Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) claimed their IPL title in back-to-back seasons under the leadership of Rajat Patidar. After Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI), Bengaluru are the third team in the league history to successfully defend the title.
In both innings of the IPL 2026 final, Bengaluru proved its dominance over home team Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. While Bengaluru bowlers dominated the first over, it was Virat Kohli who took the team safely to the finish line.
RCB was ahead since the beginning of the match
In the final of the IPL 2026 season, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) gave a brilliant bowling performance against Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. It is the home ground of Gujarat Titans and is the same ground where Bengaluru won their first title last season. GT had the home lead, but RCB had the momentum, which made the contest more interesting.
Rajat Patidar decided to bowl first as the surface looked a bit difficult. GT’s main strength lies in their opening batsmen Sai Sudarshan and Shubman Gill at the top of the batting order. Josh Butler was another player who could be a serious threat to defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore.
RCB came in with a proper plan for tonight’s summit clash. As soon as they removed the top-order batsmen, GT’s batting unit faltered and could only score 155 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 8 wickets. Washington Sundar alone scored unbeaten 50 runs in 37 balls. For Bengaluru, Rasikh Salam took 3 wickets in 4 overs at an economy rate of 6.75 and two wickets each for Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood.
Virat Kohli was the hero for Bengaluru
After the first over in the second innings, Venkatesh Iyer and Virat Kohli gave a great start to RCB. Gujarat Titans tried their best to make a comeback in the match on the strength of their bowlers. After the departure of Venkatesh Iyer, GT soon took the wickets of Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar and Krunal Pandya.
It was chase-master Virat Kohli who remained strong on deck and took the team closer to the target. Tim David also played an important role while chasing the target and supported Kohli in the innings. Kohli remained unbeaten after scoring 75 runs in 42 balls with the help of nine fours and three sixes. RCB won the IPL 2026 final over Gujarat Titans by 5 wickets and 12 balls to spare.
It feels great: Rajat Patidar
Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Rajat Patidar said after the match, “It feels great. There were a lot of memories of last year when we came here. I don’t have words to express but it feels great. It was a clear plan. When we win the toss, it is easy to chase. The way Bhuvi, Hazlewood, Rasikh, KP Suyash and Shepherd bowled well throughout the tournament.”
“I never dreamed of being the captain of RCB and lifting the trophy. I think it was written. Grateful for that. We were a little more confident than last year. With the fans coming everywhere, it felt like a home ground for us.”
“The preparation before the tournament was very good for me. I tried to analyze which shots are good for me. I got a lot of inputs from DK, which were helpful for me. He is always there for the team,” he said.
Read more: “We knew”: Virat Kohli happy after winning two consecutive IPL titles
