Chinnaswamy Stadium don dey hot today as IPL 2026 kick off with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru face Sunrisers Hyderabad for opening match. RCB captain Rajat Patidar win toss and choose to bowl first, saying dem no dey defend title but want to win am again. SRH dey miss regular captain Pat Cummins due to injury, so Ishan Kishan take over as stand-in skipper for dis match.
New Zealand fast bowler Jacob Duffy make dream IPL debut for RCB. The man wey just win Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for New Zealand cricket awards two days ago come show class for Chinnaswamy. Duffy open bowling and immediately put pressure on SRH openers. After Travis Head get first run of IPL 2026 with single, Abhishek Sharma survive caught behind review before hitting first six of season.
But Duffy bounce back strong for second over. Abhishek Sharma try to pull short ball but get top edge, wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma run back take good catch. SRH lose first wicket for 23 runs. Duffy strike again same over when Travis Head pull another short delivery straight to Phil Salt at deep square leg. Head walk back for 11 runs, SRH now 23 for 2.
Duffy continue him excellent spell and get third wicket in powerplay when Nitish Kumar Reddy try to pull but get top edge to Abhinandan Singh at midwicket. Reddy depart for 1, SRH now 29 for 3 after 4.3 overs. Duffy finish powerplay with figures of 3 wickets for 17 runs from 3 overs, including 12 dot balls.
SRH captain Ishan Kishan start counterattack with aggressive batting. He smash debutant Abhinandan Singh for 6, 4, 6 in one over to bring SRH to 49 for 3 after powerplay. Kishan continue him good form and reach fifty from just 27 balls, marking him IPL captaincy debut with half-century. He partner with Heinrich Klaasen to rebuild SRH innings.
The partnership between Kishan and Klaasen grow to 97 runs from 53 balls before controversial moment happen. Romario Shepherd bowl to Klaasen who hit ball high towards midwicket boundary. Phil Salt take catch near boundary but TV umpire Rohan Pandit need to check if Salt touch boundary cushion. After checking replays, umpire rule Klaasen out for 31 from 22 balls, though Klaasen look unhappy with decision.
RCB make tactical move by bringing Devdutt Padikkal as Impact Player to replace Jacob Duffy after Kiwi bowler finish excellent spell of 4 overs for 22 runs and 3 wickets. Duffy become eighth RCB bowler to take three wickets in powerplay in IPL history, first since Wayne Parnell in 2023.
Before match start, emotional moment happen at Chinnaswamy as players and fans observe minute silence to honor 11 fans wey die during stampede outside stadium during RCB title celebrations last year. RCB players wear black armbands and practice jerseys with number 11 as tribute. BCCI cancel opening ceremony for IPL 2026 as mark of respect for tragedy.
Both teams field new players for dis opening match. For RCB, Jacob Duffy and uncapped Abhinandan Singh make IPL debuts, while SRH give debut to Salil Arora who hit 28 sixes in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. RCB play with four overseas players: Phil Salt, Tim David, Romario Shepherd and Jacob Duffy. SRH field three overseas: Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen and Eshan Malinga.
The match continue with SRH trying to rebuild after early setbacks while RCB look to maintain pressure with spin from Suyash Sharma and Krunal Pandya. Kishan remain key for SRH recovery as he approach 70-run mark with aggressive strokeplay.
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