We have now entered the IPL 2025 Playoffs as the Qualifier 1 Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru (PBKS vs RCB) match has started on Thursday evening (May 29) in Mullanpur. For the RCB side, Tim David is absent, and here we have brought the reason for his absence from the game. 

Rajat Patidar returns to the captaincy role in the Qualifier 1, as RCB chose to field first after winning the toss in the Qualifier 1 of the IPL 2025. They made only one change, as Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood replaced Sri Lankan pacer Nuwan Thusara. Meanwhile, Tim David has missed this match.

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IPL 2025, Qualifier 1, PBKS vs RCB: Why is Tim David not playing? 

RCB's Australian cricketer Tim David is missing Qualifier 1 due to his hamstring injury. He also missed their previous game, which was against Lucknow Super Giants. During their previous match against SunRisers Hyderabad, where RCB lost by 42 runs, David was injured in the final over of the first innings while saving a boundary. He was immediately off the field. Although he later came to bat and scored one off five balls, he has missed the next two matches. In their last game, English all-rounder Liam Livingstone replaced David, and the English star is continuing his place in Qualifier 1.  

The Road to Final

The winners of Qualifier 1 will advance to the Final of the IPL 2025. Meanwhile, the losers will now enter the Qualifier 2 clash, where they will face the Eliminator winners, Gujarat Titans vs Mumbai Indians on Friday (May 30) at Mullanpur. The Qualifier 2, which has been scheduled for Sunday evening (May 1) at Ahmedabad, will confirm the second finalists for the season. Ahmedabad will also host the IPL 2025 Final on Tuesday evening (May 3), where Qualifier 1 winners and Qualifier 2 winners will face each other to lift the trophy. Both RCB and PBKS are dreaming of their first IPL trophy, as RCB are the three-time IPL runners-up, while PBKS were the runners-up in the IPL 2014.