Kohli played a pivotal role in RCB\u2019s IPL 2025 victory by hitting 43 in the final against Punjab Kings and ended the season as the side\u2019s leading run-getter with 657 runs in 15 matches.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe hunger in Virat Kohli will be there. In fact, he will be hungrier than ever, especially after lifting the IPL trophy last season. He will want to win back-to-back IPL trophies. That hunger in him to win and create an impact is always going to be there,\u201d said Pathan on JioStar.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Pathan also said Kohli\u2019s passion was evident in his recent international outings. \u201cWe have seen that when he played for India, especially in the one-day series against South Africa and New Zealand. He looks like he wants to make an impact in every game. I think he will have the same kind of passion when he comes back this season. He will want to lift the trophy once again,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
RCB will open IPL 2026 against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, which was recently cleared by the Karnataka government to host IPL matches after no competitive cricket was held following the tragic loss of 11 lives in a stampede during the side\u2019s IPL victory celebrations in June 2025.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The matches at the Chinnaswamy will happen only if its gets clearance from an expert committee constituted by the Karnataka state government on Friday. Pathan also backed left-handed top-order batter Devdutt Padikkal to play a key role in RCB\u2019s campaign after he made 247 runs in ten games at a strike-rate of 150.60.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Devdutt Padikkal is going to play a major role in RCB's success in IPL 2026. He has scored runs left, right and centre in domestic cricket across all formats. He looks like a very improved player. There was a time when he was struggling, wasn\u2019t getting his timing right. But that is in the past now. Devdutt Padikkal is a different, very confident player now.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The matches at the Chinnaswamy will happen only if its gets clearance from an expert committee constituted by the Karnataka state government on Friday. Pathan also backed left-handed top-order batter Devdutt Padikkal to play a key role in RCB\u2019s campaign after he made 247 runs in ten games at a strike-rate of 150.60.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He also felt RCB have strong reserve options if the injury-prone Josh Hazlewood doesn\u2019t turn up for the tournament. \u201cBut going into IPL 2026, RCB will have some injury concerns, especially with Josh Hazlewood's fitness. The good thing is they have secured good backups. The duo of Nuwan Thushara and Jacob Duffy can cover well for Hazlewood if he faces fitness issues. That makes RCB even stronger.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n