IPL 2023: Sunil Chhetri meets Virat Kohli, RCB squad ahead of MI clash, shows athleticism - WATCH

Two sporting giants – former India cricket captain Virat Kohli and India’s current football skipper Sunil Chhetri met during Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) training session ahead of their IPL 2023 opener against Mumbai Indians on Sunday. Legends on the field and friends off it, Kohli and Chhetri are known to be good pals, and it was visible during their interaction, as shared on the social media handles by RCB.

Chhetri, 38, was seen chatting with RCB batting coach Sanjay Banger alongside other players. Since the crowd was allowed to attend RCB’s training session, as we have seen during the build-up, everyone was cheering for the Indian football legend inside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

You can watch the clips here –

Meanwhile, Faf du Plessis-led RCB will face old rivals Mumbai Indians in their opening clash on Sunday evening. Struggling with injuries to star players like Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell and Josh Hazlewood, RCB will be missing firepower in their XI, but their attacking bowlers are up to the mark to compensate for that. In their absence, RCB could try a few new faces or give an extended run to local talents like Mahipal Lomror or Anuj Rawat.

RCB’s bowling will include all-rounders in Shahbaz Ahmed and David Willey, while Mohammed Siraj and Harshal Patel could take care of the pace bowling department.

For Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, debutant Cameron Green and returning Jofra Archer are likely to make it to XI. Regular star players like Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma will also be among the sure-starters.

Of the 30 games played between these two sides, Mumbai has won 17 occasions while Bangalore came on top 13 times. During the previous season, Bangalore beat MI by seven wickets. The match starts at 7:30 PM IST.