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.
Rahul Dravid, Kevin Pietersen, Anil Kumble, Daniel Vettori, Virat Kohli, Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Rajat Patidar... and now Jitesh Sharma! 🙌❤️🔥
PS. Don’t worry, Rajat is among the impact subs. pic.twitter.com/iIAN0Aas1N— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 23, 2025
The 9️⃣th leader of the BOLD! Go well, Jitu! ♾️
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."
🚨 Toss 🚨@RCBTweets won the toss and elected to bowl against @SunRisers in Lucknow.
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 23, 2025
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/sJ6dOP9ung#TATAIPL | #RCBvSRH pic.twitter.com/8IFxI9fEqa
Fans weigh in
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".
Jitesh Sharma the captain lessgoooooo
— Shilpak. (@ugach_kahitarii) May 23, 2025
Another said, "Interesting that Jitesh Sharma is leading the RCB today, No Rajat Patidar!!!"
Interesting that Jitesh Sharma is leading the RCB today, No Rajat Patidar!!!#RCBvsSRH
— @salla (@iamsalla) May 23, 2025
One even asked, "Jitesh Sharma as RCB captain? No Virat Kohli Why RCB constantly Disrespecting Their Legend ????"
Jitesh Sharma as RCB captain? No Virat Kohli Why RCB constantly Disrespecting Their Legend ???? #RCBvsSRH
— Mohit Kamal Rath (@mkr4411) May 23, 2025
RCB vs SRH: Teams
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
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
