The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) successfully retained their Indian Premier League (IPL) crown after beating hosts Gujarat Titans (GT) in the showpiece final at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday, May 31. Rajat Patidar’s side thus became only the third side in the tournament’s history to win back-to-back titles.Â
RCB won the crucial toss and opted to bowl first, and restricted GT to just 155 in the first innings. Washington Sundar’s 37-ball 50 was the only score of note, with the 2022 champions losing wickets at regular intervals. Rasikh Salam Dar, meanwhile, was the pick of the bowlers, taking three wickets with Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar chipping in with two each.
In reply, the defending champions chased down the total with two overs to spare thanks to yet another Virat Kohli masterclass in a run chase. The right-handed batter sealed the chase with a six and ended up scoring an unbeaten 75 off just 42 balls. He was partnered brilliantly by Venkatesh Iyer (32) and Tim David (24) over the course of the second innings.Â
As has been the case in 73 previous IPL matches, the 2026 final between RCB and GT also saw players from both camps achieving milestones. However, not all landmarks are positive in nature, with the Titans finding themselves on the wrong side of an unfortunate record in the history of IPL finals.Â
Here are the most important stats and milestones from the 2026 IPL Final:
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar: Joint second-most wickets by an Indian in an IPL edition (28 wickets)
- Virat Kohli: Scored his fastest IPL half-century (25 balls)
- Virat Kohli: Joint second-highest half-century in IPL finals (25 balls)
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Fastest 50 in an IPL final (3.3 overs)
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Become only the fourth side to win multiple IPL titles
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Become only the third IPL side to retain their title
- Gujarat Titans: Longest gap without a boundary in an IPL final (40 balls)
