Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans were crushed in a major defeat in an IPL playoff, as RCB registered a record win at Dharamshala. The Gujarat Titans will square off against the winner of the Eliminator Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)/Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Qualifier 2 in New Chandigarh.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru completed the 2026 points table with a massive 18 points and a massive lead with their run rate. Gujarat Titans, on the other hand, were second in the points table after they ended their last five games with a promising four-match winning streak.
The Gujarat Titans made it to the playoffs for the fourth time in a total of five times in the history of the competition. The Titans are off to their second playoff under the captaincy of Shubman Gill.
RCB rewrite record books with mammoth 254 runs on the scoreboard
Virat Kohli started Qualifier 1 with a dominating performance in the power play. After Venkatesh Iyer’s early dismissal, Devdutt Padikkal contributed in a partnership alongside the veteran batter as they posted 76 runs by the end of their powerplay.
After their dismissal in the same over, Krunal Pandya and Rajat Patidar helped them bounce back with a massive 95-run partnership. While Pandya’s contributions were generous with the bat, Rajat Patidar wreaked havoc in Dharamshala.
In a record-smashing innings of 93 runs off just 33 balls with a strike rate of 281.33, Rajat Patidar smashed nine sixes and five fours. RCB could put on a mammoth 255-run target in front of the Gujarat Titans.
Gujarat Titans collapse under massive scoreboard pressure
Under acute pressure from the scoreboard and some stunning hands from the RCB pacers, GT had their biggest shock in the form of an unfortunate dismissal from Sai Sudharsan. He was dismissed hit wicket when he dropped his bat onto the stumps.
The Gujarat Titans then struggled with some early fall of wickets, as Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler, the big three in the GT top order, were dismissed in no time, not leaving much scope for a win in that Qualifier 1.
Rahul Tewatia helped the Titans reduce the margin of runs to less than a hundred after he played a promising knock, scoring a half-century. However, RCB still registered the biggest ever win in terms of run margin in an IPL playoff game.
I am not worried about my wicket: Rajat Patidar
Rajat Patidar, the RCB skipper, has led by example and is motivated to make his way into the IPL 2026 finals after a stupendous show at Dharamshala. They will now play their next game at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the same venue where they won their first ever IPL title in 2025.
“It was a super game for us. The way everyone was striking, it was good for us. You have to show body language, that was there for every batter. Big stage, the way we dominated it was superb,” said the RCB skipper, Rajat Patidar.
Having scored a 33-ball 93 in the innings, he struck the ball with a strike rate of 281.33 and nine sixes. He was picked as the Player of the Match in the game for his commanding show.
The skipper added, “Starting, I take 8-10 balls, how the wicket is playing. After that, I am not worried about my wicket. Wicket wasn’t that easy to get under the ball and hit sixes. We had to get their top three out in the powerplay.”
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