Match 65 of IPL 2025 which was originally slated for the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, was relocated to Lucknow's Ekana Cricket Stadium due to bad weather in the south. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in a high-stakes encounter — particularly for the Bengaluru side.
With SRH already out of the playoff race, RCB, who have secured a Top 4 spot, are now pushing for a Top 2 finish. Adding to the drama, fans were caught off guard at the toss when Jitesh Sharma stepped out as captain instead of Rajat Patidar.
Jitesh Sharma joined Pat Cummins in the middle and later explained: "It's my first time captaining RCB. I captained PBKS against SRH last year. Rajat Patidar is the impact player. Mayank Agarwal comes in for Devdutt Padikkal."
Many took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to speak about the new captain. Some even asked why Virat Kohli was not given the role if Rajat Patidar was not available.
One said, "Jitesh Sharma the captain lessgoooooo".
Another said, "Interesting that Jitesh Sharma is leading the RCB today, No Rajat Patidar!!!"
One even asked, "Jitesh Sharma as RCB captain? No Virat Kohli Why RCB constantly Disrespecting Their Legend ????"
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarawal, Jitesh Sharma(w/c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Lungi Ngidi, Suyash Sharma
Impact Subs: Rajat Patidar, Rasikh Dar Salam, Jacon Bethell, Manoj Bhandage, Swapnil Singh
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan(w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Heinrich Klaasen, Aniket Verma, Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins(c), Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga
Impact Subs: Mohammad Shami, Harsh Dubey, Sachin Baby, Zeeshan Ansari, Simarjeet Singh