Raipur, May 13 (IANS) The toss in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash between defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru and three‑time winners Kolkata Knight Riders will now be held at 8:30 pm, with play set to begin at 8:45 pm at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium here on Wednesday.

Despite heavy rain earlier in the evening, officials confirmed that no overs will be lost, especially with the cut-off time to lose overs not reached yet. Previously, persistent showers and a wet outfield had forced a delay in the toss and match start time. The entire ground was covered after a 30‑minute spell of rain began at 4:30 pm.

A brief drizzle returned around 6:15 pm, and the ground was fully covered again as super soppers worked on the surface. At 6:35 pm, the rain intensified, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Though conditions eased five minutes before the scheduled toss time, on‑field umpires Rohan Pandit and Nitin Menon, along with fourth umpire Kaushik Gandhi, inspected the ground as staff carefully removed covers laden with water.

Frequent lightning strikes meant the delay stretched further before revised timings were announced closer to the pitch inspection time. The Raipur pitch has not been easy for batting, with bowlers expected to exploit the conditions, especially with some moisture due to rain now being a major factor.

Rajat Patidar-led RCB enter the contest buoyed by a thrilling last‑ball win over the Mumbai Indians at the same venue on Sunday. A win would take RCB to the top of the points table and closer to a top-two finish in the points table.

Meanwhile, the Ajinkya Rahane-captained KKR, unbeaten in their last four matches after a poor start to the competition, need a victory to continue their impressive turnaround and stay alive in the race to the playoffs.

–IANS

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