RCB vs GT Live Score, IPL 2026 Playoffs: Venkatesh Iyer off to a solid start for RCB

0.4: Mohammed Siraj to Venkatesh Iyer, FOUR! Goodness me, that's so well struck!

0.3: Mohammed Siraj to Venkatesh Iyer, Back of a length, on off, Iyer stands tall and knocks it to cover-point.

0.2: Mohammed Siraj to Venkatesh Iyer, FOUR MORE! This time, with a lot more intent from Iyer! The length is pushed further up, full and shaping in from middle. Venkatesh Iyer detects the length and advances down the track. Heaves it off the inner half of the bat, but puts it between the mid-wicket and mid on gap for a boundary. The outfield is blazing quick and it races to the fence within a blink.

0.1: Mohammed Siraj to Venkatesh Iyer, FOUR! High quality shot to get off the mark! Siraj bowls it on a length, around the off pole. Venkatesh Iyer lets the ball arrive, presses on the back foot and punches it solidly between cover and point for a boundary to get RCB underway right away.

All in readiness for Qualifier 1! The stage is set beautifully with the majestic Himalayas standing tall in the backdrop, adding even more grandeur to this massive occasion. Former India cricketer and current BCCI President, Mithun Manhas has the honour of ringing the bell to signal the arrival of the players. The two umpires now make their way out to the middle, followed by an upbeat Gujarat Titans outfit led by Shubman Gill, spreading out swiftly to take their positions in the field. Out walk the two Royal Challengers Bengaluru openers, Venkatesh Iyer and Virat Kohli, to a thunderous roar from the crowd. It will be Mohammed Siraj, fired up against his former side, with the new ball in hand. A bit of a delay due to an issue with the sightscreen. It has finally been resolved. Let's play...

Let's unpack the toss - Strange bit of selection from both camps. Kulwant Khejroliya, the 34-year-old seamer from Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan, who hasn't played a single game this season, has been swapped in by GT. That's a straight replacement for Arshad Khan, though. A left-arm pacer replaces the fellow left-arm pacer. Whereas there's no Phil Salt yet for RCB, and they are going with only 3 overseas players. With Shepherd and Suyash in the impact list, it is probably the latter who will be preferred over the former when they come to bowl, we assume.

Impact Sub options for GT - Rahul Tewatia, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Kumar Kushagra and Sai Kishore.

Gujarat Titans (Playing XI) - Shubman Gill (C), Sai Sudharsan, Nishant Sindhu, Jos Buttler (WK), Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Kulwant Khejroliya (In for Arshad Khan), Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna.

Impact Sub options for RCB - Romario Shepherd, Suyash Sharma, Kanishk Chouhan, Abhinandan Singh and Jordan Cox.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI) - Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (C), Venkatesh Iyer, Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Jacob Duffy (In place of Romario Shepherd) and Rasikh Salam.

The captain of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru - Rajat Patidar says he would have bowled first, too. Details that it is hard and dry underneath and expect the ball to come nicely on the bat. He reckons that the pitch won't change much throughout the match. On the prospect of going straight to the final by winning the Qualifier, Patidar says it would be a great outcome, but the focus stays on one game at a time. The priority, he stresses, is about giving their best in this fixture. On the journey so far, he says RCB have played good cricket and are leaning into their strengths. When asked about the pitch, Patidar notes there is no grass cover, making it a surface that should be a pleasant one to bat on.

The captain of the Gujarat Titans - Shubhman Gill says that it looks like a good wicket. Adds that they have seen on this ground, there is a bit of dew in the second innings, so it's better to have a total on the board and chase it down later on. Gill mentions that this game is all about taking out the equation. Says they have played some really good cricket so far and hopefully continue to do so. Gill shares that he has played a lot of junior level cricket at this venue and calls it one of the most prettiest grounds in world cricket. Informs that they have made one change with Kulwant Khejroliya replacing Arshad Khan.