Royal Challengers Bengaluru successfully defended their championship crown, overcoming Gujarat Titans with a five-wicket win in the IPL 2026 final. RCB became the third franchise in the history of the IPL to retain the trophy, joining the elite company of Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.
In the summit clash, RCB strangulated GT in all departments with an all-round performance. After winning key moments with the ball on the back of Josh Hazlewood's, Bhuvneshwar Kumar's and Rasikh Salam's disciplined spells, RCB restricted GT to a manageable 155/8. Rasikh Salam took three wickets, while Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar returned with two wickets each to batter GT. Though Washington Sundar stepped up with late fireworks to get to an unbeaten half-century and hand Gujarat a fighting total. But things looked gloomy when ever-reliable Virat Kohli (75*) led the charge with another memorable innings to lift his side to victory.
"I said to a few other boys that it doesn't feel like the same pressure as last year. We knew what kind of ability we have in the group. We topped the table. There's a reason we got here first, and we just said one thing: if we stick to our cricket, if we execute our plans, we are the best team in the comp, and there's a reason why we have done well so far in the group stage. We ended up topping the league stage. And yeah, just the skill sets we have, the maturity, the composure of the guys just shown through again tonight, and it was a clinical performance," Kohli said after the match.
"Well, to be fair, after the break [in early May], we had one loss. And then we had a close win against MI. I'd say that week was a bit tricky for us because we wanted to finish at the top. But as soon as we got that win against MI, the belief came back in. Then we had a comprehensive win against KKR, and then yeah, just ended up topping the table and just on our way to the finals.
Having ended their long wait for a maiden title only a year earlier, RCB are transforming into a well-oiled unit.
"It's been amazing. I mean, we had to wait for so long and then you know... just to have a group of guys where you feel like when you are stepping on to the ground, you don't need to be the one to step up every time. There is a guy behind you, around you, who can win games of cricket for you. We have so many Man-of-the-Match awards spread throughout the group as well."
"I mean, you look at world-class bowling, like Hoff, Bhuv, Duff, I mean, Krunal Pandya, you can bank on him as good as ever. Rasikh Dar was brilliant this season. And all the batsmen chipped in as well. I feel so happy to be playing in a group where we have balance, we have strength and we are an all-round strong team. That's why we have the confidence we have on the field right now."