IPL 2026: Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s strongest predicted XI against Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) play their final league game of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) when they travel to take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Friday, 22.

The two sides faced each other on the opening day of the 2026 season, with the defending champions securing a six-wicket victory at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium. Rajat Patidar’s side have amassed 18 points from 13 matches and have qualified for the playoffs. However, a win against SRH would guarantee them a place in Qualifiers 1, giving them two chances of making it through to the final.

RCB have arguably been the best side during the league phase of the tournament, which is mainly down to how stable their first-choice playing XI has been. They have match-winners with both bat and ball, and are never reliant on just one player to help them get over the line. 

Here is RCB’s strongest predicted XI vs SRH, Match 67, IPL 2026:

Top Order: Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal

For 13 matches this season, Virat Kohli has opened with an English batter, be it Phil Salt or Jacob Bethell. However, there is a possibility that the latter could be replaced with Ventakesh Iyer, based on the left-hander’s form. He scored an unbeaten 73 against the Punjab Kings in the previous game and is also an adequate top-order batter in the IPL.

According to reports, Phil Salt is back from England after recovering from his finger injury, but is expected to return to the playing XI in the playoffs.

Middle Order: Rajat Patidar (C), Jitesh Sharma (WK), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya

RCB’s middle order has relied on captain Rajat Patidar for most of the season. The right-handed batter has scored 337 runs at a strike-rate of 192.57, his highest since making his IPL debut in 2021. The Bengaluru-based franchise have also received match-winning knocks from Tim David and Krunal Pandya in the past. However, the form of Romario Shepherd and Jitesh Sharma is a cause for concern, with the wicketkeeper-batter scoring just 90 runs all season long.

Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma

Throughout the years, RCB have been renowned for their batters. But this season, the bowlers have won as many games as their batting counterparts. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is currently the Purple Cap holder and is enjoying a career renaissance with 24 wickets at an economy rate of 7.70. Meanwhile, both Josh Hazlewood and Rasikh Salam have 12 dismissals each, with Krunal Pandya not too far behind on 10.

RCB’s predicted playing XI vs SRH in Match 67, IPL 2026:

Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (C), Jitesh Sharma (WK), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma

Impact Player: Jacob Duffy