RCB Choose To Bowl First Against PBKS At Mullanpur

The 37th match of IPL 2025 will feature a rematch between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore. After battling it out at the Chinnaswamy Stadium just two days ago, both teams will now lock horns at the Mullanpur Cricket Stadium, the second home ground of PBKS.

The pitch at Mullanpur is known to be a batting-friendly surface. The ball comes nicely onto the bat, making stroke play easier. Most teams that have won the toss here in IPL 2025 have preferred to bat first and post big totals. Interestingly, dew hasn't had much of an impact in matches here, which is often a key factor elsewhere.

Despite being a home venue, Mullanpur hasn't yielded great results for Punjab Kings. Out of the 8 IPL matches played at this ground, the team batting first has won 5 times, while teams chasing have won 3. PBKS themselves have managed to win only 3 of those 8 matches.

PBKS vs RCB Toss Update

Royal Challengers Bengaluru have won the toss and have opted to field.

What captains said...

PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer: We also wanted to bowl. At the end of the day you always have to adapt according to the situation. Important to give ourselves some time, see how the ball is moving. It's the first afternoon game for us. Hopefully we get a good total on the board. The support we got, especially in the last game in this stadium, was outstanding. Same team.

RCB skipper Rajat Patidar: We're going to bowl first. Wicket looks decent, won't change much. Batting second will give more clarity about the game and the wicket. We're not looking at venues, just trying to play good cricket. 

Playing XIs

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal.

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer(c), Josh Inglis(w), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

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