New Delhi: A big surprise was in store for the fans ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Jitesh Sharma came to the centre for the coin toss against SRH skipper Pat Cummins, raising eyebrows at the leadership choice of the Bengaluru-based side.
Despite regular skipper Rajat Patidar returning to the fold following a brief spell on the sidelines due to a finger injury, stand-in captain Jitesh was sent for the toss in a crucial clash for RCB.
Jitesh won the toss and opted to bowl at the Ekana Stadium on Friday as RCB took the field, aiming to secure a top-two league stage finish for the first time in nine years. While RCB, currently second on the table with 17 points from 12 games, have qualified for the playoffs, wins in their remaining two matches could potentially seal a top-two spot.
For that reason, today’s match against SRH, who have been knocked out of playoffs contention, becomes crucial for RCB, who haven’t finished inside the top two since the 2016 season when they finished as runners-up.
After the washout on May 17 – the day of IPL resumption – RCB’s fixture vs SRH was shifted due to the heavy rains in South India.
Why is Patidar not captaining RCB?
On the eve of the match, Andy Flower, the head coach of RCB, revealed that Patidar is fit to play against the Sunrisers after recovering from a finger injury he suffered during the home game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) before IPL was suspended for a week due to the Indo-Pak military conflict.
Flower’s comments gave a clear indication that Patidar will return to lead the side against the Pat Cummins-led side.
However, the Madhya Pradesh star and regular RCB skipper is only fit enough to be named as one of the impact players and thus, Jitesh, the vice-captain, will act as the skipper against the Sunrisers.
Mayank Agarwal returns to the IPL fold after being named in the playing XI in place of Devdutt Padikkal.
Meanwhile, SRH has made three changes with Travis Head, Abhinav Manohar and Jaydev Unadkat coming back to the playing XI.
Stand-in skipper Jitesh Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl at the Ekana Stadium on Friday as RCB took the field against SRH, aiming to secure a top-two league stage finish for the first time in nine years. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
