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Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batting heavyweight Virat Kohli was not named in the starting XI against Lucknow Super Giants in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), but was included among the Impact Players, keeping him available to bat if required in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
His omission from the initial lineup follows an ankle injury sustained in RCB's previous match against the Mumbai Indians, where they registered an 18-run victory. Kohli had been forming a stable opening partnership with Philip Salt, and his reduced involvement at the top slightly disrupts RCB's batting balance. Kohli was seen wearing a bandage on his leg during the training session ahead of RCB's match against LSG at Bengaluru on Tuesday. In a video posted by LSG's social media handle, Kohli was seen meeting Kane Williamson, a part of LSG's support staff and LSG skipper Rishabh Pant, while wearing a bandage on his leg. This comes amid reports that Virat is facing a leg/ankle injury scare. Virat has scored 179 runs at an average of 59.66 with a strike rate of 162.72, with two fifties and a best score of 69* in IPL 2026. During the previous match against arch-rivals Mumbai Indians (MI), Virat had scored a 38-ball 50, with five fours and a six and did not look at his fluent best. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar. RCB Impact subs: Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Jordan Cox, Kanishk Chouhan, Mangesh Yadav. (ANI)
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