RCB captain Rajat Patidar (Image: X)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru will be without regular captain Rajat Patidar for their crucial IPL 2026 clash against Punjab Kings at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on Sunday, with wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma set to lead the side in his absence.According to sources, Patidar did not travel with the squad to Dharamsala and also missed both practice sessions ahead of the much-anticipated rematch of the IPL 2025 final, where RCB defeated PBKS to lift their maiden title.“Rajat Patidar won’t be playing today. Jitesh will captain RCB for this game. Patidar was not seen in the team’s travel videos and missed training as well. He is expected to return for RCB’s final league game in Hyderabad,” a source told IANS.Patidar has been one of Bengaluru’s standout performers this season, scoring 326 runs in 10 innings at a blistering strike rate of 195, including three half-centuries. His absence leaves a major gap in RCB’s middle order and forces the team management to rethink their batting combination for a crucial encounter.RCB currently sit at the top of the IPL 2026 points table and another victory would officially seal their playoff qualification. The team heads into the contest with strong momentum after back-to-back wins. The Bengaluru franchise will also continue to miss English opener Phil Salt, who remains unavailable due to a finger injury. As a result, fellow England batter Jacob Bethell is expected to continue opening alongside Virat Kohli.
Predicted XIIs for Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings:
RCB: Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Venkatesh Iyer, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (c/wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salam Dar, Jacob Duffy, Josh HazlewoodPBKS: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Suryansh Shedge, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
