IPL 2026: Jitesh Sharma, Skipper Rajat Patidar Deliver Explosive 50s; Virat Kohli Plays Short Cameo In RCB's First Warm-Up Match
· Free Press Journal
Bengaluru: Wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma scored a 37-ball 81, skipper Rajat Patidar got a blazing 25-ball 74, while superstar batter Virat Kohli played a quick 12-ball 29 run cameo in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) first warm-up match ahead of their title defence starting from March 28 against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).
Before kickstarting their IPL title defence against Men in Orange at home in Bengaluru, RCB batters looked in pretty good nick, even while playing brief cameos. Jitesh, Rajat, Devdutt Paddikal and Krunal Pandya were among the batters to have scored fifties.
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Batting first, team led by Venkatesh Iyer posted 234/7, with Jitesh (81 in 37 balls), Tim David (36 in 14 balls), Iyer (30 in 16 balls) and Virat (29 in 12 balls) dominating the scorecard. In their 20 overs, the other team, led by Krunal, fired 247 runs, with Rajat (74 in 25 balls), Padikkal (63 in 33 balls) and Krunal (58 in 33 balls) delivering standout performances.
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— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) March 23, 2026
Jitesh, Rajat, Devdutt and KP amongst the runs, exciting cameos from Virat, Venky and TD, and some promising spells to sum up an exciting practice game.
Watch how it all… pic.twitter.com/SAaT2kPNox
Reflecting on Virat's batting, Krunal said, "Some of the shots that Virat played today were amazing. Looking good, which is a great sign for us. So, fingers crossed."
Speaking after the match's conclusion, RCB's head coach Andy Flower praised Jitesh and Rajat for their standout performances and pointed out that youngsters like Abhinandan Singh, Rasikh Dar Salam and Vicky Ostwal did well with a ball in hand.
"Some of the highlights, I suppose, from the evening are watching guys like Jitesh who scored 80 or 35 balls or so. Rajat is there, hitting beautiful shots as we know that he can. Some of the youngsters are performing. Abhinandan was good with the ball, Rasikh was good with the ball. For instance, it was nice to see Vicky Ostwal and his skill with the left-arm spin. So that was a great night's work for everyone in the squad and rest tomorrow," he said.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)