He had picked up a finger injury during RCB's clash against CSK.
As the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) clash is underway, a new captain walks out in the red and blue outfit. Rajat Patidar is not leading his side today. Instead, Jitesh Sharma has been named the captain for this Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 clash at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. The clash was originally scheduled to be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. But it was shifted to a neutral venue due to bad weather in the Garden City.
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At the coin toss, Jitesh mentioned that Patidar is listed as one of the impact players. Another news from the centre is that RCB won the toss and decided to bowl first.
This change in line-up comes after Patidar picked up a finger injury during RCB’s last clash against Chennai Super Kings before the unprecedented suspension of the league. Due to the risk of aggravating his injury, Patidar is unable to play a full 40-over match. As a result, he has been designated as an Impact Player substitute. He is therefore ineligible to serve as captain for the match. He may bat at his normal position of No.4.
Leading an IPL franchise for the first time, Patidar has carried RCB well into the playoffs. With the willow, he has made 239 runs in 10 innings, which includes two fifties. He has been one of the key batters in the middle order.
Similarly, this is Jitesh’s first time too to lead RCB. Previously, he led his former team Punjab Kings, against the same opponents, the SRH. The keeper-batter bats lower down the order to add some quick runs on the board. In eight innings, he has remained not out thrice while collecting 128 runs.
As we move to the business end of the season, RCB need two wins to finish in the top two spots of the points table. Two other teams are also in contention to finish strong ahead of the IPL 2025 playoffs, making this content an exciting one till the last fixture.
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Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarwal, Jitesh Sharma (w/c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Lungi Ngidi, Suyash Sharma.
Impact Subs: Rajat Patidar, Rasikh Dar Salam Manoj Bhandage, Swapnil Singh.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins (c), Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga.
Impact Subs: Mohammad Shami, Harsh Dubey, Sachin Baby, Zeeshan Ansari, Simarjeet Singh.
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