Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be aiming for their first home win of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) season when they host Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Friday evening. This is the match no-40 of the current season and will be played at the iconic M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Punjab Kings Preview
Royal Challengers Bangalore are one of those teams who feel the pressure of home fans. That is so unusual for a sport team, as every team, almost always, is expected to make the most of the home and familiar conditions. But in IPL 2025, RCB have suffered two defeats and quite unexpectedly, those two defeats came in home matches. RCB have another shot to end this uncanny run as they host Punjab Kings on Friday.
But that won’t be easy. In fact, if RCB had to choose an opponent to end their current home skid Punjab Kings might have been the last on their wish list. For PBKS look a team that can go all the way and lift the ultimate thing. In addition, the away team will be super confident to get the job done in this game after a historical win in their last game when they defended the lowest ever total in the IPL against Kolkata Knight Riders.
RCB vs PBKS: Match Details
Date: Friday, April 18, 2025
Time: 07:30 PM IST
Venue: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium
RCB vs PBKS Dream11 Prediction: Pitch Report and Weather Conditions
Pitch Report: The RCB vs PBKS pitch at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium is flat, with little for bowlers. But in the last IPL match at this venue, RCB could only manage 163/7, which was an under-par score. And it reflected in the 2nd innings as Delhi Capitals chased down the target with 13 balls to spare, thanks to an unbeaten 93 off 53 balls by KL Rahul. He assessed the pitch as slightly tricky but consistent, allowing him to pace his innings strategically.
For the upcoming match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings, expect another high-scoring encounter. Captains winning the toss might prefer to field first, considering the dew factor in evening games that can make the ball skid onto the bat, favoring the chasing team.
Weather Report: The weather in Bengaluru on Friday, April 18, 2025, is expected to be warm and sunny, providing ideal conditions for the IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Daytime highs are anticipated to reach around 35°C, with evening temperatures cooling to approximately 23°C. No rain is expected while humidity levels are expected to be moderate, around 40%, ensuring comfortable conditions for players and spectators alike.
Related RCB vs PBKS Today IPL Match Betting Tips
RCB vs PBKS Team News
Royal Challengers Bangalore Team News-
- RCB have no injury concerns ahead of this game. The home team should stick with the same playing 11 they used for the away match against Rajasthan Royals.
- That means, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yash Dayal should be the three main fast bowlers for the home team.
- Royal Challengers Bangalore Full Squads: Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Yash Dayal, Liam Livingstone, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Dhar, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chikara, Lungi Ngidi, Mohit Rathee, Abhinandan Singh
Punjab Kings Team News-
- Glenn Maxwell’s failure with the bat is a big concern for Punjab Kings. But it’s his bowling that is keeping the Australian in PBKS Playing XI. Even in the last game, Maxwell took one crucial wicket as PBKS defended lowest total ever in the IPL. He is likely to play this game as well.
- Punjab used an extra batter in the shape of Suryash Shedge when they were losing wickets after wickets. He is likely to lose his spot in PBKS’ Playing 11 to Yash Thakur.
- Lockie Ferguson will be missing this game due to an injury.
- No other changes are expected in the team.
- Punjab Kings Full Squad: Shashank Singh, Prabhsimran Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Shreyas Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadera, Harpreet Brar, Vishnu Vinod, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Thakur, Josh Inglis, Lockie Ferguson, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harnoor Pannu, Kuldeep Sen, Priyash Arya, Aaron Hardie, Musheer Khan, Suryash Shedge, Pyla Avinash, Xavier Bartlett, Pravin Dubey
RCB vs PBKS Playing 11
Royal Challengers Bangalore Expected Playing 11
- Phil Salt
- Virat Kohli
- Devdutt Padikkal
- Rajat Patidar (C)
- Liam Livingstone
- Jitesh Sharma (WK)
- Tim David
- Krunal Pandya
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar
- Josh Hazlewood
- Yash Dayal
Impact Player: Suyash Sharma
Punjab Kings Expected Playing 11
- Priyansh Arya
- Prabhsimran Singh
- Shreyas Iyer (C)
- Josh Inglis (WK)
- Nehal Wadhera
- Glenn Maxwell / Marcus Stoinis
- Shashank Singh
- Marco Jansen
- Xavier Bartlett
- Arshdeep Singh
- Yuzvendra Chahal
Impact Player: Yash Thakur
RCB vs PBKS Dream11 Top Fantasy Picks
- Virat Kohli: Following an unbeaten 65-run innings off 45 balls against Rajasthan Royals, RCB superstar has now broken into the top-five run getters of IPL 2025. The former RCB captain is in red-hot form and should be in your RCB vs PBKS Dream11 teams.
- Priyansh Arya: PBKS batter seems possessed at the moment. He is playing like a seasoned batter who has been in the top tier of sport for some time. The 24-year-old is surely the one batter who can set the stadium on fire with his batting alone.
- Phil Salt: RCB are in great form at the moment and most of the good work has been done right at the top order by English opener Phil Salt. He is giving RCB fast starts in almost every match. In the last game, Salt hammered 65 runs off just 33 balls against Rajasthan.
- Shreyas Iyer: Needless to say that Shreyas Iyer has been playing like a player who has something to prove to all the haters that questioned his position in the Indian team. He had a wonderful ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and carried that form into the IPL as well.
- Rajast Patidar: RCB captain is another player in the team who can win any match with his batting alone. He is also in good form and can be a good pick in grand league teams.
RCB vs PBKS Dream11 Fantasy Team
- WICKET-KEEPER: P Singh, P Salt
- BATSMEN: V Kohli, R Patidar, S Iyer, P Arya
- ALL–ROUNDERS: M Jansen, K Pandya
- BOWLERS: A Singh, Y Chahal, J Hazlewood
Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Marco Jansen, Josh Hazlewood and Yuzvendra Chahal are the best options with great fantasy cricket value for today’s IPL match.
