Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru started their IPL 2026 season on a strong note, beating Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets. After the match, much of the talk was around Virat Kohli’s energy and Jacob Duffy’s performance with the ball.
Ashwin on Virat Kohli's batting show
Ravichandran Ashwin praised Kohli for the intensity he showed during the chase, even when the game was already in control.
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“I find him quite bizarre at this age. I tell him this during our chats now and then. He was batting on 40-odd, there was a partnership going on, and RCB were coasting. He ran through for the first single, stopped there, and the other batter hadn’t even reached halfway, but he was already looking for a second. That was a 57-metre boundary on the leg side, and it shows the enthusiasm he still brings to the game. He walks the talk. It’s almost like he’s putting on a show for people to see how the game should be played, play it hard and play it the way it’s meant to be played. That stood out for me with respect to what Virat did. And if this is the way RCB are going to bat, Virat just needs to bat the full 20 overs," JioStar expert Ravichandran Ashwin was quoted as saying exclusively on JioHotstar’s ‘Google Search AI Mode Match Centre Live’.
Ashwin lauds Jacob Duffy
Ashwin also spoke about Jacob Duffy and how important he was with the ball. He said Duffy’s skills and smart bowling made a big difference on a pitch where runs usually come easily.
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“When Jacob Duffy was picked at the auction, I was probably the first one to say it was an amazing pick to replace Josh Hazlewood. At that time, he was the No.1 T20 bowler. He had also taken a six-wicket haul in a Test match and is right in the prime of his career. He has bowled a lot in New Zealand and knows exactly what he is doing. What really stood out is that he can swing the ball both ways, but he didn’t try to do that against Abhishek Sharma. The first time he bowled full to Travis Head, he got pumped down the ground, a good lesson learned. After that, he stayed away from that length and bowled very good areas. Tactically, RCB were superior and he executed those plans beautifully. He was probably the reason the scoring was kept in check. With around 400 runs in the day, it was still a low-scoring game by Chinnaswamy standards," he added.
RCB vs SRH IPL 2026 opener
Virat Kohli played a brilliant unbeaten knock of 69 off 38 balls, while Devdutt Padikkal added a quick 61, helping Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets in the IPL opener.
SRH batted first and recovered well to put up 201 for nine. Stand-in captain Ishan Kishan led the fight with an impressive 80 off 38 balls, especially after the team had slipped to 29 for three inside five overs. Ankit Verma also made a strong impact with a fast 43 from just 18 balls.
Chasing the target, RCB made it look easy as they finished the game in just 15.4 overs. Padikkal set the tone with his attacking innings, while Kohli stayed till the end. Rajat Patidar also chipped in with a quick 31 off 12 balls.