After some thrilling T20 World Cup action, it is now time for cricket lovers to dive into the latest season of the Indian Premier League.
The most prestigious franchise league in the sport, this is where the best white-ball players on the planet write themselves into the history books.
Reigning champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru – who won the IPL for the very first time in 2025 – kick off the new season with an intriguing contest against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
The Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, a venue synonymous with Indian cricket, plays host to the opening match on Saturday afternoon.
And to further whet the appetite, here is our full cricket betting preview, and we have picked out some tips based on NetBet Sport’s latest IPL odds.
Where can I watch Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad in the UK?
Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Cricket, with the match scheduled to start at 2pm UK time.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Preview
Predicted XIs
SRH captain and world-class fast bowler Pat Cummins will miss the first few games of the season through injury, while his Aussie team-mate Josh Hazelwood is in the same position for RCB. It represents a significant blow for each side.
RCB Predicted XI: Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (captain), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, Mangesh Yadav.
SRH Predicted XI: Abishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (captain & wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Liam Livingstone, Harshal Patel, Zeeshan Ansari, Eshan Malinga, Jaydev Unadkat.
Head-to-head record
These two franchises have faced each other 26 times in the IPL, with SRH the more successful courtesy of 13 wins to RCB’s 11. The other two matches ended without a result.
SRH won by 42 runs when the two teams met last May, Kishan top scoring with an outstanding 94 not out off just 48 deliveries, the skilled batsman helping his side post a mammoth first-innings score of 231/6. RCB could only muster 189 all out in response.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Odds
*All odds are subject to change
RCB are slight favourites to claim the win in the opening match of IPL 2026 at a price of 1.72. A victory for SRH is at odds of 2.00.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Betting Tips
Royal Challengers Bengaluru top batter – Virat Kohli @ 3.20
Kohli has played for RCB in every season of the IPL, and his record at the Chinnaswamy is pretty absurd as a result. In 94 IPL matches at the iconic stadium, the legend of Indian cricket – and among the greatest white-ball batters in history – tallied 3,202 runs at an average 40.02 and a strike rate of 143.58. At the age of 37, Kohli still looks in exceptional condition, so we are backing him to kick off IPL 2026 in typical fashion.
Most sixes – Sunrisers Hyderabad @ 1.89
While RCB are deservedly the favourites to claim the win here, SRH are lower priced in this market – and with good reason. The team from Hyderabad are renowned for their six-hitting prowess, spearheaded by the opening partnership of Head and Abishek. And with the likes of Kishan, Livingstone and Klaasen to come later in the piece, SRH often clear the boundary rope for fun.
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