Rain threat hangs over RCB-CSK game in Bengaluru
There is a 70% chance of rain on Saturday, and wet weather had also interrupted the training sessions of both teams on the eve of the game
Ashish Pant
02-May-2025
Rain had affected the RCB-PBKS match in Bengaluru earlier this season • BCCI
Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) bid to get to 16 points and strengthen their chances of a top-two finish in IPL 2025 might take a hit, with a rain threat hanging over their home game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Saturday.
There have been sporadic spells of rain of varying intensity in Bengaluru over the last two days, and there is a 70% chance of rain on Saturday, with the met department predicting that "rain or thundershowers would occur towards afternoon or evening" on May 3.
The weather played a part on match eve as well, interrupting the training sessions of both teams. CSK started their training around 3pm but could only practice for about 45 minutes before rain intervened. The players then resumed training at 4.30pm. RCB held their practice session later, starting around 5pm.
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Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal batted for close to 45 minutes to an hour before it started hosing down, but this time the rain did not relent for three hours and RCB's practice session had to be cancelled. There was also a thunderstorm and occasional lightning throughout the evening, which caused waterlogging in many parts of the city.
While CSK have already been knocked out of contention for the playoffs, after managing just two wins in their first ten games, this is a crucial game for RCB. They are currently third on the points table with seven wins and three losses. A win on Saturday will lift them to the top spot.
There was already a rain-shortened match in Bengaluru last month when the RCB-Punjab Kings (PBKS) game was reduced to 14-overs-a-side.
This is the first time that RCB will face CSK in Bengaluru since their high-octane clash in IPL 2024, when RCB's 27-run win helped them scrape through to the playoffs. When the two sides met earlier this season in Chennai, RCB won by 50 runs.
Ashish Pant is a sub-editor with ESPNcricinfo