Ruturaj Gaikwad, captain of Chennai Super Kings, won the toss in Chepauk and elected to bowl first against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Rajat Patidar has announced one change in the playing XI: Bhuvneshwar Kumar replaces Rasikh Salam for one of the most highly anticipated games of the season.
CSK vs RCB: Bhuvneshwar Kumar added to playing XI
After missing the first game against Kolkata Knight Riders due to undisclosed reasons, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is finally set to play for RCB after 15 years against CSK at Chepauk. He is replacing the young pacer from Jammu Kashmir, Rasikh Salam, in the playing XI. Notably, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 10.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega-auction.
CSK vs RCB playing XI’s
CSK: Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Deepak Hooda, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni †, Ravichandran Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana, Khaleel Ahmed
RCB: Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma †, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal
Chennai Super Kings kicked off their IPL 2025 campaign with a win over rivals Mumbai Indians by 4 wickets at their home. The bowling attack of the team performed amazingly well by restricting MI to just 155 and chased down the score comprehensively at the end. Noor Ahmed took 4 wickets while Rachin Ravindra and Ruturaj Gaikwad smashed fifties.
Royal Challengers Banaglore, led by newly appointed captain Rajat Patidar, also won their first game of the season against KKR. They defeated Rahane’s team by 7 wickets, thanks to the amazing performances from Krunal Pandya, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, and Virat Kohli. The team features a balanced squad for IPL 2025.
