A commanding unbeaten knock from Virat Kohli and a blistering innings by Devdutt Padikkal guided Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a comfortable six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in a high-scoring Indian Premier League opener.
Chasing 201, Bengaluru reached 218/4 with 26 balls to spare at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, launching their title defence in emphatic fashion.
Asked to bat first, Hyderabad stumbled early against an impressive spell from Jacob Duffy. The New Zealand pacer struck three times in his IPL debut, removing Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head and Nitish Kumar Reddy to leave the side under pressure.
The innings was rebuilt by Ishan Kishan, who marked his captaincy debut with a superb 80 off 38 balls, hitting five sixes and eight fours.
He received support from Heinrich Klaasen (31 off 22) and Aniket Verma, whose 43 off 18 balls provided a strong late surge as Hyderabad posted 201/4.
Bengaluru’s chase began with the early loss of Phil Salt, but Padikkal and Kohli quickly took control. The pair added 101 runs for the second wicket in just 45 balls, effectively taking the game away from Hyderabad.
Padikkal struck 61 off 26 deliveries, while Kohli anchored the innings with composure and authority.
Captain Rajat Patidar then contributed a rapid 31 off 12 balls in a 53-run stand with Kohli to maintain the momentum.
Although Hyderabad picked up two quick wickets to raise brief hopes, Kohli ensured there were no further setbacks. The former captain remained unbeaten on 69, striking five fours and five sixes, and finished the match in style in the 16th over alongside Tim David.
Needing just 17 runs from the final five overs, Kohli sealed victory with a six followed by three consecutive boundaries.
