BREAKING | June 2, 2026 | Cricket
18 Years to Win the First. One Year to Win the Second. RCB Are a Dynasty Now — And Nobody Can Deny It.
Two nights ago at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, before 1.3 lakh roaring fans, something happened that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Royal Challengers Bengaluru — the franchise that spent 18 agonising seasons waiting for their first IPL title — lifted the trophy for the second consecutive year. Back-to-back champions. A dynasty confirmed. And at the centre of it all, doing what he always does on cricket’s biggest stages, was Virat Kohli.
The Final in Full: How RCB Crushed GT
GT 155/8 in 20 overs (Washington Sundar 50* off 37; Rasikh Salam 3/27 in 4; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/29 in 4) lost to RCB 161/5 in 18 overs (Virat Kohli 75 not out; Rashid Khan 2/25) by five wickets with 12 balls remaining.
RCB did not just win. They won with two overs to spare, with Kohli unbeaten at the crease, in the kind of composed, dominant performance that defines champions rather than contenders.
The Bowling Masterclass That Set It Up
RCB’s seam bowlers made superb use of a slightly sticky surface after Rajat Patidar won the toss. Josh Hazlewood, who has never lost a T20 or ODI final, set the tone with the wicket of Shubman Gill in his very first over. Bhuvneshwar Kumar momentarily reclaimed the Purple Cap with two wickets, and Rasikh Salam capped off his best IPL with three wickets to take his tally for the year to 19. Last final’s Player of the Match, Krunal Pandya, who won his fifth IPL final out of five, also chipped in with the big wicket of Jos Buttler.
Sent in to bat, Gujarat Titans lost both openers inside the powerplay, captain Shubman Gill dismissed for 10 by Josh Hazlewood and Sai Sudharsan removed by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Nishant Sindhu and Jos Buttler steadied briefly before both fell, leaving GT gasping at 155/8 — a competitive but ultimately insufficient total on a surface that offered more assistance to bowlers than expected.
Then Kohli Happened
RCB openers Virat Kohli and Venkatesh Iyer got the defending champions off to a brisk start as the duo went after Kagiso Rabada, the frontrunner for the Purple Cap, and took the Protea pacer for 37 runs in his first two overs. Mohammed Siraj finally broke the partnership in the fifth over by sending Iyer back following a 16-ball 32. Rabada sent back Devdutt Padikkal in the very next over as RCB ended the powerplay on 70/2.
Rashid Khan handed GT a lifeline as he dealt RCB a double blow in the ninth over, sending back Rajat Patidar and Krunal Pandya within a span of four balls to reduce RCB to 91/4. Kohli, however, used his experience well to anchor the chase. The Indian ace brought about his fifty in just 25 balls — his fastest IPL half-century ever. With Tim David at the other end, the runs counter kept ticking. A 41-run stand between the two before Ashad Khan dismissed David drove RCB closer to the title.
Virat Kohli chose this final to hit his fastest IPL fifty and his highest playoff score, leading a five-wicket win with two overs to spare. He finished 75 not out. Unbeaten. Undefeated. Undeniable.
Only the Third Team Ever — The Dynasty is Real
Royal Challengers Bengaluru etched their name into cricket history, defeating Gujarat Titans by five wickets in the IPL 2026 Final. In doing so, RCB became only the third franchise ever to successfully defend the IPL title, joining MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (2010-11) and Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians (2019-20) in an elite club.
Eighteen years of heartbreak. Then two consecutive titles in two years. That is not a hot streak. That is a dynasty.
Patidar on RCB’s encore: “We didn’t just play — we dominated. Plan was clear, it was easier to chase. Our bowlers throughout the tournament have been superb. Bhuvi, Hazlewood, Rasikh, Krunal, Sheppie — all have been superb. Never dreamt I’d win for RCB, it’s all written. Last year there was a lot of pressure. This year, we were confident. This is for the RCB fans — and also for Virat.”
The Season’s Record-Breakers
He is followed on the run charts by Shubman Gill with 732 runs and Sai Sudharsan with 722 runs — both of whom crossed 700 runs in the same season, a first in IPL history. Virat Kohli, despite his final heroics, finished fourth on the overall run charts with 675 runs in 16 matches at an average of 56.25.
And then there is Vaibhav Sooryavanshi — the 15-year-old from Bihar who finished the IPL 2026 season as the Orange Cap holder, the most sixes in a single season in IPL history, and a strike rate of 242 that no batter in T20 history has ever matched at scale. He did not win the title. But he won the season.
The Numbers That Define IPL 2026
Final score: GT 155/8, RCB 161/5. RCB won by 5 wickets with 12 balls remaining. Kohli finished 75 not out — his fastest ever IPL half-century in just 25 balls. Rasikh Salam took 3/27 in the final and 19 wickets for the season. Josh Hazlewood remained unbeaten in every white ball final he has ever played. Krunal Pandya won his fifth IPL final from five appearances — a perfect record. RCB became only the third team in IPL history to defend a title successfully.
What Virat Said — And What It Means
“What a time to be an RCB fan. Ten years ago, they would’ve felt the world was against them. That sentiment continued for nearly a decade. Chris Gayle left, AB de Villiers left. Virat Kohli stayed. Glad that we have a hand on the trophy back to back. This is for the RCB fans.”
He stayed. Through the losses, through the near-misses, through the decade of heartbreak — he stayed. And now, Virat Kohli has two IPL titles, a legacy secured, and a stadium of 1.3 lakh people who will never stop chanting his name.
IPL 2026 is over. The dynasty has begun.
All match data sourced from ESPNcricinfo, Olympics.com, and Outlook India as of May 31 — June 1, 2026.