In a huge blow to Royal Challengers Bangalore, Australian left-arm seamer Mitchell Starc has pulled out of the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League. The Australian fast bowler, will be playing gruelling cricket in India and need some time to recover well for the ICC Champions Trophy to be held in June.

The opening match of the cash-rich Indian Premier League will be a virtual last year’s finals. The defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad will take on runners-up Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 5 at Hyderabad.

It was raining runs in Bengaluru on Sunday night when Sunrisers Hyderabad fought against Virat Kohli led Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final match of Indian Premier League 2016.