Table of Contents
Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the champions of IPL 2025, began their season in a very dominating style, with a comfortable 6-wicket victory against the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Rajat Patidar-led RCB staged an all-round show to run down a competitive total with over four overs remaining in their hands, the start of their title defence.
Having been forced to bat first, SRH did not start well, with the debutant Jacob Duffy getting his revenge at the powerplay, taking down three all-important wickets. As skipper Ishan Kishan attempted to reassemble with a fluent knock, Hyderabad ended up failing to give an imposing tally on a batting-friendly surface.
IPL 2026 Match 1: RCB vs SRH Player Ratings
RCB Players Ratings vs SRH
1. Phil Salt - 6/10
A great field player, but unable to contribute with a bat. The sudden blow of Jaydev Unadkat, which rushed him off his pace, brought him to the early conclusion.
2. Virat Kohli - 8.5/10
Once again, he was the hero of the chase with a calm 69. Kohli was not at his highest point, but his ability to control and time the actions meant that there were no hiccups.
3. Devdutt Padikkal (Impact Player) - 9.5/10
The most compelling performance was by Devdutt Padikkal, both with the bat and in the field, taking three catches.
4. Rajat Patidar - 8/10
He was contributing energy with a brisk cameo and tight leadership.
5. Tim David - 7/10
He had a clean-up finish, hitting a couple of timely boundaries to make the chase smooth and without any last-minute hitches.
6. Romario Shepherd - 6/10
He ran, particularly in his last over when he was dismantled, but made a big impression with three important wickets to destroy the SRH lower-middle order.
7. Jitesh Sharma - 3/10
He bagged a first-ball duck in the process of trying a pull over square leg with a lot of ambition in his mind. He will have to seek superior solutions against lengthy deliveries.
8. Krunal Pandya - 2/10
He had a difficult time with the ball, giving away ample runs within a short period of time as he tried out variations. One of those performances that he will wish to forget soon.
9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar - 8/10
He provided a usually well-disciplined line, efficient not only with the new ball but also at the end. Performed very well when it comes to executing his yorkers and when it comes to controlling them, particularly against Abhishek Sharma.
10. Jacob Duffy - 9.5/10
The defining moment in the match was made by Duffy, who grabbed three wickets during his initial spell with RCB. The Kiwi landed on the deck with a bang and emptied everything from the Chinnaswamy pitch, getting four overs out and taking home the Player of the Match award.
11. Suyash Sharma - 4/10
Suyash had his lines and length everywhere. He had the privilege of picking up a wicket.
12. Abhinandan Singh - 5/10
Abhinandan turned in some good speeds but was given some runs on his spells. With an outstanding grab Salt made, he got his inaugural IPL wicket.
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SRH Players Ratings vs RCB:
1. Abhishek Sharma - 3/10
He had a rough time breaking the discipline of leg-stump lines and was finally beaten by Jacob Duffy. His new physique remains a cause of concern.
2. Travis Head - 4/10
He was slightly out of sync, although he hit a clean six down the ground. His turn was unfortunately ended when he selected deep square leg at the hands of Duffy.
3. Ishan Kishan - 9/10
With a striking and fluent knock that went to the fore with ease, on pace and spin. His wicketkeeping performance was, however, lower than normal and spoiled a good performance.
4. Heinrich Klassen - 6/10
He had poor timing and appeared off-put. He cowered at deep midwicket off a loose ball by Romario Shepherd and also dropped a key catch off Virat Kohli. There will be heightened expectations on their marquee player in SRH.
5. Nitish Kumar Reddy - 1/10
Still fighting on the hard, top-edged shot that put his team under strain. His bowling was not in control during the power play, and his fieldwork was not much of an assistance to him.
6. Salil Arora - 4/10
He did not have a pleasant introduction to IPL, as he was beaten by a terrible drag-down by Suyash Sharma. He was also not comfortable keeping up with the pace during his innings.
7. Aniket Verma - 8/10
He played a spectacular game with great command and strength, with pace. His violent hitting, especially in the pull and complete hits, made SRH go beyond the 200-run mark.
8. Harshal Patel - 2/10
Harshal Patel regretted failing to put Virat Kohli away, but generally, he was not very clear in his execution. His variations, such as short balls and slower deliveries, did not bother the batters as he yielded a lot.
9. Harsh Dubey - 4/10
He spent a lot of money on a party with the ball, even though he was able to get rid of Devdutt Padikkal. He also did not achieve anything remarkable at the bat.
10. Eshan Malinga - 3/10
He played poorly in his brief time and gave away the runs easily. Being the main pacer of SRH overseas, he would have been expected to have a much more effective performance.
11. Jaydev Unadkat - 6/10
He picked the new ball and was able to dismiss Phil Salt but was not consistently penetrating. Although this was not a significant threat, he turned out to be the most effective frontline bowler of SRH.
12. David Payne - 5/10 (Impact Player)
He took a couple of late wickets, which were too late to make any difference. He was not able to make much impact, conceding 35 runs in three overs in the RCB vs SRH game.
