Page 25 - Royal Challengers Bengaluru

RCB's team balance is ten times better than before, says AB de Villiers

With Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) off to one of their best starts in the IPL, retired South African great AB de Villiers feels that the balance of the team looks "10 times better" than the previous editions and the head-start it has got will make the job easier going forward. Led by Rajat Patidar, RCB crushed five-time IPL champions Chennai Super Kings by 50 runs at Chepauk on Friday to win their second straight away game. It was also RCB's first win against CSK in Chennai since the inaugural edition in 2008. "The balance of the RCB squad is 10 times better compared to previous seasons," the Bengaluru franchise loyalist said on his podcast 'AB de Villiers 360'. "At the (IPL) auction (last year), I spoke about RCB needing balance. It's not about the bowlers, batters or fielders... it's about having a sound balance in IPL teams and options," said the South African great, who played almost all his IPL for RCB. With India swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar drafted into the side for th

IPL 2025: Pujara questions CSK's pitch strategy after Fleming's remark

Indian Test legend Cheteshwar Pujara believes that Chennai Super Kings is "one franchise" that has always prepared tracks at the Chepauk as per its strengths and hence finds it difficult to digest head coach Stephen Fleming's comment of "not having any home advantage". CSK suffered their heaviest home defeat while chasing, losing by 50 runs to Rajat Patidar-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Pujara, who was with the franchise for a season in 2021, also indicated that CSK middle-order comprising Deepak Hooda, Shivam Dube, Sam Curran and Mahendra Singh Dhoni might have to shoulder more responsibility. "... at CSK, you can't complain. It's one franchise where they've been preparing pitches according to their strengths. If he's (Fleming) saying that [there is no home advantage, they don't have a say, then I'm quite surprised," Pujara told ESPNCricinfo. Pujara said that the legacy franchises like Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders always get what they want in te

IPL 2025: RCB's approach key to historic win vs Chennai - Aakash Chopra

Watson stressed that CSK's batting order appeared unbalanced, with players like Deepak Hooda and Sam Curran failing to make a significant impact in positions that didn't suit them.

IPL 2025: Virat Kohli's top 5 IPL records that look impossible to break

The 2016 IPL season saw Virat Kohli elevate his batting to a level never seen before. He amassed 973 runs in 16 matches, the highest in a single season by any batter to date

CSK vs RCB HIGHLIGHTS IPL 2025: RCB breach fortress Chepauk after 17 years, beat CSK by 50 runs

The live streaming for the Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru IPL match will be available on the JioHotstar app.

IPL 2025: Anti-Dhoni memes flood social media after RCB win over CSK

Though Dhoni has a crazy fan base, he has been facing criticism over his choice of batting position whenever Chennai Super Kings lose early wickets in IPL match

IPL 2025: MS Dhoni's lightning stumping leaves Salt stunned | Watch video

MS Dhoni earlier on Sunday showcased his lightning-fast glovework with a sharp stumping of Mumbai Indians captain Suryakumar Yadav

IPL 2025: CSK vs RCB Playing 11, live toss and match time, streaming

Jio Hotstar app and website will provide the live streaming of the CSK vs RCB match.

IPL 2025: CSK vs RCB Playing 11; Gaikwad and Patidar's captaincy record

Royal Challengers Bengaluru began their season with an impressive win over Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens.

IPL 2025 live streaming: Where to watch CSK vs RCB cricket match live?

Star Sports Network in India will telecast the IPL 2025 match between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

IPL 2025: CSK vs RCB head-to-head record, key toss stats in Chennai

Out of 33 encounters between CSK and RCB in the IPL, CSK lead quite comfortably with 21 victories to RCB's 11 wins so far.

IPL 2025 CSK vs RCB: Chennai pitch report and Chepauk Stadium's key stats

Chennai Super Kings have a strong record at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, with 52 wins out of 76 matches. Key stats at Chepauk Stadium since 2024 in T20s: Matches - 11, Bat 1st Won - 3, Bat 2nd Won - 8

IPL 2025: Virat Kohli is constantly looking to improve his game - Karthik

Virat Kohli's exemplary work ethic continues to serve as a source of inspiration for his teammates and the Indian superstar remains committed to raising the bar for himself, said RCB batting coach Dinesh Karthik on Thursday. Karthik, a former RCB player who retired after the last IPL edition, said Kohli remains as hungry as ever "Even today, just now as I came out, he wanted to work on one more shot. At this point in time, to work on one more shot tells you the hunger that he has in his mindset," the former India wicketkeeper-batter said on the ever of RCB versus CSK clash. "He wants to just improve and keep raising the bar. So, he is a special player. And at this point in time, the way I see it, he is batting as confidently and as well as he has ever done in the IPL." Karthik also played down his recent struggles against spin. "He's coming on some serious runs in the Champions Trophy. He's batted well in the recent past against spin, especially in white-ball cricket. So, I don't

Relive top five memorable CSK vs RCB cricket matches in IPL over the years

Matches between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru have always been highly anticipated, with both franchises boasting passionate fanbases.

Ruturaj Gaikwad excited for IPL 2025 clash with RCB and Virat Kohli

Gaikwad particularly highlighted the challenge of going up against RCB's new captain, Rajat Patidar, and the legendary Virat Kohli, making it a highly anticipated clash.

Krunal a smart pick; there's something special about RCB this year: Hayden

Australian great Matthew Hayden has hailed the selection of Krunal Pandya as a smart pick for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) camp in this IPL season, adding that there is something special about this RCB unit this year. RCB halted Kolkata Knight Riders' charge in the IPL opener on Saturday, staging a remarkable comeback to secure a seven-wicket win, which was completed with 22 balls to spare in pursuit of 175. Left-arm spinner Pandya set up the win for RCB, returning figures of 4-0-29-3. The opening pair of Phil Salt (56) and Virat Kohli (59) then scripted the chase, with skipper Rajat Patidar (34) making all the right moves to ensure RCB began the season with a victory. It was an emphatic and important victory for Rajat Patidar as the new captain. Having Virat Kohli in great form certainly helps, Hayden was quoted as saying in a JioStar release. Their bowling lineup looked solid Krunal Pandya was a handy asset through the middle, and Josh Hazlewood did what he does best. F

KKR skipper Rahane backs team, says 'no need to panic' after loss to RCB

"We don't need to panic," said Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Ajinkya Rahane after their heavy loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL opener, firmly backing their explosive middle-order despite its failure to deliver. The defending champions, under new skipper Rahane, were scoring at over 10 runs per over at the halfway mark when RCB turned the tide in their favour. A match-turning spell from left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya restricted KKR to a below-par 174/8, a target RCB chased down with 22 balls to spare at Eden Gardens on Saturday. This is our first game of the season and the batting line-up or the team which we have, we have guys who like to go after the ball. I don't want to pinpoint on certain things. As a team, I thought, in a few areas we did really well. There're always areas we can improve as a team, as an individual, Rahane said at the post-match media interaction. Backing his middle-order batters despite their struggles, Rahane said, Because guys who got out in t

IPL 2025: Why was Bhuvaneshwar Kumar not picked in RCB playing 11 vs KKR?

The decision to exclude Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was bought for a hefty ₹10.75 crore in the mega auction, caught many by surprise, including Ravi Shastri.

IPL 2025: Most expensive players bought over the years in IPL history

Among the biggest deals, Shreyas Iyer became the second-most expensive player in IPL history, with Lucknow Super Giants shelling out a whopping Rs 27 crore for Rishabh Pant.

IPL 2025 KKR vs RCB player battles: Kohli vs Narine, Salt vs Russell & more

KKR and RCB have delivered some of the most thrilling clashes in IPL history, including a nail-biting one-run victory just last year.