IPL 2026: RCB opt to Bowl Against Struggling LSG as Inglis, Mohsin Khan and Avesh Khan Miss Out

Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the toss and elected to bowl first against Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL 2026 clash at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium on Thursday. Lucknow Super Giants entered the match under pressure after six successive defeats, while injuries ruled out Josh Inglis, Mohsin Khan and Avesh Khan from the contest.

LSG Under Pressure After Six Consecutive Defeats

Led by Rishabh Pant, Lucknow Super Giants came into the match after suffering six consecutive defeats in IPL 2026.

Their latest defeat came against Mumbai Indians, where they lost by six wickets.

Lucknow have managed only two wins from nine matches so far and currently remain at the bottom of the IPL 2026 points table with four points.

With playoff chances fading rapidly, the team will be desperate to return to winning ways.

RCB Aim to Strengthen Playoff Push

Royal Challengers Bengaluru also entered the contest after losing their previous game to Gujarat Titans by four wickets.

Despite the defeat, RCB are placed second on the points table with six wins from nine matches.

A victory against Lucknow would further strengthen Bengaluru’s playoff qualification hopes.

The two sides last met on April 15 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, where the Rajat Patidar-led RCB registered a five-wicket victory.

Historically, RCB have won five out of seven IPL meetings against Lucknow, while LSG have won twice.

Captains Speak After Toss

RCB captain Rajat Patidar said after winning the toss:

“We will bowl first. It’s not as loud as Chinnaswamy, but it’s still loud. The surface looks good, and we’ll look to restrict them to a low score. The break was good; everyone is doing well, and we had some hard practice. We are playing with the same team.”

LSG skipper Rishabh Pant confirmed injury concerns in the squad.

“A few changes in our team. Some injuries – Inglis and Mohsin Khan miss out. The only thing is to move with clarity. We know we’re a top team, but the main thing is clarity. We have a few changes in the batting order. Having a stable environment is needed, but we need to make changes at times. Looks like a 180-190 wicket, a better wicket than most of the other games,” Pant said.

Playing XIs for RCB vs LSG IPL 2026 Match

Royal Challengers Bengaluru Playing XI

• Virat Kohli
• Jacob Bethell
• Devdutt Padikkal
• Rajat Patidar (c)
• Jitesh Sharma (wk)
• Tim David
• Romario Shepherd
• Krunal Pandya
• Bhuvneshwar Kumar
• Josh Hazlewood
• Suyash Sharma

RCB Impact Substitutes

• Rasikh Dar
• Jordan Cox
• Mangesh Yadav
• Vicky Ostwal
• Venkatesh Iyer

Lucknow Super Giants Playing XI

• Mitchell Marsh
• Arshin Kulkarni
• Nicholas Pooran
• Aiden Markram
• Rishabh Pant (wk/c)
• Akshat Raghuwanshi
• Himmat Singh
• Shahbaz Ahmed
• Digvesh Singh Rathi
• Mohammed Shami
• Prince Yadav

LSG Impact Substitutes

• Mayank Yadav
• Mukul Chowdhary
• Abdul Samad
• M Siddharth
• Avesh Khan

Royal Challengers Bengaluru elected to bowl first against struggling Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL 2026 clash at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. LSG entered the match after six straight defeats and with injuries ruling out Inglis, Mohsin Khan and Avesh Khan, while RCB looked to strengthen their playoff chances with another victory.

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