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IPL 2026 RCB vs GT Updates: RCB trounce Titans to storm into final

Tue, 26 May 2026

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23:43

RCB trounce Titans to storm into final

Titans 162-all out (19.3 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Hazlewood back to bowl his fourth and final over. Tewatia, on 48 from 31 balls, pulls the first ball to deep square leg but doesn't take the single.

He steers the back of length delivery past point for a four to race to his fifty from 33 balls.

Hazlewood responds with a quick bouncer as Tewatia misses the pull shot and is struck on the body.

He swats the fourth ball through square leg for another boundary before taking a single off the next.

Rasikh back after a superb first spell of 1/12 in two overs. He starts with a high bouncer which is ruled a wide for height before Tewatia heaves the pacer mover midwicket for a six.

The left-hander then guides Rasikh off the outside half past short thirdman for a four.

Tewatia gets a bottom edge looking to cut Rasikh but it falls just short of wicketkeeper Jitesh.

Bhuvneshwar strikes in the next over with the wicket of Tewatia, who looks to slice it over the off-side but fails to time the loft and is caught by Patidar in the covers

Tewatia walks back after an entertaining 68 from 43 balls which helped add some respectability to the Titan's score.

Prasidh Krishna stays in his crease to steer the wide delivery from Bhuvneshwar behind point for a four and takes one off the last ball.

Bhuvneshwar finishes with excellent figures of 2/28 in four overs.

23:23

Gujarat Titans 8 down; RCB set for big win

Titans 134-8 (16 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Tewatia only Titans batter to score more than 30 runs. Other than him only Jos Buttler managed to score in double digits in a forgettable performance by the GT batters.

Siraj showing a lot of respect to Krunal keeping out the first two balls before taking one and Tewatia picks a single to long-on as Krunal gives away just two runs in his third over.

Bhuvneshwar back into the attack. Tewatia continues his assault sweeping the pacer for a four before he again swipes the next for a six over square leg.

23:15

Gujarat Titans 8 down; RCB set for big win

Titans 121-8 (14 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Impact Player Romario Shepherd comes into the attack to bowl the 13th over. Tewatia swings the first ball over midwicket for a four and then smashes the next through the same region for the same result as Titans struggle past 100.

Two balls later, he again sweeps the pacer powerfully over midwicket for a six to give the Titans something to cheer for.

Hazlewood back to bowl his third over and the 14th of the innings. Tewatia continues to enjoy himself as he walks across before scooping the slower ball fine on the leg side for a four.

Tewatia sweeps a full toss from Hazlewood over square leg for a six before guiding the last ball past point for a four.

23:05

Gujarat Titans 8 down; RCB set for big win

Titans 92-8 (13 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Krunal also gets a wicket to his name. Rabada looks to attack the spinner but fails to make good connection off a bouncer from the spinner and is caught by Kohli at deep midwicket.

Rabada goes for nine as Titans slip to 88/8 in the 12th over.

Mohammed Siraj keeps out the bouncer before he helps another short ball down the leg side fine for a four.

22:59

Duffy takes 3; Gujarat Titans 7 down

Titans 83-7 (11 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya comes into the attack. He bowls a quiet over giving away just four singles in his opening over as Titans struggle to 70/6 in 10 overs at the halfway mark.

Rashid goes after Duffy as he slogs the pacer over midwicket for a six before the bowler gets revenge.

Another short ball as Rashid swings hard but this time he gets the top edge and is caught behind for eight.

Kagiso Rabada pulls a short ball for a boundary before he outside edges the next ball for one to thirdman.

Duffy finishes with excellent figures of 3/39 from his four overs.

22:51

Gujarat Titans 6 down; RCB set for big win

Titans 66-6 (9 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Hazlewood bowls another tidy over, as Washington Sundar takes a single first ball before Tewatia plays four dots in a row. He manages just a single off the last ball as Hazlewood gives away just two runs from his second over.

Rasikh from the other end. Tewatia takes one off the first ball before Sundar clips the next through midwicket for two runs.

Rasikh bowls a high bouncer but he has overstepped to concede a no-ball followed by a wide.

Sundar makes most of the free hit, swatting it over midwicket for a four followed by singles off the last two balls.

Duffy comes back into the attack and he cripples Titan further with the wicket of Sundar.

The left-hander plays the ramp shot off a short wide delivery but ends up slicing a simple catch to Hazlewood at thirdman to fall for eight.

Gujarat Titans stumble further to a lowly 65/6 in the ninth over.

Rashid Khan is surprised by a quick bouncer first up as he takes his eye off and is struck on the shoulder.

22:31

Titans 5 down; RCB set for big win

Titans 51-5 (6 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Things going from bad to worse for Titans. Rasikh Salam Dar strikes with the first ball of his spell, taking a superb return off his own bowling.

Left-hander Sindhu (5) got a leading edge as Rasikh dived forward to take the ball inches from the ground.

RCB's bowlers putting on a show as they reduce Titans to a lowly 51/4 in the sixth over.

Nearly another wicket as Jason Holder is sent back halfway down looking for a quick run but Kohli at midwicket misses the direct hit.

However, Holder doesn't make most as he falls off the very next ball. He mistimes the pull shot to offer Hazlewood a simple catch at mid-on.

Holder falls for a duck as Titans lose their fifth wicket in the Powerplay.

Rahul Tewatia keeps out the last two balls as Rasikh starts off with a double wicket maiden.

The match is as good as over with Gujarat Titans reeling on 51/5 in six overs in the Powerplay.

22:24

Buttler out for 29 as Titans collapse

Titans 51-3 (5 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Josh Hazlewood comes into the attack. Buttler breaks free as he smashes the second ball straight down the ground for a four. He then swings the next ball over long-on for a six.

Buttler on fire! He steps out of his crease to take the delivery on the full and drill it through the covers for another four.

However, Hazlewood has the last laugh. Buttler makes room to hit the pacer through the off-side but misses the slower ball and is bowled for 29.

Titans slip to 51/3 in the fifth over as RCB look on course for a big win.

22:19

Gill, Sudharsan perish; Titans in trouble

Titans 37-2 (4 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Bhuvneshwar leaves Titans in further with the big wicket of captain Gill. The right-hander attempts an ugly swing across the line but misses the full delivery which comes in and strikes the stumps.

Gill walks back for 2 as Titans slip to 27/2 in the fourth over.

Nishant Sindhu gets off the mark with a single before Buttler gets a thick outside edge which flies past the wicketkeeper for a four.

He takes one before Sindhu gets a thick outside edge which goes past point for another streaky boundary.

22:12

Blow for Titans; Sudharsan out hit wicket

Titans 27-1 (3 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Heartbreaking for Sudharsan as the left-hander is unlucky to be dismissed hit wicket. He cuts Duffy past point for a boundary but loses the bat in the process as it bounces before ending up on the stumps.

Sudharsan can't believe his luck as he walks back disappointed after scoring 14.

Jos Buttler glances the fifth ball fine on the leg side for a four before he flicks the last ball over midwicket for a six.

22:07

Patidar's 33-ball 93 powers RCB to 254

Titans 13-0 (2 ovs) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Bhuvneshwar Kumar from the other end. He gets some swing first ball to beat Sudharsan on the outside edge followed by a wide down the leg side.

A dot ball follows before Sudharsan taps Bhuvneshwar on the leg side for a single.

Gill comes down and looks to slash it through the off-side but fails to connect and the ball is not far from the stumps.

He is unable to get a run off the last ball as Bhuvneshwar makes a superb start, conceding just two runs in his first over.

22:02

Patidar's 33-ball 93 powers RCB to 254

Titans 11-0 (1 ov) vs RCB 254-5 | SCORECARD

Gujarat Titans opener Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan will have their task cut as they need a fiery start in the Powerplay.

Jacob Duffy to open the bowling for RCB. The first ball is full and on the pads as Sudharsan clips it through midwicket for a four to start off in confident fashion.

The left-hander punches the next ball in the gap through the covers to make it two fours in a row.

He inside edges the pull shot for a single before Gill misses the glance off a full delivery down the leg side which is ruled a wide.

RCB take the review and manage to overturn the decision as the ball had clipped the backpad.

Gill hits the last ball in the gap through the covers for two runs to make it 11 runs from the opening over.

21:24

Patidar's 33-ball 93 powers RCB to 254

Rajat Patidar on the attack.

RCB 254-5 (20 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

RCB skipper Rajat Patidar smashed a brilliant 93 not out from 33 balls to power his team to a massive 254/5 in their 20 overs against Gujarat Titans in the Qualifier 1 match.

Patidar dominated in the middle overs, blasting nine sixes and five fours, as RCB posted the highest team total in a IPL playoffs match.

Kohli had given RCB a flying start in the Powerplay, hitting 43 form 25 balls, while Padikkal stroked 30 from 19 balls.

Patidar turned the RCB innings in the middle overs with his sensational strokeplay, putting on a match-turning partnership of 95 from 45 balls with Pandya, who stroked a quickfire 43 from 28 balls.

21:24

Patidar's 33-ball 93 powers RCB to 254

Rajat Patidar on the attack.

RCB 254-5 (20 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

RCB skipper Rajat Patidar smashed a brilliant 93 not out from 33 balls to power his team to a massive 254/5 in their 20 overs against Gujarat Titans in the Qualifier 1 match.

Patidar dominated in the middle overs, blasting nine sixes and five fours, as RCB posted the highest team total in a IPL playoffs match.

Kohli had given RCB a flying start in the Powerplay, hitting 43 form 25 balls, while Padikkal stroked 30 from 19 balls.

Patidar turned the RCB innings in the middle overs with his sensational strokeplay, putting on a match-turning partnership of 95 from 45 balls with Pandya, who stroked a quickfire 43 from 28 balls.

21:20

Patidar's 33-ball 93 powers RCB to a huge 254

RCB 254-5 (20 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Prasidh starts the final over with a full toss which Patidar easily flicks over square leg for a six to take RCB to the highest total in a IPL playoffs game.

Patidar gets a single next ball before Jitesh gets the third off the outside half as it goes over short thirdman.

Patidar pushes hard and goes for the risky third run as Buttler fails to gather the ball with the batter struggling to make his crease.

Patidar hammers the fourth ball straight back over the bowler's head for a six to race into the 90s while RCB past 250.

Patidar can only hit the full toss down to long-on for a single to miss out on a possible century.

Jitesh swings hard but can only mistime it towards midwicket as the two batters rush across for two runs.

21:14

Patidar's 21-ball fifty takes RCB past 200

RCB 235-5 (19 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Siraj back to bowl the 19th over. He starts with a full toss as Patidar plays another stunning shot, opening the face of the bat to carve over point for a six.

He then lofts the second ball over midwicket for a four before taking one to long-on.

New batter Jitesh Sharma is beaten as he swings hard before he gets the next off the outside half past short thirdman for a four.

Siraj makes the mistake of bowling in the slot as Jitesh cracks it over wide long-on for a six.

21:11

Patidar slams 21-ball fifty as RCB race past 200

Rajat Patidar

RCB 214-5 (18 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Prasidh back into the attack, to bowl the 18th over. He starts with a wide down the leg side to Tim David, who then takes a single on the off-side.

Patidar clips the second ball off his pads for one and David swats the next to get just one.

Patidar inside edges the fourth ball as it goes past short fine leg for a four followed by a single.

Prasidh ends the over on a high with the wicket of David, who misses a full straight delivery and is bowled for four.

21:03

Patidar's 21-ball fifty takes RCB past 200

Rajat Patidar

RCB 204-4 (17 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Rabada, back in the attack, makes the breakthrough to check RCB's progress.

Krunal mistimes the pull off the slower short ball and is caught at deep midwicket after an attacking knock of 43 from 28 balls.

Krunal and Patidar turned the RCB innings in the middle overs as they smashed 95 from 45 balls for the fourth wicket.

Tim David gets a single off an inside edge before Patidar pulls Rabada into the stands over midwicket for a six to race to his fifty from 21 balls.

He then produces a sensational shot, smashing Rabada inside out for a cracking six over the covers to take RCB past 200, in the 17th over.

20:59

Patidar, Krunal put RCB in control

RCB 189-3 (16 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

40 runs from the last two overs as RCB break free after two quick wickets and a couple of tight overs.

Titans bring back their premier spinner Rashid but no stopping RCB's charge.

Patidar, known for his attacking prowess against spin, heaves Rashid wide of long-on for a six.

Krunal then slog sweeps the spinner into the stands at midwicket for another six before taking one.

Patidar continues his assault as he lofts Rashid inside out over the covers for the third six of the over.

The wheels are off for the Titans with Rashid going for 21 in his third over, with 49 coming from the last two overs.

20:53

Patidar, Krunal put RCB in control

Krunal Pandya

RCB 168-3 (15 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Prasidh continues as Patidar top edges the first ball which flies behind the wicketkeeper for two runs. That was a possible catch as three fielders converged but no one were able to get to the ball.

The RCB skipper then pulls a short ball down the leg side for a four through fine leg.

Patidar, on 20 from 12 balls gets a lifeline as Rabada puts down a simple catch at deep square leg.

Krunal makes it worse for Prasidh as he opens the face of the bat to guide a full toss between short thirdman and point for a four.

He is hurried into the pull shot and ends up mishitting it back to the bowler who fumbles to concede a single.

Khejroliya bowls his second over with Titans needing a wicket as RCB are well placed going into the last five overs.

Patidar gets one off the inside edge before Krunal carves a high full toss past a diving Siraj at point for a four.

RCB take the review for the no-ball as the full toss is above waist height and ruled a no ball.

Khejroliya bowls a wide before Krunal slams the free hit delivery square as Nishant Sindhu misses a regulation stop at deep point to concede a four when it should have been a single.

The pacer then makes things worse for Titans as he oversteps to concede another no ball.

Patidar makes most of the free hit delivery, lofting the full delivery over mid-off for a four.

The next ball was short and this time the RCB captain pulls it over short fine leg for a six and swats the last ball over midwicket for a four.

Poor bowling from Khejroliya as he gives away 28 runs in his second over.

The momentum is back with RCB as they race to 168/3 in 15 overs.

Patidar looks in ominous touch, hitting 36 from 17 balls, while Krunal has stroked 35 from 24 balls. The duo have put on 74 from 38 balls as RCB look on course for a total around 230-240.

20:37

Patidar, Krunal get RCB back on track

RCB 128-3 (13 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Fast bowler Prasidh Krishna comes into the attack to bowl the 12th over.

He starts well to give away three runs from his first four balls including a bye.

Krunal strikes back as he lofts the fifth ball over mid-off for a four. He then plays a streaky shot, going a long way across and makes a late adjustment to somehow scoop the ball over the wicketkeeper for a six.

Another pacer introduced as left-armer Kulwant Khejroliya is introduced to bowl the 13th over.

Patidar slams the first ball back past the bowler for a single before Krunal is beaten by the slower ball.

The left-hander then inside edges the next ball back on to his pads before he swings and misses the fourth ball.

Krunal then pulls the fifth ball for just a single and Patidar also gets only one off the last ball.

A superb start from the pacer, playing his second game of the season, as he gives away just three runs in his first over.

20:28

Double blow for RCB; Kohli, Padikkal fall

Jason Holder

RCB 112-3 (11 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Rashid continues to be tight, as he gives away just three singles in his second over.

RCB are 99/3 in 10 overs at the halfway mark as Patidar and Krunal face a rebuilding task.

Patidar releases the pressure as he pulls Holder for a six over midwicket to take RCB past the 100-run mark, in the 11th over.

Three singles before Krunal clips the last ball over short fine leg fielder for a four.

13 from the over as Holder finishes with 2/39 from his four overs.

20:19

Double blow for RCB; Kohli, Padikkal fall

RCB 96-3 (9 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Padikkal backs away but can only pull Holder's first ball to deep midwicket for one.

Holder gets the breakthrough for Titans with the crucial wicket of Kohli, who is bowled off an inside edge.

Kohli walks back after a quickfire 43 from 25 balls after he inside edges the pull shot back on to the stumps.

Kohli and Padikkal put RCB in control as they smashed 72 from 38 balls for the second wicket.

Titans batting coach Matthew Hayden believes the pitch is two paced and might not be that easy for batting as the match progresses.

Holder deals another RCB another big blow with the wicket of Padikkal. The left-hander plays away from the body and gets the edge to be caught behind.

He takes the review but there is a clear spike on the Ultra Edge as the decision stands.

Padikkal walks back after scoring 30 from 19 balls as RCB are reduced to 94/3 in the ninth over.

Nearly another wicket as Krunal Pandya flashes at the length delivery angled across and is beaten on the outside edge. He hits the last ball in the gap through the covers for two runs to get off the mark.

20:12

Kohli, Padikkal pile on the runs

Virat Kohli

RCB 92-1 (8 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Holder continues after the Powerplay as Padikkal mistimes the pull shot before Kohli makes good connection with the pull for a four square on the leg side.

Singles off the next three balls before Padikkal clips the last ball past short fine leg for two runs to get 10 from the over.

Titans introduce spinner Rashid Khan as they target a breakthrough to check RCB's charge.

Kohli pushes the first ball into the off-side for one and Padikkal misses the flick to get a leg bye.

Kohli hits a full toss straight back as it strikes the stumps at the non-striker's end to deny him a few runs.

Three singles to end the over as Rashid makes a tidy start, giving away just five runs in his first over.

20:04

Kohli, Padikkal on the attack!

Virat Kohli

RCB 76-1 (6 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Jason Holder comes into the attack in place of Siraj, who went for 25 runs in his two overs.

A single each to Padikkal and Kohli before the former pulls a short ball in the gap at midwicket for a four.

Kohli and RCB get five bonus runs as Sundar's wild throw at the bowler's end goes for a four as Kohli attempts a quick run.

Rabada to bowl his third over in the Powerplay. RCB continue to attack the bowlers as Kohli brings his wrists into play flicking the pacer over midwicket for a four.

Kohli then plays a fierce pull shot for another boundary through the midwicket region.

The RCB opener not holding back as he goes for the pull shot but gets the top edge which flies over the wicketkeeper for a six to raise the 50-run stand for the second wicket from just 24 balls.

RCB have counter-attacked after the early wicket to race to 76/1 in six overs.

Kohli has smashed 34 from 18 balls, while Padikkal has hit 23 from 11 balls. The two batters have gone on the attack to make most of the Powerplay and put the pressure back on Titans.

19:53

Kohli, Padikkal take RCB past 50

RCB 50-1 (4 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Kohli breaks the shackles as he lofts a full delivery from Siraj over mid-off to start the third over with a four.

He taps the short wide delivery past point for two runs and inside edges the next for one.

Devdutt Padikkal misses the flick and is struck on the pads but the leg before shout is turned down and the same next ball.

Padikkal gets off the mark with a lofted shot over mid-off for a boundary.

Rabada starts his second over with a poor delivery full and down the leg side as Kohli glances it fine for a four and takes one off the next.

Padikkal goes after Rabada with a hat-trick of boundaries. He clips the pacer off his pads for a sweetly-timed four through square leg and steers the next past short thirdman for the same result.

He makes three fours in a row as he slaps Rabada past point before taking one off the last ball to bring up RCB's 50 in four overs.

19:44

Rabada strikes; Iyer out for 19

RCB 21-1 (2 ovs) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Kagiso Rabada from the other end, he has been superb with the new over with 17 wickets in the Powerplay this season.

He beats Kohli first ball with a full delivery that swings away quite a bit. The next ball is short as Kohli goes for the pull but fails to connect again as he is beaten for pace and bounce.

Rabada getting some good carry as Kohli is beaten on the inside edge this time by the back of length inswinger.

Kohli sensibly gets off strike as he under edges Rabada on the off-side.

Iyer targets Rabada as he walks across to scoop Rabada over fine leg for a six.

But Rabada continues his good run with the new ball with the wicket of Iyer, his 18th in the Poweprlay this season.

The back of length swings away as Iyer looking to loft it down the ground miscues it and is caught by Gill running back at mid-off.

Iyer walks back after scoring 19 from seven balls as RCB lose an early wicket.

19:39

Venkatesh Iyer off to a flier!

RCB 14-0 (1 ov) vs Titans | SCORECARD

Interestingly, all the eight IPL games between RCB and Gujarat Titans have been won by the team batting second.

Virat Kohli will walk out to open the batting with Venkatesh Iyer, while pacer Mohammed Siraj will open the bowling for Titans.

The first ball is short and wide as Iyer punches it through the covers for a boundary to get off the mark in some style.

He steps out of the crease next ball to flick Siraj through midwicket for another four.

Siraj gets his length right, bowling on length on the off-stump channel as the left-hander defends it to the covers.

However, Iyer goes right back to hit Siraj on the up to the right of mid-off for the third four of the over.

He taps the fifth ball on the off-side for a quick single and Kohli gets off the mark with a quick run in the covers.

A good start for RCB as 14 come from the first over.

19:09

Gujarat Titans elect to bowl vs RCB in Qualifier 1

Gujarat Titans have made one change as left-arm pacer Kulwant Khejroliya replaces Arshad Khan. Meanwhile, RCB have left out Phil Salt while including Jacob Duffy.

Check out the playing XIs:

Gujarat Titans: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (Captain), Jos Buttler (w/k), Washington Sundar, Nishant Sindhu, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Kulwant Khejroliya, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (Captain), Jitesh Sharma (w/k), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam Dar.

19:06

Gujarat Titans elect to bowl vs RCB in Qualifier 1

IPL Trophy

Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill has won the toss and elected to bowl against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 match in Dharamsala.

'It looks like a good wicket but we have seen in this ground that there is some dew in the second innings. It is always good to have a total in a big game and then chase it down,' Gill says at the toss.

Meanwhile, RCB skipper Rajat Patidar believes the pitch won't change much in the second innings.

'The wicket looks pretty good, it looks pretty hard, it won't change for the full 40 overs,' he said at the toss.

18:35

Can Virat Kohli break playoff curse?

Virat Kohli

All eyes will be on RCB's batting talisman Virat Kohli to deliver yet another masterclass against Gujarat Titans in the Qualifier 1 match at Dharamsala on Tuesday.

With 460 runs in eight matches at an average of 76.66 and a strike rate of over 152, including a century and four fifties against GT, Virat has been exceptional against Titans.

However, his underwhelming playoffs record could play a spoilsport. While Kohli has won India many T20 World Cup knockout stage matches or has stood tall even in defeat, it has not been the case in RCB colours.

In 17 playoff stage matches for RCB since 2009, Kohli has scored just 396 runs at an average of 26.4 and a strike rate of 121.1, with just two fifties.

His last five scores in IPL playoff stage matches are: 25, 7, 33, 12 and 43. The last time Kohli hit a half-century in the IPL knockout stage was back in 2016, when he scored 54 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the title clash in a losing effort.

He is in good form coming into the playoff match, having stroked 557 runs in 14 innings at a strike rate of over 163, with a century and four fifties.

18:35

IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 - The Royal battle for final spot

Welcome to the coverage of the IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Gujarat Titans in Dharamsala on Tuesday.

RCB's pursuit of back-to-back Indian Premier League titles will face a stiff test from Gujarat's disciplined bowling attack, with a place in the final at stake. Both teams ended the league stage on 18 points after 14 matches, but RCB claimed the top spot owing to a superior net run rate.

RCB, under skipper Rajat Patidar, built their campaign around aggressive batting and a far more reliable bowling unit than in previous seasons.

The defending champions repeatedly crossed 200 this season and benefited immensely from the experience of the iconic Virat Kohli at the top and the pace duo of Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar with the ball.

RCB, under skipper Rajat Patidar, built their campaign around aggressive batting and a far more reliable bowling unit than in previous seasons.

GT, meanwhile, have surged into the playoffs on the back of a formidable bowling attack and a top order that rarely allowed pressure to build. Captain Shubman Gill, the elegant Sai Sudharsan and explosive wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler have provided solidity and firepower in equal measure.

But it is GT's bowling that has stood out in the second half of the season. The pace trio of Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada and Prasidh Krishna has consistently struck with the new ball, while Rashid Khan and left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore have controlled the middle overs expertly.

Out of their eight clashes in the IPL, both teams have won 4 apiece -- and every single game was won by the side chasing. Neither side has figured out how to defend a total against the other.

IPL 2026 RCB vs GT Updates: RCB trounce Titans to storm into final

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