RCB vs DC IPL 2026: While powerplay and death overs are always in discussion in IPL 2026, this season the middle overs also showed a new color. The biggest reason for this is Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Rajat Patidar, who made this phase a decisive part of the match with his aggressive play.

This season, the average strike rate of batsmen between overs 6 to 16 is around 151.39 but Patidar is scoring runs at a strike rate of 223.86. This figure puts him far ahead of other batsmen.

He alone hit 18 sixes in the middle overs, while his teammates together were able to hit only 17 sixes.

Rajat Patidar is a game changer in the middle overs.
Now the contest becomes more interesting when Patidar will face Delhi Capitals spinners Akshar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. Both players have been part of recent World Champion teams and are known for their tight bowling in the middle overs.

Less scope for change in RCB’s playing-11
Talking about team news, RCB can go with almost the same playing eleven after their last win.

The team had defeated Lucknow Super Giants with 29 balls to spare, due to which their confidence is high.

Puzzle of number-3 complicated for Delhi
At the same time, Delhi Capitals is facing a dilemma regarding some selection. A decision is yet to be taken on who should be given a chance at number 3 between Nitish Rana and Ashutosh Sharma. Apart from this, there is also a challenge of selection in bowling between Aaqib Nabi and Vipraj Nigam.

Eyes will be on KL Rahul
Eyes will also be on KL Rahul in this match. Last year, he won the match against RCB by scoring 93 unbeaten runs.

His average against this team is 71.1 and strike rate is 144. However, recent figures suggest that he is struggling against leg spin. Since IPL 2025, he has been out twice against leg spin in nine innings and his strike rate has been just 101.

Virat Kohli can complete 300 sixes
Bengaluru wicketkeeper batsman Jitesh Sharma has not got many opportunities this season. He has played only 27 balls so far, but he can play an important role as a finisher for the team. A big record can also be broken in this match.

Virat Kohli is just one step away from completing his 300 sixes in IPL. Till now this achievement is only in the names of Chris Gayle (357) and Rohit Sharma (310).

Talking about the pitch, Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium is generally considered high scoring. However, in the last match the pitch was slow and dry, which caused problems to the batsmen. In such a situation, this time also the bowlers are expected to get help. Overall, this match will depend on the middle overs battle and the performance of the big players, which makes it more exciting.

Possible 12 for both teams

Royal Challengers Bangalore (Probable-12): 1 Phil Salt, 2 Virat Kohli, 3 Devdutt Padikkal, 4 Rajat Patidar (captain), 5 Jitesh Sharma (wicket-keeper), 6 Tim David, 7 Romario Shepherd, 8 Krunal Pandya, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Rasikh Salam, 12 Suyyash Sharma.

Delhi Capitals (probable): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 KL Rahul (wk), 3 Nitish Rana/Ashutosh Sharma, 4 Sameer Rizvi, 5 Axar Patel, 6 David Miller, 7 Tristan Stubbs, 8 Vipraj Nigam/Oqib Nabi, 9 Lungi Ngidi, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 T Natarajan, 12 Mukesh Kumar.