Royal Challengers Bengaluru player Romario Shepherd celebrates with his teammates (ANI Image)
As Royal Challengers Bengaluru prepares for their IPL 2026 final clash against Gujarat Titans, former India captain Kris Srikanth has made a bold choice. The former opener believes RCB should leave Romario Shepherd out of the playing XI, arguing that the West Indies all-rounder could become a major liability in the title tussle.Speaking on his YouTube channel ahead of the final, Srikanth expressed his concerns about Shepherd’s performance with the ball this season. While the all-rounder has taken seven wickets during the campaign, he has leaked runs at an economical rate of over 12 runs every over.
Srikkanth went as far as to claim that Shepherd’s bowling could be the only factor capable of derailing RCB’s bid for back-to-back IPL titles.“There is no news on Phil Salt yet, so they should not change now even if he is fit, as Venkatesh Iyer is in good form.
The only way RCB can lose is if Romario Shepherd bowls three overs. If he bowls three overs, RCB is gone. “The shepherd should not bend and should not be at 11 at all,” he said on YouTube.The former India captain also advised RCB to stick with Venkatesh Iyer regardless of Phil Salt’s availability. Iyer has impressed since arriving in the team, and Srikanth feels the defending champions must avoid playing into the winning group ahead of the biggest match of the season.
Looking at Gujarat Titans’ perspective, Srikkanth identified RCB’s top order as the biggest hurdle standing between GT and the trophy. In particular, he highlighted the partnership between Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal, which repeatedly laid strong foundations for Bengaluru throughout the campaign.According to Srikanth, Gujarat’s chances could hinge on breaking this partnership as soon as possible.“If GT has to win at all, they will have to break the Virat Kohli-Devdutt Padikkal partnership.
RCB always wins if Virat Kohli only turns 40. But his partnership with Padikkal is key for them. “RCB only suffers if one of these two goes out early and there is no core partnership between them,” Srikanth said.He further stressed that Gujarat must bat early not only against Kohli and Padikkal but also against the skipper
Rajat Patidar
. In his view, allowing any two of the three batsmen to settle could give the advantage to Bengaluru.“GT’s only hope of winning is to dismiss all three Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Rajat Patidar early. If any two of these three click, RCB are the winners. So GT will have to dismiss at least two of these three early to have any chance of winning. Rabada and Siraj will have to play well alongside each other for GT to win,” Srikanth added.With both teams gunning for a second IPL title, Srikkanth’s comments added another layer of suspense ahead of the final, particularly around RCB’s selection and Gujarat’s tactics against one of the strongest batting units in the tournament.