The IPL schedule for the 2022 season has been announced and curtains will be raised on 26 March in a replay of last year’s final match between Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore. With 10 teams this season, teams are divided into two groups.
In the opening week, Punjab Kings will lock horns with Royal Challengers Bangalore on 27th in an enthralling encounter. Both teams have shuffled their whole squad in 2022 auctions and dynamics are completely changed. Neither Royal Challengers Bangalore have their premier bowler Yuzvendra Chahal in their team nor Punjab Kings have their star KL Rahul in their ranks.
Both teams will look to start a new campaign with some electrifying performance. Let’s talk about the past history of these two giants.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
Royal Challengers Bangalore always have been the heavyweight of IPL from season one. They always had the luxury of big star players with huge reputations but still have their trophy cabinet empty. Before the IPL 2022 auctions, the Bangalore team had a big task as IPL legend AB De Villiers announced his retirement from IPL and Kohli also stepped down from captaincy.
Mike Hesson-led management has gathered a competitive squad but there are some serious questions about their potential. They are yet to announce their captain for the upcoming season and if reports are to be believed, Faf du Plessis is set to edge out Glenn Maxwell and will lead the side for the upcoming season.
Apart from a new captain, Royal Challengers Bangalore also has opted to let go of talisman Yuzvendra Chahal and put their money on mystery spinner Wanindu Hasaranga who fetched more than 10 crores. Royal Challengers Bangalore certainly doesn’t stand out on paper but has some killer match-winners like Glenn Maxwell, Virat Kohli, and Mohammad Siraj.
If we talk about Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers rivalry then one word which automatically pops out is “runs”. Their rivalry has been filled with runs every single time both teams come together. Whether David Miller’s killer performance in 2013 or Virat Kohli’s magic in 2016, every time these teams have met, runs have piled.
In head-to-head stats, Punjab Kings edges out Royal Challengers Bangalore and has won 15 games from 28 matches. In the last 4 encounters also, Punjab Kings have won 3 times which shows their supremacy against the Bangalore side in recent times. Teams will start from zero this season and Royal Challengers Bangalore will have a great chance to improve their record against Punjab.
Punjab Kings (PBKS)
One franchise that has been underwhelming since season one has been the Kings from Punjab. They started their IPL journey with a bang in 2008 and reached the semis but since then, they have only reached the semis once. The Preity Zinta side has again revamped their squad but this time around, they look stronger than ever under the leadership of Karnataka duo Kumble and Aggarwal.
They suffered a huge setback when their star player KL Rahul didn’t opt to be retained by the franchise and ended his reign with the team. The last 2 seasons’ hero Ravi Bishnoi also followed the path and the task was really difficult for Kumble and co but they have successfully built a strong squad with some outright match-winners.
For the first time in many years, they have a squad that is not completely dependent on one player and have various match-winners in ranks. Likes of Kagiso Rabada, Shikhar Dhawan, and Johnny Bairstow are some serious contenders to light up this season. Surprisingly Mayank Agarwal has been chosen to lead this team which seems only logical considering his time with the franchise and stature in recent years.
PBKS vs RCB Head to Head Record
| Date | Winner | Won by | Venue |
| 3rd October 2021 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 6 runs | Sharjah |
| 30th April 2021 | Punjab Kings | 34 runs | Ahmedabad |
| 15th October 2020 | Punjab Kings | 8 Wickets | Sharjah |
| 24th September 2020 | Punjab Kings | 97 Runs | Dubai |
| 24th April 2019 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 17 runs | Bengaluru |
| 13th April 2019 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 8 Wickets | Mohali |
| 14th May 2018 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 10 Wickets | Indore |
| 13th April 2018 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 4 Wickets | Bengaluru |
| 5th May 2017 | Punjab Kings | 16 Runs | Bengaluru |
| 10th April 2017 | Punjab Kings | 8 Wickets | Indore |
| 18th May 2016 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 82 Runs | Bengaluru |
| 9th May 2016 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 1 Runs | Mohali |
| 13th May 2015 | Punjab Kings | 22 Runs | Mohali |
| 6th May 2015 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 138 Runs | Bengaluru |
| 9th May 2014 | Punjab Kings | 32 Runs | Bengaluru |
| 28th April 2014 | Punjab Kings | 5 Wickets | Dubai |
| 14th May 2013 | Punjab Kings | 7 Wickets | Bengaluru |
| 6th May 2013 | Punjab Kings | 6 Wickets | Mohali |
| 2nd May 2012 | Punjab Kings | 4 Wickets | Bengaluru |
| 20th April 2012 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 5 Wickets | Mohali |
| 17th May 2011 | Punjab Kings | 111 Runs | Dharamsala |
| 6th May 2011 | Royal Challengers Banglore | 85 Runs | Bengaluru |
| 2nd April 2010 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 6 Wickets | Mohali |
| 16th March 2010 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 8 Wickets | Bengaluru |
| 1st May 2009 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 8 Runs | Durban |
| 24th April 2009 | Punjab Kings | 7 Wickets | Durban |
| 12th May 2008 | Punjab Kings | 9 Wickets | Mohali |
| 5th May 2008 | Punjab Kings | 6 Wickets | Bengaluru |
Top Batsmen with Most Runs- PBKS vs RCB Head to Head
Chris Gayle leads the chart with 873 runs. He has been the superstar of this fixture and has a century to his name as well. Interestingly, he has featured for both teams in the IPL.
| Player | Runs |
| Chris Gayle | 873 |
| Virat Kohli | 741 |
| AB de Villiers | 718 |
| KL Rahul | 517 |
Top Bowler with Most Wickets- PBKS vs RCB Head to Head
Yuzvendra Chahal has been the killer of this fixture with 25 wickets to his name. He will be the biggest missing from his fixture now as he has moved to Rajasthan Royals now. Although Sandeep Sharma has returned to Punjab Kings and is 2nd highest wicket-taker of this head-to-head.
| Player | Wickets |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | 25 |
| Sandeep Sharma | 16 |
| Piyush Chawla | 15 |
| Sreenath Aravind | 11 |
PBKS vs RCB Squad
Punjab Kings Squad-
Batsmen: Bhanuka Rjpaksa, Mayank Agarwal, Prerak Mankad, Shahrukh Khan, Shikhar Dhawan, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jonny Bairstow (WK) & Prabsimran Singh (WK)
All-rounders: Ansh Patel, Atharva Taide, Benny Howell, Harpreet Brar, Liam Livingstone, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Vaibhav Arora & Writtick Chatterjee
Bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Dhanda, Ishan Porel, Kagiso Rabada, Nathan Ellis, Sandeep Sharma & Rahul Chahar
Royal Challengers Bangalore Squad-
Batsmen: Faf du Plessis, Suyash Prabhudessai, Virat Kohli, Anuj Rawat (WK), Dinesh Karthik (WK), Finn Allen (WK), Luvnith Sisodia (WK)
All-rounders: Aneeshwar Gautam, David Willey, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Shahbaz Ahmed, Sherfane Rutherford & Wanindu Hasaranga
Bowlers: Akash Deep, Chama Milind, Harshal Patel, Jason Behrendorff, Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj, Siddharth Kaul & Karn Sharma
Punjab Kings Full Schedule for IPL 2022:
| Date | Fixture | Time (In IST) | Venue |
| March 27 | Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore | 7:30 PM | DY Patil Stadium |
| April 1 | Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | Wankhede Stadium |
| April 3 | Chennai Super Kings vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | Brabourne – CCI |
| April 8 | Punjab Kings vs Gujarat Titans | 7:30 PM | Brabourne – CCI |
| April 13 | Mumbai Indians vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | MCA Stadium, Pune |
| April 17 | Punjab Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | 3:30 PM | DY Patil Stadium |
| April 20 | Delhi Capitals vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | MCA Stadium, Pune |
| April 25 | Punjab Kings vs Chennai Super Kings | 7:30 PM | Wankhede Stadium |
| April 29 | Punjab Kings vs Lucknow Super Giants | 7:30 PM | MCA Stadium, Pune |
| May 3 | Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | DY Patil Stadium |
| May 7 | Punjab Kings vs Rajasthan Royals | 3:30 PM | Wankhede Stadium |
| May 13 | Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | Brabourne – CCI |
| May 16 | Punjab Kings vs Delhi Capitals | 7:30 PM | DY Patil Stadium |
| May 22 | Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM | Wankhede Stadium |
Read More:
CSK vs KKR Head to Head Record in IPL
IPL 2022: Punjab Kings (PBKS) Strongest Predicted Playing 11
