{"id":"f-80ae245e0c-7e6fc7ff-f7cc-5e4f-aaee-a6d9e5881be1","title":"Virat Kohli Unleashes Beast Mode At Lord's, Gears Up For RCB's IPL Title Defence | Watch","description":"Kohli, who is the highest run scorer in IPL history, last played a competitive cricket match on January 18, 2026.","timestamp":1773210709,"category":"sports","headline":"Virat Kohli Unleashes Beast Mode At Lord's, Gears Up For RCB's IPL Title Defence | Watch","modifiedHeadline":"Watch Kohli’s fiery training for IPL title defence","subCategories":["scid_185ed133"],"subcategoriesName":["Cricket"],"region":"IN","bundleMetaData":{"bundleId":"6ff0e53c-03a9-4fac-a199-00040694f01a","bundleTitle":"Indian Cricket","cardData":null},"iabCategoryId":"491","iabCategoryName":"Cricket","fcSummary":"indian cricketer virat kohli has started preparing for the 2026 ipl, posting a video of his practice at lord’s cricket ground. royal challengers bangalore (rcb), for whom he plays, aims to defend their title. rcb will play five home matches in bengaluru and two in raipur. they'll face chennai super kings in the ipl opener at chinnaswamy stadium.","summary":"King Kohli’s fiery training video showcases his intense prep and focus as he gears up to lead his team for IPL 2026 title defence.","ctaUrl":"https://trends.glance.com/newz/news/IN/en/news18/f-80ae245e0c-7e6fc7ff-f7cc-5e4f-aaee-a6d9e5881be1","sourceUrl":"https://www.news18.com/cricket/virat-kohli-unleashes-beast-mode-at-lords-gears-up-for-rcbs-ipl-title-defence-watch-ws-no-9954174.html","bannerImage":"https://g-mob.glance-cdn.com/public/fc/image/Qi7AWYg3Xvu0.webp","content":"

A day after BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia confirmed that the IPL 2026 schedule for the first 20 matches will be out in 2-3 days, legendary Indian cricketer Virat Kohli, who now lives in London, took to Instagram

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to post a video via which he declared that he has kicked off his preparations for the 2026 edition of the Indian Premier League.

Kohli, who represents Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the world’s richest franchise cricket league, posted a reel on the popular photo and video sharing platform and captioned it, “IPL 2026”.

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In the now-viral clip, he can be seen batting at the indoor facility at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground in London.

Here’s a look:

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A post shared by Virat Kohli (@virat.kohli)
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Kohli, who last played a competitive cricket match on January 18, 2026, against New Zealand in Indore, will be a key batter for the Bengaluru-based franchise in IPL 2026 as they aim to become only the third team in the tournament’s history after Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians to successfully defend their title.

Kohli is the highest run scorer in IPL history, and he also topped the list of batters with the most runs for RCB in IPL 2025. Once again there will be high expectations from him in IPL 2026, and with less than three weeks to go for the start of the IPL, Kohli has begun his preparations.

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RCB to play 5 matches at Chinnaswamy

In the 2026 edition of the IPL, RCB will play their five home matches at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, whereas two home fixtures are scheduled to take place at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Raipur.

The Chinnaswamy has been the RCB’s long-time home and is considered one of India’s traditional cricket centres. However, last year, it turned into the site of a tragic sporting disaster as 11 people lost their lives and several more were injured in a stampede just outside during RCB’s celebrations of its maiden title.

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RCB vs CSK in IPL opener

It has been reported by Cricbuzz that 2025 champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru will face five-time winners Chennai Super Kings in the first match of IPL 2026 at M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Along with the tournament’s opener, Chinnaswamy Stadium will also host the second qualifier and final match of IPL 2026.

","readDurationInMinutes":"7","author":{"name":"News18","logo":"https://glance-mob.glance-cdn.com/public/bubble/png/93a0a932-2fe3-40ed-bfdb-4582706f8183.jpeg"},"ism":false,"analyticsResponses":[],"pointerSummary":["Virat Kohli began IPL 2026 prep, posting a video from London’s Lord’s.","RCB will play 5 home matches in Bengaluru, 2 in Raipur, per schedule soon.","RCB faces CSK in the IPL opener at Chinnaswamy; a venue with a tragic past."],"tags":["ViratKohli","IPL2026","RoyalChallengersBengaluru","RCB","Cricket","LordsCricketGround","IndianPremierLeague","ChennaiSuperKings","CSK","MChennaswamyStadium","BCCI","CricketNews"],"redirectionEnabled":false,"consent":true}

Virat Kohli Unleashes Beast Mode At Lord's, Gears Up For RCB's IPL Title Defence | Watch

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