Royal Challengers Bengaluru announced an unchanged combination for the IPL 2026 final against Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The keeper-batter hurt his hand earlier in the tournament and was forced to miss the following matches. He even moved to England for recovery and returned to join the squad only a day before RCBโs final league game of the season.
He was expected to get back into action in the Qualifier 1 clash against Gujarat Titans. However, RCB backed the same playing XI, as Salt was spotted wearing a brace to protect his finger in the dugout. However, since then, the England international has improved his fitness and is reportedly fit for the summit clash. Despite so, RCB didnโt change their playing XI, as they were more inclined towards playing the second overseas pacer, Jacob Duffy.
In Qualifier 1, the New Zealand international claimed three wickets and will once again play a vital role in Ahmedabad. He rattled Gujaratโs top order in the previous game and another such night can seal the deal for the defending champions.
RCB opt to bowl
Bengaluru have won the toss and elected to bowl first in the final. Explaining the reason behind the decision, Patidar stated that the ball will come nicely to the bat and assessed that the wicket wonโt change and hence, chasing could be an easier option.
โWe’ll bowl first. (On the surface) It’s a pretty good wicket. The ball will come nicely on the bat, but to be honest, it will not change in the 40 overs. So we’ll try to get them early as possible,โ Patidar said.ย
Shubman Gill, on the other hand, wasnโt too disappointed with the toss outcome as he revealed wanting to bat first. The GT captain also shared that he made one change to the squad with Arshad Khan replacing Sai Kishore.
Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Nishant Sindhu, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam Dar
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