VIRAT KOHLI scored an unbeaten 69 as defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets in the IPL season opener on Saturday. The match began with a tribute to the 11 fans who died in a stampede last year.
The fans were remembered with 11 empty seats and a minute’s silence before the match. Players also wore black armbands at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Bengaluru won their first IPL title in 18 attempts in the 2025 season, but a victory parade outside the stadium had turned tragic.
On Saturday, a large crowd welcomed the home team, with the loudest response for Kohli, who led the chase of 202 in 15.4 overs.
Kohli, who now plays only the 50-over format for India after retiring from Test and T20 internationals, hit five fours and five sixes in his 38-ball innings.
"Whenever I come back to play, it's 120 percent. I'm not coming back underprepared; in fact, the extra rest helps me mentally freshen up," Kohli said.
"And as long as you're physically fit and mentally excited, both those things come together nicely. You don't want to just hold on to a spot; you want to keep performing and keep putting in the work for the team."
Hyderabad made 201-9 after being put in to bat, with stand-in captain Ishan Kishan scoring 80 off 38 balls, including eight fours and five sixes.
New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy made an impact on his IPL debut with figures of 3-22 in four overs.
Duffy took the wickets of openers Abhishek Sharma (7) and Travis Head (11).
Kishan added 97 runs for the fourth wicket with Heinrich Klaasen, who scored 31.
England’s Phil Salt took a one-handed catch in the deep after covering ground to dismiss Kishan off Abhinandan Singh.
Bengaluru lost opener Salt for eight early in the chase, but impact substitute Devdutt Padikkal scored 61 off 26 balls.
Padikkal added 101 runs with Kohli, who hit a straight six that struck the sightscreen.
Kohli finished the match with a six and three fours in successive balls.
"We will be a little more cautious with the bowling, areas where we need to execute, and we might be stronger from the next game," said Kishan.
Kishan is leading Hyderabad in place of Pat Cummins, who is recovering from a back injury and is expected to return later in the tournament.
