DC vs RCB Live Score, IPL 2026: KL Rahul-Sahil Parakh begin for Delhi

KL Rahul has a new opening partner in Sahil Parakh, who was part of India U19 squad. They begin against RCB.

Delhi Capitals have made three changes, including one due to combination issues. Lungi Ngidi is out due to the injury, while DC have dropped Mukesh Kumar. Kyle Jamieson makes his debut along with Sahil Parakh. Pathum Nissanka goes out as Dushmantha Chameera comes in as well. 

Sahil Parakh, KL Rahul(w), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel(c), Dushmantha Chameera, Kyle Jamieson, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan

Impact sub options: Auqib Nabi Dar, Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Tripurana Vijay, Abishek Porel

Royal Challengers Bengaluru are going unchanged. With Phil Salt still injured, Jacob Bethell takes his place. 

Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar

Impact sub options: Jacob Bethell, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer

Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel's toss-winning streak of 10 matches comes to an end. Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar wins the toss and opts to bowl first.

KL Rahul dominated at his home ground in Bengaluru, smashing 34-ball 57. But now, Virat Kohli is back at his home ground and he will be looking for revenge. Last season, Kohli smashed a match-winning 51 on a slow Arun Jaitley Stadium pitch, in response to KL Rahul's unbeaten 93 in a winning cause. That rivalry will dominate today's game as well. 

In IPL, KL Rahul averages 42.92 at Chinnaswamy Stadium, RCB's home ground, while Kohli averages 66.75 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, DC's home ground.

RCB couldn't be in a more different headspace. Five wins from seven and second on the table, with Virat Kohli's consistent run-scoring complemented by Rajat Patidar's explosive strike rate. They've capped off the Bengaluru leg of their season with four wins in five, and Devdutt Padikkal's return to form has added another layer of stability to a top order that was already humming.

However, with Phil Salt out injured, they will have to depend on Jacob Bethell. Rasikh Salam is also likely to miss the game with an injury.

You don't need to look much further than the last DC game to understand where this side is right now. Delhi posted a mammoth 264 against Punjab Kings, with KL Rahul scoring an unbeaten 152 off 67, a knock that should have won any cricket match anywhere. Still, DC lost by six wickets, with the bowlers comprehensively dismantled in a record chase. They'll also be without Lungi Ngidi, who was subbed out in the third over of that game with a concussion. Three wins from seven, sixth on the table, and a death-overs unit that looks shaky every time it gets pressure.

The one bit of comfort for DC: they've already beaten this RCB once this season. Delhi won the first meeting at the Chinnaswamy by six wickets, making this a "revenge mission" for the defending champions. Doing the double over RCB at home is exactly the kind of result that could rescue Delhi's season. The question is whether the bowling holds up long enough to give them a chance.

The Arun Jaitley Stadium has well and truly become a batter's paradise this season. The last game here was a stark, almost absurd, illustration of just how much.

In the most recent IPL 2026 game at the venue on April 25, an aggregate of 529 runs was scored. DC's 264 was chased down by Punjab Kings without much fuss. That tells you everything. The boundaries are short, the outfield is rapid, and the wicket has flattened out considerably from its older spin-and-grip reputation. Bowlers can still find a touch of lateral movement and turn, but you're talking about 200-plus first-innings totals being the par benchmark, with anything under 210 looking vulnerable on a night like Monday.

For DC, this is both an opportunity and a problem. The opportunity is obvious. KL Rahul has just shown what he can do at this venue. The problem is they've also just shown they can't defend any total here. RCB chasing 220-something on a flat track with dew kicking in is a frightening prospect, and Patidar, Kohli, Salt and Tim David are exactly the kind of batting line-up built to chase down anything.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru hold a slim historical edge in this fixture. Across 33 IPL meetings between Delhi Capitals and RCB, the Bengaluru side has typically had the upper hand, though recent contests have been competitive.

DC's home record at the venue this season has been mixed. They've batted brilliantly here but defended poorly, and the surface hasn't always rewarded their bowling plans. RCB, meanwhile, have only just started their three-game away run, which means there's no recent groundwork to build off either way.

• Matches Played: 33
• Royal Challengers Bengaluru won: 19
• Delhi Capitals won: 13
• No Result: 1