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SRH practice session at Eden Gardens. Image :Debasis Sen There were quite a few fans waiting outside the Eden Gardens clubhouse gate as the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) team bus arrived for their training session. But who were they waiting for? Muttiah Muralitharan, the spin-bowling coach, was the first to come out, followed by head coach Daniel Vettori. Captain Pat Cummins, Ishan Kishan, Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen and Nitish Kumar Reddy all went inside Eden Gardens for their matchday-minus-two practice session, but he was nowhere to be seen. There were some anxious faces as Abhishek Sharma remained absent. Had he not turned up for the practice session? The doubts were cleared after a few minutes, as the left-hander — the new poster boy of Indian cricket — stepped down from the team coach amid loud cheers from the fans. It will not be surprising to see a packed Eden Gardens give a rousing reception to Abhishek and Ishan, who were part of India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026-winnin...

KKR and SRH at practice session in the Eden Gardens. Image :Revsportz In the first two days of the IPL, 200-plus totals have been chased down with ease. While Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) chased 202 in less than 16 overs, Mumbai Indians (MI) hunted down 220 against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise in 19.1 overs. The truth is, no total is safe this IPL on good batting decks with smaller boundaries. In Bengaluru and Mumbai, the boundaries are no more than 60 metres, and even mishits go for six. It is no surprise, then, that bowlers have won Player of the Match awards in the first two games, despite 200-plus totals being breached with ease. A good bowling effort in favourable batting conditions is worth its weight in gold, and that’s what brings me to Cameron Green. Ajinkya Rahane is on record as saying one needs to ask Cricket Australia (CA) why Green did not bowl. That’s where KKR are bound to feel let down. KKR bought Green for a staggering price of ₹25.2 crore. First, t...

Cooper Connolly for PBKS vs GT (PC: BCCI) A thrilling finish in New Chandigarh as Punjab Kings (PBKS) edged past Gujarat Titans (GT) by three wickets in their IPL 2026 season opener on March 31. While chasing a 163-run target, the IPL 2025 runners-up were in trouble, but debutant Cooper Connolly showed maturity and calmness to ensure a winning start for the Kings. GT’s top-order failure Like last season, all eyes were on GT’s top three after they were asked to bat first. However, Sai Sudharsan (13 off 11), skipper Shubman Gill (39 off 27), and Jos Buttler (38 off 33) all got starts but failed to convert. In fact, none of the top five batters crossed a strike rate of 150 (highest was Glenn Phillips at 147.05, scoring 25 off 17). Chahal’s spin and Vyshak’s variations Veteran leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal rattled the GT batting line-up with figures of 2/28 in four overs. He broke the backbone of the innings by dismissing both Gill and Buttler. With some assistance from the surface, ...

  Images: Debasis Sen Debasis Sen The Kolkata Knight Riders are unlikely to get turning tracks at Eden Gardens for the Indian Premier League 2026 season, starting with their match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 2. Three pitches will be used for KKR’s seven home matches this season. “As usual, the pitches for the upcoming IPL matches will be sporting. There will be runs on offer, and bowlers will also get assistance. I haven’t received any instructions from anyone about the wicket,” said Sujan Mukherjee to RevSportz. Incidentally, during the 2026 IPL, there was a controversy regarding the nature of the pitches at the iconic venue between CAB chief curator Sujan and the KKR management. There is also a forecast of thunderstorms and rain showers on Tuesday evening. Around 100 ground staff members will be deployed to cover the entire ground. The city witnessed heavy winds followed by rain showers on Monday evening. Meanwhile, Australian all-rounder Cameron Green will not b...

PC – RevSportz During an IPL game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, there is always something to observe—the massive crowd next to main gate number 14. On 28 March 2026, as Royal Challengers Bengaluru geared up to play Sunrisers Hyderabad, there were two layers of fencing outside that gate. On the right side of the gate, fans had assembled in a couple of small groups, but compared to the humongous crowds of the past, it was a minuscule number. Not that RCB’s supporters had suddenly lost the appetite to watch their beloved team play at the iconic ground. Instead, the police personnel were strict in ensuring that fans outside the stadium wouldn’t end up forming large groups. When this correspondent stood for a minute or two near the footpath, one of the policemen politely asked him to move. After the match, as you tried to place the tripod on the footpath to start a live show, the policeman on duty repeated the same instruction in Kannada: just keep moving, don’t stand in one place. By th...

Rohit Sharma. Image: IPL/BCCI Rohit Sharma turned back the clock at the Wankhede on Sunday night. Some of the shots he played were breathtaking, while the pull shots were trademark Rohit. His first six, for example – the perfect swivel and the sweet connection. It brought the entire Wankhede to its feet and announced the arrival of a ‘Hitman’ storm. I will attribute much of Rohit’s batting to his mental state. Over the last few years, he has been grappling with multiple things during the IPL. In 2024, he was captain of India and had the T20 World Cup on his mind. He went on to win it and make history. In 2025, he had the Test cricket retirement call to consider, and he decided to give up red-ball cricket in May 2025, halfway through the IPL. First, Indian captaincy can weigh anyone down. Things weren’t going well for Rohit the batter, and ahead of the 2024 World T20, he was under immense pressure. In 2025, what happened in Australia, in Sydney during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, wa...

Nandre Burger (PC: IPL/BCCI) Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) left-arm pacer Nandre Burger delivered a match-winning spell to help his side begin their 2026 IPL campaign with a dominant eight-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Guwahati on Monday. During the post match presentation, Burger expressed his satisfaction with the teams performance. “Feels great to contribute to a win and happy to get us off to a good start,” Burger said. “Great toss to win, watching the games big scores you plan and prepare for that. To do this was nice. Plan to Sanju – plan to all batters was to get them out. One to Sanju saw some natural variation that’s all I can say.” Burger struck early, putting CSK under pressure. In the second over of the match he removed opener Sanju Samson (6) who was traded from RR to CSK for ₹18 crores ahead of 2026 IPL auction. On his next delivery in the third over, he dismissed youngster Ayush Mhatre for a duck. He conceded 26 runs from his four overs, helping RR restrict ...

Rohit Sharma for MI. Image: Revsportz Circa 2021 was the annus mirabilis for Rohit Sharma the Test cricketer. He played four matches in England and scored 368 runs at an average of 52.57, including a century and a couple of half-centuries. The series marked Rohit’s elevation to a different level as an opener in red-ball cricket. The IPL had to be postponed that year due to Covid-19. It would eventually move to the United Arab Emirates. The India players took a direct flight from Manchester to Dubai to enter the IPL bubble. In his first practice session for MI, coming from the Test series, Rohit needed a shake-up from his coach, Mahela Jayawardene. The opener was still so immersed into the longer format mode that even at the MI nets he was shouldering arms to deliveries outside off stump. “Hello, you are preparing for the IPL,” Jayawardene needed to serve a reminder to his captain. The reality dawned on Rohit. Apologies for an elongated prelude, but it is a deliberate attempt to c...

Virat Kohli in Chinnaswamy Stadium. Image: IPL/BCCI For much of the past few months, we have heard that the anchor role has been done away with in T20 cricket. And yet, each time Virat Kohli plays a match-winning knock for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the debate returns. Kohli scored a third of the runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Chasing a total of 203, he contributed a third of the runs and remained unbeaten on 69. The question is whether it is relevant how many he scored, or whether what matters is that he steered the chase and won the game for RCB. The truth is that all that matters is winning the game. RCB did so in 15.4 overs, with Kohli mastering the chase and guiding the younger players, including Devdutt Padikkal, who played a blinder, to reach the target with relative ease. When Padikkal was in full flow, all Kohli did was give him the strike – absolutely the right thing to do. At one point, Padikkal was on 34 off 11 balls and Kohli on 7 off 6. But, does it ...

Image: IPL From 200 to 140 is a sharp dip. Ajinkya Rahane losing momentum was one of the reasons why Kolkata Knight Riders lost the game. At the end of the powerplay, the KKR captain was batting on 36 off 18 balls. In the 14th over when he got out, Rahane had reached 67 off 40 balls. From over No. 7 to 15, KKR scored 89 runs and lost two wickets. In the first six overs, they had hammered 78. From fifth gear to the third is contrary to the way modern T20 cricket is played. It’s like Formula 1 — occasional pit stops are allowed but loss of speed is not. In the middle overs, KKR batting left the highway and went off-ramp. The grass cover on the Wankhede Stadium pitch was misleading. It was a batting beauty. It would be unfair to single out Rahane. Angkrish Raghuvanshi scored 51 off 29 balls and in the end, it was a fine knock. But the youngster took 14 deliveries for his first 17 runs. Once again, such slow burn doesn’t conform to modern T20 template for a No. 5 batsman. Rinku Singh...

Jacob Duffy (PC: IPL/BCCI) In T20Is, Abhishek Sharma has smashed Jacob Duffy for 81 runs in a mere 31 deliveries. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that after his game-breaking spell against Sunrisers Hyderabad, the New Zealand pace bowler joked to the host broadcaster, “I am sick of bowling to Abhishek.” But at some point, the tide was set to turn. In the 2026 IPL opener, Duffy – representing Royal Challengers Bengaluru – pulled one back on his nemesis as he dismissed Abhishek for just seven.  There were a couple of differences with regard to how Duffy went about bowling to Abhishek in their previous encounters in India. Despite having the required bowling mechanics, he wasn’t exactly looking to extract bounce on some of the Indian wickets in the bilateral series and the T20 World Cup. But on a pleasant night in Bengaluru, he got good height on his short ball to Abhishek. Subsequently, the ball hit higher up on the bat and the left-hand batter could only spoon a catch to the wic...

Sanju Samson with Ruturaj Gaikwad. (PC: CSK) Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad recounted a conversation with Sanju Samson in England, during which he encouraged the latter to join CSK. Samson responded by saying he would be happy to join purely as a player and play under Gaikwad’s leadership. Speaking on the CSK podcast, Gaikwad said he urged Samson to consider joining the five-time champions, especially given his roots in southern India. “I remember we had a conversation around two or three years ago. I think we were in England. He was asking me what things are like at CSK, how it all works, and what the environment is like. I told him, ‘I feel, being a South Indian, you should explore this opportunity. You should be here’,” Gaikwad told Abhinav Mukund on the podcast. Samson was keen to understand how CSK function as a team and also made it clear that he would not join with the intention of leading the side. Instead, he said he would be more than happy to play un...

Virat Kohli (PC: IPL/BCCI) Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) star batter Virat Kohli played a match-winning knock in their opening match of IPL 2026. His innings helped RCB chase down 202 runs in just 15.4 overs and secure a dominant six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Kohli anchored the chase brilliantly and remained unbeaten on 69, which came off 38 balls. The RCB opener smashed five boundaries and five maximums at a strike rate of 181.57. His innings got a reprieve in the seventh over when Heinrich Klaassen dropped his catch at long-on off Harshal Patel’s delivery. The dropped catch proved costly, as RCB made full use of the opportunity. There was also a rare moment involving Kohli in the field. During SRH’s innings, he dropped a simple catch at long-on in the 18th over after Aniket Verma miscued his shot. The ball slipped from his hands, leaving him surprised. Despite the mistake, the veteran batter controlled ...

Left: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ( PC- official X hand;le), Right: Jacob Bethell ( PC-X) Every year, the IPL unveils exciting young talents. Some take the next step in their careers, while many struggle to sustain early promise. The league thrives on hype and hoopla, making it essential to separate potential from projection. With the 2026 edition upon us, a few emerging players carry genuine promise of making a lasting impact. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Will he take a giant leap or suffer second-season blues? The Rajasthan Royals teenager is arguably the most exciting young Indian prospect in white-ball cricket. He announced himself last season with a first-ball six, and the months that followed only strengthened his reputation. A stunning 175 in the U-19 World Cup final forced the cricketing world to sit up and take notice. However, he was a relatively unknown quantity last year. This season presents a different challenge. Opposition teams have analysed his game in detail, and bowlers will ...

  Outside Chinnaswamy Stadium. Image: Revsportz Lights. Camera. Action. Over the next couple of months, the grand colosseum of the IPL will once more entertain millions of fans across the length and breadth of India and beyond. As Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) lock horns with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the opening game of the tournament, there is a connecting point to this year’s IPL — after a gap of nearly one year, the Chinnaswamy Stadium will host a game of cricket. It wouldn’t just be a day of celebrating the game of leather and willow; it is also a day of remembering the 11 fans who lost their lives in a tragic incident near the Chinnaswamy last year. The build-up to the game says something about the nervous energy not just among the fans but also the administrators. Security is quite strict in and around the ground. A couple of days before the start of the tournament, fire brigade services were out in full force. The gates have been renovated, and new ones have com...

IPL trophy. Images: IPL/BCCI As the IPL journey starts tonight, I have to say I was an IPL sceptic to begin with in 2008. I did not know how the fans would take to cricketers going under the hammer, and I wasn’t sure if people would come out in numbers to watch the tournament being played at 4pm India time. Needless to say, I was proved wrong. Afternoon games were played to packed stands, and it was unbelievable to see 50,000-plus people brave the 40-degree heat and turn up to watch every game. As we celebrate the $3.41 billion IPL team sales, we must also celebrate foresight – be it that of Lalit Modi, the team owners, or Shane Warne. The big learning for any entrepreneur is this ability to look ahead. No business can operate on the short term alone. While you can’t sustain losses for long, it is also essential to understand what the end point could be. It is a chess game. No player has ever won a chess tournament by playing move by move. You anticipate three or four moves ahead,...

Captain Gill in action for GT. (PC: BCCI) Gujarat Titans (GT) skipper Shubman Gill has voiced his opinion on the much-debated Impact Player rule in the IPL, saying that it should not exist, as adding an extra player takes skill out of the game. Introduced in 2023, the Impact Player rule has been widely debated and has divided opinion. While there has been an increase in high-scoring matches—which most fans enjoy—Gill is not among the supporters of the rule and has openly expressed his opposition to it. “Personally, I don’t think there should be an Impact Player,” Gill said the pre-season GT press-conference. “I think cricket, in general, is an 11-player game. On the wickets and grounds we play on, adding an extra batsman takes the skill out of the game.” Explaining his point further, Gill stated: “There is a certain skill in the game that you need to have. When you know you have a certain number of batters, and if a couple of them get out, there is a level of skill required to k...

SRH players. Image: SRH-X Overview : On a rather pleasant Thursday in Bengaluru, one could observe the Chinnaswamy stadium bustling with activity. A few spectator-holding capacities were in place. A fire brigade service could also be seen. Meanwhile, the electricians and carpenters were giving the final touches to their respective tasks. Amidst all the hustle and bustle, SRH went about their practice session inside the stadium. Nitish Reddy, who could even be entrusted to bowl in the Powerplay, seemed to have made a few tweaks to his mechanics. He had a long stint at the nets and seemed to be bowling a tad quicker. All eyes, though, were on some of SRH’s power-hitters. As Ishan Kishan, the interim captain, did a few light drills, somewhere in one of the side nets, Heinrich Klaasen was in a mood to play power-packed shots against the spinners. Looking at the dimensions at the Chinnaswamy,  those willowy-batters might cause some mayhem. Where is Pat Cummins? The one missing li...

Team CSK. Image: IPL/BCCI Ashok Namboodiri If the IPL were a classroom, Chennai Super Kings would be the class monitor. It is not the loudest voice in the league and definitely not the most flamboyant talent. But the one who knows how the system works, who keeps order when chaos breaks out, and who somehow ends up near the top of the results sheet year after year. For over a decade, CSK have embodied discipline, clarity and control. They have been the good boy of the batch… occasionally predictable, often criticised for being conservative, but almost always effective. And from that perspective, 2025 was the first time the class monitor lost control of the room. Systems that had held for years suddenly looked dated. The IPL had moved on – faster, louder, more aggressive and CSK seemed, for once, a step behind the class. From what we have seen in the recently concluded T20 World Cup, one can easily surmise that this edition of the IPL will see a lot of teams embracing fearless, high...

  Image : X Every IPL, the thought inevitably goes back to how it started and what it has become. Now that the tournament is expected to rake in broadcast revenue of more than ₹70,000 crore for the BCCI over a five-year period between 2027 and 2031, it is easily world cricket’s biggest commercial success story. Every league across the world wants to emulate the IPL, to be like it. Leagues everywhere seek the glamour associated with the IPL while striving to deliver quality cricket. With every stake sale or team sale in the IPL, we revisit how it all began in 2008. For as long as the IPL remains a subject of media scrutiny, the brand will continue to stay relevant. What the IPL has done is transform Indian cricket, in the T20 white-ball format, into an unstoppable juggernaut. As Tom Moody said in a CII session the day before yesterday: “We all sit in our parts of the world and look at India’s talent pool in awe. In our team, the Lucknow Super Giants, there are a few players wh...

Harmanpreet Kaur (PC: BCCI Women) India women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur shared her thoughts after Omaxe Limited unveiled the country’s first dedicated ‘Pink Stand’ in the upcoming cricket stadium in Dwarka, Delhi. The initiative focuses on providing a safer and more comfortable experience for women spectators in Indian stadiums. Speaking to ANI during the launch, Harmanpreet expressed her happiness about the initiative and said, “I am feeling very good. The stand belongs to all the women. It is a great feeling. I thank Omaxe.” The initiative was taken after India’s women’s historic win. Under Harmanpreet’s captaincy, India lifted their maiden ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title in November 2025. The captain played a crucial role in India’s triumph as she not only led her side brilliantly but also scored 260 runs from eight innings, which included a match-winning 89 runs in the semi-final against Australia. Harmanpreet also spoke about the upcoming South Africa tour, consist...

IPL 2026 will begin on March 28. (PC: X/IPL) The IPL has always been a reflection of India’s economic progress. In 2008, it was powered by personality – industrialists, film stars, and first generation entrepreneurs buying teams as extensions of themselves. Decisions were instinctive, brands were personal, and franchises carried the quirks of their owners. In 2026, that model is giving way to something far more structured. Corporate consortiums, institutional capital, and private equity are steadily replacing individual ownership. Across the board, whether it is the EPL, NFL, NBA or MLB, private equity share of teams now ranges from 10 to 30 per cent. This is not just a change in who owns teams. It is a shift in how the IPL will think, operate, and grow. Across leagues, private equity has redefined the very idea of a sports franchise. It is no longer a team playing a season; it is a year-round monetisation platform. Formula 1’s transformation under Liberty Media changed what was o...