mentioning of caution and not hurrying Kohli up suggest that we might see the IPL legend once again just as a batter.
Predicted RCB Playing XI vs LSG
| S. No. | Player | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Devdutt Padikkal | No. 3 batter |
| 2 | Phil Salt ✈️ | Opener |
| 3 | Rajat Patidar (c) | Middle-order batter |
| 4 | Tim David ✈️ | Middle-order batter |
| 5 | Jitesh Sharma (wk) | Wicketkeeper/Finisher |
| 6 | Romario Shepherd ✈️ | Bowling all-rounder/Finisher |
| 7 | Krunal Pandya | Bowling all-rounder/ spinner |
| 8 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Right-arm fast bowler |
| 9 | Josh Hazlewood ✈️ | Right-arm fast bowler |
| 10 | Rasikh Salam Dar | Right-arm fast bowler |
| 11 | Suyash Sharma | Spinner |
| Impact Sub (12) | Virat Kohli | Batter |
RCB IPL 2026 squad
Rajat Patidar, Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Tim David, Jacob Bethell, Romario Shepherd, Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thushara, Devdutt Padikkal, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Rasikh Dar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jordan Cox, Suyash Sharma, Venkatesh Iyer, Swapnil Singh, Jacob Duffy, Kanishk Chouhan, Abhinandan Singh, Mangesh Yadav, Phil Salt, Satvik Deswal, Vicky Ostwal, Vihaan Malhotra
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