Royal Challengers Bangalore, who are in great form, will face Delhi Capitals in the 24th league match of IPL 2025 on Thursday. All eyes will be on the exciting clash between Virat Kohli and Mitchell Starc. Delhi has won all three of their matches so far, while RCB has won three out of four. Both teams have done well in adjusting to different situations and opponents.
RCB Confident After Strong Wins
Royal Challengers Bangalore are in great form this season. They have won matches in Kolkata, Chennai, and Mumbai. Their only loss came against the Gujarat Titans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. However, that defeat was more due to the pitch conditions than the team’s performance. As they prepare to face Delhi Capitals, RCB will need to be careful. Delhi has already won matches on tough pitches like Visakhapatnam and Chennai. Still, RCB’s confidence is high, especially because of Virat Kohli’s excellent form.
Kohli vs Starc and Kuldeep – The Key Battles
Virat Kohli, who is 36 now, will have to face two major threats – Mitchell Starc and Kuldeep Yadav. Kohli has a good record against Starc, scoring 72 runs off 31 balls in T20s. But Starc is in top form this season, with 9 wickets in just 3 matches at an average of 11. The power-play battle between Kohli and Starc will be crucial.
After Starc, Kohli will have to tackle Kuldeep Yadav, who has taken 6 wickets so far with an economy rate of just 6. However, Kohli has worked hard on his game, especially against spin. He is now playing high shots and sweeps with more confidence, which helps him score freely.
RCB Batters vs Delhi Spinners
Kuldeep Yadav is a tricky bowler and can trouble any batter. RCB captain Rajat Patidar is also in good touch and is known for handling spinners well. Delhi will hope for a better performance from Axar Patel. He has bowled 8 overs in 3 matches but is yet to take a wicket.
Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar’s Role in Powerplay
Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have been very effective for RCB with the new ball. Their main target will be KL Rahul, who is now playing aggressive cricket from the start. This makes him dangerous. RCB will also keep an eye on the fitness of Faf du Plessis. He missed the last game against Chennai. If he is fit, RCB’s bowlers will have to work harder as Faf is familiar with the conditions in Bengaluru.
Probable Playing Squads
Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Rajat Patidar (captain), Virat Kohli, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Salam, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Tushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathi.
Delhi Capitals:
Axar Patel (captain), KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Jake Fraser-McGurk, Karun Nair, Faf du Plessis, Donovan Ferreira, Abhishek Porel (wicketkeeper), Tristan Stubbs (wicketkeeper), Sameer Rizvi, Ashutosh Sharma, Darshan Nalkande, Vipraj Nigam, Ajay Mandal, Manwant Kumar, Tripurana Vijay, Madhav Tiwary, Mitchell Starc, T Natarajan, Mohit Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav.