Royal Challengers Bengaluru take on Lucknow Super Giants in Match 23 of IPL 2026 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 15, with the defending champions sitting third and chasing another high-scoring night after their run-fest win over Mumbai Indians. LSG are seventh and arrive after a defeat to Gujarat Titans, but their bowling has been the steadier unit so far, having not conceded a single 200-plus total this season.
The contest is being shaped as much by individual duels as by the table. RCB have crossed the 200-run mark in every match this season, and Philip Salt has already helped drive multiple 200-plus totals, so LSG will need discipline early. Prince is expected to lean on variations in pace to try to slow Salt in the powerplay, while RCB will look to keep the pressure on with a batting order built for fast starts and heavy totals.
Virat Kohli’s numbers against Mohammed Shami give RCB another layer of confidence. Shami has dismissed Kohli five times in 12 IPL innings, but Kohli has still managed 107 runs against him at a strike rate of 138.96. The matchup is especially relevant because LSG’s attack has kept scores down this season, and Shami’s ability to strike early could shape whether that changes in Bengaluru.
Rishabh Pant brings a different kind of threat against Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Pant has scored 120 runs off him in 54 balls at a strike rate of 222.22, including the 26 runs he took from one over in 2018 during his unbeaten 128*. Bhuvneshwar has dismissed Pant once, and that head-to-head remains one of the few ways LSG can try to break a batter who has repeatedly punished him at pace and length.
There is also a middle-overs contest that could decide whether LSG can hold RCB below their usual tempo. Nicholas Pooran has a strike rate of 85 this season, the lowest among qualified batters, and Krunal Pandya has dismissed him once in their five IPL meetings. On the other side, Josh Hazlewood has dismissed Aiden Markram twice in five T20 encounters, even though Markram scores at a strike rate of 144 against him. Those duels give LSG a route back into the game, but RCB’s season-long scoring pattern suggests they will still enter as the side most likely to dictate the pace from the first over to the last.
