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Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans suffered a huge defeat in the IPL playoffs, while RCB registered a record win in Dharamshala. Gujarat Titans will face Eliminator winners Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)/Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Qualifier 2 in New Chandigarh.
Royal Challengers Bangalore finished the 2026 points table with 18 points and a huge lead with their run rate. Gujarat Titans, on the other hand, were second on the points table after ending their last five games with an impressive four-match winning streak.
Gujarat Titans have made the playoffs a total of five times in the history of the competition. The Titans are in their second playoff appearance under the captaincy of Shubman Gill.
RCB rewrites the record books with a massive score of 254 runs on the scoreboard
Virat Kohli started Qualifier 1 with a strong performance in the powerplay. After Venkatesh Iyer’s early dismissal, Devdutt Padikkal contributed to the partnership with the experienced batsman and scored 76 runs by the end of their powerplay.
After his dismissal in the same over, Krunal Pandya and Rajat Patidar helped him make a comeback by making a big partnership of 95 runs. While Pandya made brilliant contributions with the bat, Rajat Patidar wreaked havoc in Dharamshala.
In his record-breaking innings of 93 runs off just 33 balls with a strike rate of 281.33, Rajat Patidar hit nine sixes and five fours. RCB could set a huge target of 255 runs for Gujarat Titans.
Gujarat Titans collapse due to heavy scoreboard pressure
Under intense scoreboard pressure and some brilliant hands from RCB’s fast bowlers, GT suffered its biggest blow in the form of the unfortunate dismissal of Sai Sudarshan. When he dropped his bat on the stumps, he was out hit wicket.
After this, Gujarat Titans were struggling with the fall of some early wickets, as GT top-order big three Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler were out in a short span of time, leaving little chance of a win in that Qualifier 1.
Rahul Tewatia played a brilliant inning and scored a half-century, helping the Titans reduce the difference of runs to less than a hundred. However, RCB still registered its biggest ever win in terms of run margin in an IPL playoff game.
I am not worried about my wicket: Rajat Patidar
RCB captain Rajat Patidar has led by example and is motivated to make the IPL 2026 final after a stellar performance in Dharamshala. They will now play their next match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the same venue where they won their first IPL title in 2025.
“It was a super game for us. The way everyone was striking was good for us. You have to show body language, which every batsman has. “Big stage, the way we dominated it was fantastic,” said RCB captain Rajat Patidar.
After scoring 93 runs in 33 balls in the innings, he hit the balls with a strike rate of 281.33 and nine sixes. For his excellent performance he was named the best player of the match.
“In the beginning, I take 8-10 balls to see how the wicket is playing. After that, I am not worried about my wicket. It was not so easy to get under the ball and hit sixes. We had to get their top three out in the powerplay,” the captain said.
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