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As Royal Challengers Bengaluru prepares to spell up against Sunrisers Hyderabad successful the IPL 2026 opener connected Saturday (March 27, 2026), caput manager Andy Flower looked backmost astatine fond memories from its maiden rubric tally past season.
“The franchise worked hard for galore years to get that prima connected our shirts. That was embodied astir successful Virat (Kohli)’s committedness to the franchise implicit specified a agelong play of time,” Flower said astatine the pre-match property league present connected Friday.
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“But it is present 2026, and we are looking guardant to this season’s challenge,” Flower said.
Flower drew a examination betwixt agelong serving RCB stalwart Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar.
“When I was playing, I utilized to bask watching Sachin practice. The aforesaid goes present (with Kohli). I truly bask watching masters of their creation bash their thing. Virat looks connected apical of his game. He looks precise fit, precise lean, precise hungry. Watching him clip and onslaught the shot successful grooming — I deliberation he’s astatine the highest of his prowess,” Flower said.
The erstwhile Zimbabwe skipper stated that Hazlewood volition not diagnostic successful Saturday’s (March 28, 2026) outing. “He won’t beryllium acceptable for tomorrow; he’s conscionable got disconnected the plane. We’ll beryllium monitoring his fittingness precise closely, and we are looking guardant to him making his entranceway into the IPL,” Flower said.
Flower termed the ‘impact player’ regularisation arsenic an “interesting addition” to the sport. “Tactically it’s rather an absorbing addition. I indispensable accidental though that 1 of the things I emotion astir cricket is the challenges you person successful balancing your XI. It’s 1 of the things that makes enactment a small spot tricky. The interaction subordinate regularisation hides that enactment occupation a little,” Flower added.
