IPL 2025 champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have gotten together to begin preparations to defend their Indian Premier League title, ahead of the IPL 2026 season that begins on March 26. And ahead of the tournament opener, RCB legend Virat Kohli warned his teammates that other teams will target them this season.

RCB will open their IPL 2026 on March 26 against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at home in M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Virat Kohli has already begun training for IPL 2026, making supporters ecstatic as videos of his stunning shots circulated online. Kohli, who has scored 600 or more runs in three consecutive seasons, will once again be key to RCB's campaign as he pursues records and milestones.

RCB shared a video of their training camp, where Kohli was seen pushing his colleagues and encouraging them to work harder this season.

"We worked really hard over the last two to three seasons to achieve what we did last year, and it's only going to get tougher because the other teams are going to come hard at us. We don't waste these days. We stay ahead. So, switch on now.

Let's not waste even a minute of every session we are part of. We must give our 120% for these two and a half months. I can see from everyone's faces that we are excited enough to be challengers,” Kohli said in a video shared by RCB.  

RCB had defeated the Punjab Kings in the final of the IPL 2025 to end their 18-year wait for the IPL trophy. Looking ahead to the new season, head coach Andy Flower shared his thoughts on the team's revamped squad.

"We had an interesting auction. I think we've improved our squad, to be quite frank. We brought in some great new additions. Integrating those players into the RCB way, alongside some of the established names led by Virat and Rajat, is an exciting part of building a new team together," Flower said.

Virat Kohli is the leading run-getter in IPL history, with 8,661 runs in 267 matches, including eight centuries and 63 fifties.

(ANI inputs)