The rain has stopped a while ago and the covers are coming off.
Let’s dive a little deeper into today’s match: One glance at the points table and it’s easy to declare hosts RCB favourites in Raipur, but Virat Kohli has not got off the mark in back-to-back innings. Romario Shepherd has not replicated his 2025 form either and Phil Salt still remains unavailable. After two defeats in a row, they needed some heroic batting from Krunal Pandya to get over the line against Mumbai Indians.
On the other hand, KKR come into the game with two emphatic wins – by eight and seven wickets respectively away from home. Sunil Narine has gone at only 6.51 an over, Finn Allen has finally begun to fire, Rinku Singh looks in fine touch, Cameron Green is stepping up, and their batting line-up has averaged just 4.5 dismissals per innings since their winning run began.
Their only worry right now is the fitness of Varun Chakravarthy, who has taken 10 wickets in his last five games, but hurt his foot in Delhi and was spotted at the team hotel walking with a stick.
This is the first meeting between the teams in IPL 2026.
