RCB Vs GT, IPL 2026 Qualifier 1: Patidar Power, Disciplined Bowling Lift Bengaluru To Second Straight Final

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) rode a sensational assault from skipper Rajat Patidar to thrash Gujarat Titans (GT) by 92 runs in Qualifier 1 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on Tuesday (May 26). 

ALSO READ: RCB Vs GT Highlights

With the resounding victory, the defending champions booked their ticket to a second straight final, while the Titans headed to Qualifier 2, where they will meet the winner of Wednesday's Eliminator between SunRisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals.

RCB set a massive 255-run target, the highest in the history of IPL playoffs. In response, Gujarat were bowled out for 162 runs in 19.3 overs. Rahul Tewatia hit a 43-ball 68 to wage a lone battle for the losing side, while Krunal Pandya (2/16 in 3.3 overs) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (28/2 in 4 overs) were the pick of the bowlers.

It was Patidar who made such a towering total possible for the Royal Challengers. The captain turned the game on its head with a brilliant 33-ball 93 not out, cracking nine sixes and five fours after surviving two dropped chances, as the holders plundered 114 runs off last six overs to seize complete control of the contest.

Virat Kohli and Pandya notched up 43 runs apiece, and Kohli compiled his seventh fifty-plus partnership of the edition with Devdutt Padikkal (30 off 19). The duo took the Royal Challengers to a commanding 76 for one in the powerplay, which set the tone for Patidar's blazing knock later.

The Titans' chase never really took off. Sai Sudharsan's bizarrely unfortunate hit wicket dismissal was perhaps the turning point of the match. The southpaw inadvertently threw his bat onto the stumps after cutting Jacob Duffy to the point boundary in the third over.

With Sai Sudharsan's departure for a 9-ball 14, the floodgates opened as RCB reduced the Titans to a precarious 53 for 5 by the end of the seventh over. The outcome was a foregone conclusion by then, and the GT lower-order only managed to cut the margin of defeat.

RCB Vs GT, IPL 2026 Qualifier 1: Toss Update

GT skipper Shubman Gill won the toss and elected to bowl first. He cited the likelihood of dew later in the evening as his reason for the decision. RCB captain Rajat Patidar said he would have bowled first too, but added that he expected the surface to play similarly across the 40 overs.

RCB Vs GT, IPL 2026 Qualifier 1: Playing XIs

Gujarat Titans: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), 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 (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam Dar

Royal Challengers Bengaluru Impact Substitute: Romario Shepherd

Gujarat Titans Impact Substitute: Rahul Tewatia

The teams had earned their extra bite of the final cherry by deservedly finishing in the top two. RCB have been the most consistent side this season and GT, the most improved one in the league phase.