Royal Challengers Bengaluru and team India’s legendary batsman Virat Kohli is 72 runs away from surpassing the 400-run mark in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026), which will be his 11th time doing so in 19 seasons. The 37-year-old continues to be the cornerstone of his franchise. RCB’s Kohli has amassed 328 runs at an incredible average of 54.66 in seven games so far. He is one of the leading run scorers this season and is currently the sixth-highest run scorer in the 2026 edition, and he might get the Orange Cap once more if he scores 53 runs in the clash against Delhi Capitals.
During the first three seasons of the competition, from 2008 to 2010, Kohli did not score 400 or more runs. After that, he finished as the second-highest run scorer in 2011 with 557 runs.
Shikhar Dhawan, David Warner, and Suresh Raina, who have each scored more than 400 runs in nine seasons, are the closest to Kohli in this elite list.
Kohli Leading RCB’s Batting From Front
Strong top-order performances this season have propelled RCB’s batting with Kohli leading from the front, while Devdutt Padikkal’s comeback has given the lineup even more depth and consistency. The middle order has also played a crucial role in helping them finish the matches.
However, the threat posed by RCB goes beyond their batting prowess. Their bowlers have demonstrated the capacity to manage games at pivotal moments, near the end, which might be vital when facing a DC team that has demonstrated their ability to post massive totals on the board. RCB’s bowling unit showed excellent poise under duress in their last game against the Gujarat Titans.
Suyash Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Josh Hazlewood executed their strategies flawlessly in the last moments, combining variations with disciplined lines to limit the scoring and prevent a late surge, even though GT was well-positioned for a massive total.
That effort highlighted RCB’s developing reputation as a team that can finish matches, something DC has found difficult. The Axar Patel-led side posted a huge 264/2, which demonstrated their batting prowess, but the Punjab Kings highlighted their weak bowling by managing to chase it down. RCB would be eager to take advantage of this flaw and put pressure on DC at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The same venue which witnessed the runfest on April 25 from Delhi and Punjab.
Squads
Delhi Capitals: Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul(w), Nitish Rana, David Miller, Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel(c), Tristan Stubbs, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar, Auqib Nabi Dar, Vipraj Nigam, Lungi Ngidi, Ashutosh Sharma, Dushmantha Chameera, Karun Nair, Mitchell Starc, Kyle Jamieson, Rehan Ahmed, Prithvi Shaw, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Tripura Vijay, Abishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, Madhav Tiwari
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer, Philip Salt, Jacob Duffy, Nuwan Thushara, Abhinandan Singh, Swapnil Singh, Vihaan Malhotra, Kanishk Chouhan, Satvik Deswal
