Image: Rajat Patidar’s unbeaten 93 crushed Gujarat Titans to put Royal Challengers Bengaluru into the IPL 2026 final / © NewsBytes
In Qualifier 1 of IPL 2026 at Dharamsala, Royal Challengers Bengaluru produced a complete performance to crush the Gujarat Titans by 92 runs and book their place in a second straight IPL final. After being asked to bat first, RCB piled up a massive 254/5 in 20 overs with captain Rajat Patidar leading from the front with a sensational unbeaten 93 off just 33 balls. His explosive innings included 5 fours and 9 sixes at a strike rate of 281.81.
RCB got off to a flying start through Venkatesh Iyer, who smashed 19 from only 7 balls, while Virat Kohli continued his fine form with 43 off 25 deliveries. Devdutt Padikkal added a brisk 30 before Krunal Pandya played an important knock of 43 from 28 balls. Patidar then completely dominated the death overs and guided RCB beyond the 250 mark. Jason Holder and Kagiso Rabada picked up 2 wickets each for GT, but failed to stop the flow of runs. Chasing 255, the Gujarat Titans collapsed early, reduced to 51/5 inside 6 overs.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar removed Shubman Gill cheaply, while Jacob Duffy and Rasikh Salam also struck regularly. Jos Buttler’s quick 29 off 11 gave some hope, but the innings never recovered after the early damage. Rahul Tewatia fought alone with a spirited 68 off 43 balls, but GT were eventually bowled out for 162 in 19.3 overs. Duffy finished with 3 wickets, while Bhuvneshwar, Rasikh Salam, and Krunal Pandya claimed 2 wickets each.