As Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) gears as much as tackle Rajasthan Royals in match 16 of IPL 2026 on April 10 in Guwahati, former Indian batsman Aakash Chopra has made a daring assertion concerning the battle between Virat Kohli and Sandeep Sharma.
Chopra believes that Virat Kohli vs. Sandeep Sharma may determine the destiny of this conflict between RCB and RR as each groups are in nice kind and haven’t misplaced up to now this season. Whereas RR leads the factors standings with 6 factors, RCB is ranked third with 4 factors.
Aakash Chopra picks Sandeep Sharma as Virat Kohli’s hardest RR menace
Forward of the match between RR and RCB in Guwahati, Aakash Chopra highlighted Virat Kohli’s wrestle towards Sandeep. India’s batting famous person could also be dominating the IPL and even turning into the all-time main run-scorer, however his numbers towards pacers are by no means spectacular.
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Sandeep has dismissed the dashing right-hander seven occasions in IPL conferences up to now. Kohli scored solely 132 runs at a strike charge of 150 and a mean of round 19.
Commentators identified that Virat Kohli loves fast-timed bowlers, however Sandeep’s supply is sluggish and slippery, making issues tough for him. Contemplating that, Chopra feels their battle might be fascinating to look at. Hold a watch out for Guwahati followers on Friday.
Chopra mentioned on his YouTube channel, “Sandeep Sharma vs Virat Kohli comes up once more as a result of he (Kohli) does not have excellent numbers towards him (Sandeep). The strike charge is OK however the numbers are usually not nice. He does not like enjoying towards Sandeep Sharma as a result of he does not present tempo.”
RR’s new pitches vs RCB’s in-form hitters
Chopra additionally talked about different essential battles to look at within the upcoming IPL 2026 conflict. He believes the brand new ball will play a giant function, so whereas Jofra Archer and Nandre Berger are on fireplace, Virat Kohli, Phil Salt and Devdutt Padikkal will determine RCB’s destiny.
The cricket professional additional added, “Jofra Archer and Nandre Berger will ask robust questions concerning the new ball. Phil Salt scored some runs within the final match, so all eyes might be on him. Devdutt Padikkal is in dream kind. His highest runs got here towards RR, so will probably be value maintaining a tally of.”
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Will Vaibhav Soyavanshi have the ability to break via RCB’s assault as properly?
Chopra is trying ahead to seeing how Rajasthan Royals’ 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will deal with RCB’s assault, which options Jacob Duffy and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Nevertheless, the teen has already fearlessly defeated world-class bowlers like Matt Henry, Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult.
And the commentator mentioned, “As soon as once more, it is Vaibhav versus the opposition bowler. A number of consideration might be on him. Will he do it to Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jacob Duffy this time? That is the large query.”
Aakash Chopra highlights RCB’s weaknesses
Chopra additionally issued a realistic warning to the defending champions towards the Royals. He admitted that RCB might have the strongest batting line-up in IPL 2026 however their bowling may put them in hassle in Guwahati.
“RCB is essentially the most explosive staff on this league. Everybody bats from No. 1 to No. 8 to No. 9. It may be very tough to cease that staff, but when they’ve a weak spot, they’ll cut back the opposition to 29/3 or one thing after which rating 200 factors. If there’s a concern for RCB, it is the bowling that usually appears prefer it’s below a little bit of strain,” he concluded.
