A statement in itself – Dinesh Karthik and Mo Bobat look back on RCB’s first win of IPL 2026
RCB had a unique schedule in IPL 2026 where they had three home games out of the first five clashes. Obviously after they had a bumpy start to the home games in IPL 2025, that was one aspect of the season that needed a change and this year around, the team did a fabulous job of securing three wins from their first three home games.
Talking on RCB’s Trophy Quest – The Second Act, RCB’s batting coach and mentor, Dinesh Karthik opened up about the pre-season rituals. He highlighted the shenanigans of the schedule while explaining what changed in the latest season that saw RCB make merry in Bengaluru.
Highlighting the pre-season, Dinesh Karthik said, “We normally have about 10 days' prep before the season starts. We had quite an unusual schedule this year. For the first 40 days of the IPL, I think we had 34 days in Bangalore, which is quite unusual. And then after that, we were on the road quite heavily. So we were able to break the season down a little bit into a season of two halves for the boys.”
Explaining the home form in 2025 and what changed in 2026, Karthik said, “So when we won it in 2025, we won all of the games, seven out of seven. But our home record was quite ordinary. In fact, it took almost three games, I think, or if not four, for us to actually understand what it takes to play in Bengaluru. It wasn't that simple. The pitches were not easy to read.”
Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, also discussed RCB's season opener at home against SRH, where the batters easily chased a formidable total on the board and secured one of their most clinical wins.
Bobat said, “Going into the first game against SRH, we obviously wanted to start well. Tough opposition to begin with, obviously a side with a huge amount of ability and incredibly dangerous. And we were really keen on not only trying to get that first result against a really good team, but playing the way we wanted to play in our home conditions and mastering our conditions.”
Reflecting on RCB’s first win against SRH, Karthik said, “When you play someone like SRH's first match of the tournament, you know the blocks of the batting lineup they have. So it's one thing to bowl well to them, but how do you address it with the bat as well? And I thought our boys showed a lot of courage. What RCB did was a statement in itself, the way they won it, and doing it that convincingly was extremely pleasing.”
