In their 18 years of existence, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have never won the Indian Premier League (IPL) title. Their best performance has been the finals they reached thrice.
However, in IPL 2025, things seem to have fallen in place for RCB, who have found their mojo again and currently placed third in the standings with 14 points from 10 matches, trailing Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans on net run rate but have a match in hand.
On Saturday, they face their Southern rival Chennai Super Kings, who are already out of playoffs contention and have nothing to lose. On top of that, the clash at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium is an opportunity for CSK to take revenge on RCB had beaten them for the first time in their den, the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
RCB have impressed many experts this season, one of them former England captain Eoin Morgan told JioStar that Rajat Patidar's side has done a lot of things right this season.
I think RCB has done a lot of things right. One of the things I’ve really enjoyed watching this year is Phil Salt at the top of the order, along with Virat Kohli — the way they’ve gone about their business. I know Phil has missed out recently, and Jacob has come in, but the aggression they showed at the top allowed them to carry the same mentality through the middle order.
Kohli has so far piled on 443 runs in 10 matches while Salt has contributed 239 runs in nine innings. With Devdutt Padikkal scoring 230 runs and Rajat Patidar making 228 runs, the RCB top-order is in fine nick and have contributed a lot of their success this season. However Salt is not available because of an injury and Jacob Bethell will fill in.
Young Karnataka batter Devdutt Padikkal too has made some crucial contributions when one of the openers have got out early, important partnerships that helped RCB make a comeback.
We have played some really good cricket throughout the season, and there is no need to treat any game any differently. So, as long as we have done our preparations well and are completely focused on the game, I think we should be fine.
The match will pit Virat Kohli against his former captain M.S. Dhoni, both of who are iconic players and have fought many battles in the 18 years of IPL. While Kohli is among the top scorers in IPL 2025, Dhoni has got back his rhythm and would be hoping to make a big contribution.
To play against CSK in Bengaluru is something else because a lot of Chennai fans come to Bengaluru. CSK fans travel in huge numbers, so they buy tickets very early and take over a section of the stadium. So, there’s an intense atmosphere inside the stadium in Bengaluru when playing against CSK. And then, obviously, the game also gets very intense and competitive. That environment is the most exciting I’ve been a part of.
Placed at the bottom of the table, Chennai Super Kings are out of the race for the playoffs. They have struggled to play their game this season, their batters have failed to perform to their potential. They have lost some key players including skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad to injuries while the bowlers too have proven ineffective. Players like Rachin Ravindra, Ravindra Jadeja, and Shivam Dube have been quite inconsistent and failed to perform at their usual level.
After winning their opening match against MI, they lost five matches in a row. After a win at Lucknow Super Giants, they are again on a three-match losing streak. RCB will be hoping to extend that losing streak.
In the last five matches, RCB have won four while CSK have lost four. But overall, Chennai Super Kings have dominated the head-to-head series, winning 21 out of their 34 encounters and RCB managed to win 12 while one match ended in no result.
Probable playing XIs:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma
Chennai Super Kings: Shaik Rasheed, Ayush Mhatre, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Deepak Hooda, MS Dhoni (capt, wk), Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed