Hazlewood returns as Royals ask RCB to bat in rain-hit game
Key player from the title win in 2025 is back fit and slots in for Duffy
Toss Rajasthan Royals opt to bowl v Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Big drops of rain returned just as the toss neared its completion, with the ground staff swiftly bringing the covers back on. For the record, Riyan Parag won the toss as Rajasthan Royals elected to bowl first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. A battle of two unchanged sides will bring Guwahati's commitments to a close in IPL 2026.
Parag cited rain and moisture on what should've otherwise been a dry surface as one of the reasons behind his decision. Royals left out Tushar Deshpande for fellow-seamer Brijesh Sharma in their bowl-first XI. with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi set to come in as the Impact Player.
Rajat Patidar announced the return of Josh Hazlewood for RCB, following a swift recovery and a fitness clearance from Cricket Australia. This meant Jacob Duffy, who performed exceedingly well in the two games prior to this, had to make way.
"We've been clinical before the start of the tournament. We want to play smart cricket. Hope we keep assessing and adapting," Parag said. "All three games are in the past, we have to perform. If we don't, we'll lose two points."
This is RCB's first away game, following two excellent home wins at the M Chinnaswamy stadium to kick off the season. Last year, they won each of their seven 'away' fixtures en route to the final, where they beat Punjab Kings to be crowned champions for the first time.
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (capt), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma
Impact subs: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Shubham Dubey, Tushar Deshpande
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Abhinandan Singh, Josh Hazlewood
Impact Subs: Suyash Sharma, Jacob Bethell, Rasikh Salam Dar, Kanishk Chouhan, Venkatesh Iyer