Raipur, May 13 -- Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who have been hit by the absence of their prolific opener Phil Salt mid-season due to injury, will be aiming for their opening duo to fire during a crucial match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Raipur on Wednesday.

Last year in RCB's championship-winning run, the opening pair of Salt and Virat had set a standard of playing attacking cricket, despite having two very contrasting individual styles. However, this time, RCB's opening pair, which has included a young Jacob Bethell in the second half so far, has not been as prolific.

Last year, the pairing of Virat with Salt and Bethell (the latter for two matches), produced 682 runs at an average of 45.46 and a ru...