Eighteen years. Three lost finals. A generation of heartbreak. Then, on 3 June 2025 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Royal Challengers Bengaluru finally lifted the IPL trophy. Rajat Patidar raised the silverware. Virat Kohli wept. Now, as IPL 2026 approaches – 26 March to 31 May across Indian venues – a new question confronts the franchise: can RCB defend their crown? The answer lies in a squad built on continuity, one transformative T20 World Cup performance, and the quiet confidence of champions.
How RCB Won IPL 2025: The Title-Winning Foundation
RCB finished second in the league stage with only four defeats. They became the first IPL team to win all away matches in a single season. Kohli scored 657 runs – the most by any RCB batter that year – including eight half-centuries across fifteen matches. Hazlewood claimed 22 wickets to lead the bowling charts. The balance between Kohli’s accumulation and Salt’s explosive top-order starts gave RCB a dual threat that few oppositions could contain.
In the final against Punjab Kings at Ahmedabad, RCB posted 190 for 9. Kohli anchored the innings with 43 off 35 balls. Jitesh Sharma’s cameo of 24 off 10 balls proved decisive in the death overs. Then the bowlers took over. Krunal Pandya delivered match-winning figures of 2 for 17 on a surface offering turn. Bhuvneshwar Kumar chipped in with 2 for 38. PBKS fell six runs short, and RCB’s 18-year drought ended. Patidar lifted the trophy in his first season as captain – an achievement only Shane Warne and Hardik Pandya had managed before him.
Captain Patidar’s composure drew widespread praise. Coach Andy Flower called it “a really tricky job” and lauded how the first-time skipper “held himself with all that scrutiny.” Director of cricket Mo Bobat revealed the franchise had discussed giving Kohli the captaincy but chose long-term thinking instead. “At some point, we can’t be dependent on Virat all the time,” Bobat said. Patidar vindicated that gamble with a trophy in year one.
RCB’s IPL 2026 Squad: Retentions, Releases, and Auction Strategy
RCB retained 17 players from the title-winning squad. Kohli stayed at ₹21 crore. Hazlewood commanded ₹12.50 crore. Salt (₹11.50 crore), Patidar (₹11 crore), and Jitesh Sharma (₹11 crore) rounded out the top retentions. Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Yash Dayal, and Rasikh Salam all stayed.
Liam Livingstone – inconsistent at enormous wages – was the only major overseas release. Lungi Ngidi and Mayank Agarwal also departed. RCB entered the December 2025 Abu Dhabi auction with ₹16.40 crore and eight slots. Venkatesh Iyer headlined the buys at ₹7 crore, reuniting with his Madhya Pradesh teammate Patidar. Mangesh Yadav (₹5.20 crore) and New Zealand seamer Jacob Duffy (₹2 crore) added depth. Jordan Cox, Satvik Deswal, Vicky Ostwal, Vihaan Malhotra, and Kanishk Chouhan filled the remaining spots at base-price values.
The batting reads like a greatest-hits compilation. Kohli anchors the top order. Salt provides explosive intent at the top. Padikkal offers an elegant left-handed option. Patidar steadies the middle overs. Tim David provides raw power in the death phase. Jitesh Sharma’s finishing ability adds further depth. Iyer fills the Livingstone-shaped hole with left-handed batting and medium pace.
The pace unit is arguably the most balanced in the competition. Hazlewood leads with metronomic accuracy and death-overs mastery. Bhuvneshwar brings powerplay swing. Yash Dayal provides left-arm variety. Shepherd adds hitting power and pace-bowling utility. Krunal controls the spin department. Suyash Sharma offers a mystery-spin option for the middle overs.
Full Squad: Virat Kohli, Phil Salt (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Swapnil Singh, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Salam, Nuwan Thushara, Suyash Sharma, Abhinandan Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, Jacob Duffy, Mangesh Yadav, Jordan Cox (wk), Satvik Deswal, Vicky Ostwal, Vihaan Malhotra, Kanishk Chouhan.
T20 World Cup 2026: How It Reshapes RCB’s Starting Eleven
India’s T20 World Cup 2026 triumph – a 96-run demolition of New Zealand in the Ahmedabad final on 8 March – cast a long shadow over IPL preparations. For RCB, the tournament delivered both good news and genuine alarm.
Kohli, retired from T20Is since 2024, arrives completely rested. Zero workload concerns. He trained in the UK during the World Cup. At 37, that freshness is invaluable. Salt played every match for England as opener and vice-captain. He enters IPL 2026 match-sharp but faces tight recovery time after seven high-intensity games.
Jacob Bethell’s World Cup Masterclass: Why He Must Start for RCB
Forget the bench. Jacob Bethell announced himself as a superstar at the T20 World Cup 2026. In the semi-final against India at the Wankhede on 5 March, the 22-year-old scored 105 off 48 balls. Eight fours. Seven sixes. A strike rate of 219. His 45-ball century ranks as the second-fastest in World Cup history. The knock set the record for the highest individual score in a T20 World Cup knockout game.
Bethell attacked Jasprit Bumrah without flinching. One reverse-lap off Varun Chakaravarthy sailed over the boundary for six. For two hours, he kept 1.4 billion Indian fans on the edge of their seats. Harry Brook called the innings “ridiculous.” ESPNcricinfo described it as batting “of the highest quality.” England fell seven runs short chasing 254, but Bethell’s knock will endure as one of the defining moments of the tournament. The match produced 499 combined runs – the highest aggregate in T20 World Cup history.
Earlier in the competition, Bethell delivered with the ball too. He took career-best T20I figures of 4 for 11 against Sri Lanka, bowling left-arm spin that offers genuine variety alongside Krunal Pandya’s control. He became the youngest England cricketer with centuries in all three international formats. After this World Cup, Bethell arrives at RCB not as a promising youngster retained at ₹2.60 crore but a battle-hardened match-winner who dismantled the best bowling attack in world cricket on the biggest stage imaginable.
Hazlewood’s Injury and Bhuvneshwar’s Form: RCB’s Pace Concerns
The alarm bells ring loudest here. Josh Hazlewood – ₹12.50 crore, 22 wickets in the 2025 title run – missed the entire T20 World Cup due to injury. He hasn’t played since November 2025. His IPL availability remains uncertain. If he misses matches, RCB lose their death-overs specialist.
Tim David and Nathan Ellis played for Australia, who exited in the Super 8s. Both have fresh legs and full recovery windows – a significant advantage in early-season IPL matches. Romario Shepherd featured for West Indies and gained valuable match practice on Indian pitches. But Bhuvneshwar Kumar – not selected for India’s World Cup squad – has struggled in the DY Patil Cup. Reports suggest his pace has dipped and his control has wavered. Yash Dayal hasn’t played since the June 2025 final due to legal issues. Two-thirds of last season’s title-winning pace trio face fitness or form doubts heading into the defence.
Final Predicted RCB Playing XI for IPL 2026
Bethell’s World Cup form makes him undroppable. With Salt, Tim David, and Hazlewood occupying three overseas slots, Bethell claims the fourth ahead of Shepherd. His left-arm spin, left-handed batting, and fearless stroke-play demand a starting berth.
Predicted XI: 1. Virat Kohli, 2. Phil Salt (wk), 3. Jacob Bethell, 4. Rajat Patidar (c), 5. Venkatesh Iyer, 6. Tim David, 7. Krunal Pandya, 8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9. Josh Hazlewood, 10. Yash Dayal, 11. Suyash Sharma.
Bethell bats at three – the position he occupied during his World Cup heroics against India’s attack. His left-handedness breaks up a right-hand-heavy top four. Iyer provides power at five. Krunal at seven handles spin duties alongside Bethell’s part-time overs. Six bowling options cover all phases: Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar share the new ball, Dayal offers left-arm variety, Krunal controls the middle overs, Bethell chips in with spin, and Suyash adds a leg-break option.
Shepherd, Jitesh, Padikkal, Duffy, and Rasikh form the bench core. If Hazlewood’s injury lingers, Shepherd re-enters for pace and finishing power. If Dayal remains unavailable, Rasikh Salam steps in as the Indian seam option. Flower has contingency plans. But the first-choice eleven – built around Bethell’s World Cup form and the title-winning spine – picks itself.
RCB’s Strengths and Weaknesses Heading into IPL 2026
RCB’s greatest asset is certainty. Most franchises guess their best eleven. RCB already know theirs. Match-winners populate every batting position from one through seven. Home advantage at the Chinnaswamy – flat, true, pace-on – suits their power-hitting lineup perfectly. Kohli averages over 40 at the ground across all IPL seasons. Salt thrives on pace-on surfaces. Tim David can clear any boundary. And the leadership group of Patidar, Kohli, and Flower carries a champion’s confidence.
The weaknesses are equally real. Spin options beyond Krunal look thin – Suyash Sharma is talented but raw. Hazlewood’s injury and Dayal’s legal troubles could strip the pace attack bare. Bhuvneshwar’s DY Patil Cup form offers little reassurance at 36. Only three franchises – MI, CSK, and KKR – have ever defended an IPL title. Opponents will study RCB’s patterns ruthlessly. Complacency lurks in every title defence.
And yet, the fundamentals favour another deep playoff run. Kohli arrives rested. Bethell carries the confidence of a World Cup century against India’s best. Tim David has fresh legs. Patidar’s calm captaincy has earned trust. Bobat captured the franchise’s mood on the official podcast: “We’re not basking in glory. We’re chasing something else. We’re chasing back-to-back wins.” If any RCB side can deliver that ambition, it is this one. The Chinnaswamy awaits.
