Batting great Virat Kohli has arrived in Bengaluru on Wednesday for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is scheduled to start from March 28. The former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Virat returned to RCB's den 10 days before the IPL 2026. Defending champions RCB will face Sunrisers Hyderabad in the tournament opener at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Virat Kohli's arrival in Bengaluru
RCB took their 'X' to share a clip of the airport where fans are getting frenzied after Kohli's arrival. Here is the video.
"You don’t have to see him… to know he’s coming! Check the calendar. There will be signs… ✨❤️" RCB captioned.
According to several videos shared on social media, Virat Kohli reached Bengaluru around 4 AM on Wednesday. In the last couple of years, Kohli has been living in the United Kingdom and usually travels to India for the IPL and to play for the national team.
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Kohli's last cricketing outing
He has already retired from Test cricket and T20Is, so now he only plays ODIs for India. The last time he played for the country was in January this year, during a three-match ODI series against New Zealand, in which the BlackCaps defeated India 2-1.
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Virat Kohli's performance in IPL 2025
Virat Kohli had a memorable IPL 2025 season, as his franchise RCB won their maiden IPL title after an 18-year wait. He was team's highest run-getter, amassing 657 runs in 15 matches.
RCB's IPL 2026 schedule
| Date | Match | Venue | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 28 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | Bengaluru | 7:30 PM |
| April 5 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Chennai Super Kings | Bengaluru | 7:30 PM |
| April 10 | Rajasthan Royals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Guwahati | 7:30 PM |
| April 12 | Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Mumbai | 7:30 PM |
RCB's IPL 2026 squad
New signings: Venkatesh Iyer, Jacob Duffy, Satvik Deswal, Mangesh Yadav, Jordan Cox, Vicky Ostwal, Vihaan Malhotra and Kanishk Chouhan.
Retained players: Rajat Patidar (captain), Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Nuwan Thushara, Rasikh Salam, Abhinandan Singh, Suyash Sharma.