Why Is Virat Kohli Playing As Impact Player in RCB Playing XI Tonight in RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Match?

Why Is Virat Kohli Playing As Impact Player in RCB Playing XI Tonight in RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Match? It is a question that will be on the minds of many fans, especially since the Royal Challengers Bengaluru former skipper and star batter was a major name missing from the lineup.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Lucknow Super Giants lock horns tonight (April 15) in their respective fifth game of the tournament, being played at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru.

Why Is Virat Kohli Playing As Impact Player in RCB Playing XI Tonight in RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Match?

The question ‘Why Is Virat Kohli Playing As Impact Player in RCB Playing XI Tonight in RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Match?’ has been trending since the toss. The answer is simple: Virat Kohli had suffered an ankle injury during their last match against Mumbai Indians (MI) and RCB wants to take a cautious approach.

It was also reported that the legendary batter had a fever and an eye infection, but he chose to play with it against MI. The health concerns were also the reason why he did not look his best while scoring a sluggish fifty in the game, off 37 balls with a strike rate of 131.58 and a 31.57% dot balls during his stay. Furthermore, he was spotted with a strapping on his knee before the Lucknow match.

Also, with Bengaluru opting to bowl first against LSG, they have opted to start with Rasikh Salam Dar in the RCB Playing XI with an option to bring on Virat Kohli when they begin the chase. In case RCB decides to rest Kohli completely, Devdutt Padikkal can slot at the top with Venkatesh Iyer coming on as IP and getting his first chance this season.

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RCB vs LSG Playing XIs

Royal Challengers Bengaluru – Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar

RCB Impact Subs: Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Jordan Cox, Kanishk Chouhan, Mangesh Yadav

Lucknow Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav

LSG Impact Subs: Manimaran Siddharth, George Linde, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh, Mayank Yadav

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