The Gujarat titans exacted sweet revenge as Bengaluru endured rare days off

Quick Scores: Gujarat Titans (158/6) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru (155 in 20 overs) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

GT vs RCB: HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD

Royal Challengers Bengaluru would definitely agree that April 30 marked their most underwhelming exit from IPL 2026, where neither their batting nor their bowling hit or lived up to expectations. With a chance to secure top spot in the points table, RCB stumbled as Gujarat Titans beat them by four wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

RCB were not half as convincing as they were against the Delhi Capitalswhere they won by nine wickets with 81 balls to spare. GT also took revenge on RCB, avenging their earlier defeat when they lost to them in Bengaluru earlier this month.

Asked to bat first, RCB were bowled out for the first time in the competition. They managed 155, which also marked their lowest first innings total in this edition of the tournament. After that, RCB needed a big bowling effort to stay in the game but failed to do so. Bhuvneshwar Kumar tried his heart out but lacked support from the other end.

For GT, despite the win, they remain fifth in the table and will need more momentum to move up the standings. They chased down 156 with 25 balls to spare, improving their net run from -0.475 to -0.192.

KOHLI COMES RCB OUT TO AIR START

After being asked to bat first, RCB looked set for another 200-plus, but the fall of wickets at regular intervals halted them significantly. Jacob Bethell fell cheaply but Virat Kohli arrived firing on all cylinders. Kohli put on an absolute exhibition as he hit Kagiso Rabada for five fours at the trot.

However, Rabada retaliated by removing him with a short ball as Kohli departed for 28 while living by the sword. At one point, Kohli looked well on his way to reaching his fastest IPL fifty, but fell against the run of play.

Then Devdutt Padikkal and Rajat Patidar put together a 44-run stand for the third wicket to keep the momentum going for RCB. But after Arshad Khan removed Patidar, the Titans regained control. Jason Holder took a superb catch at fine leg to send Patidar back and narrowly avoided a collision with Kagiso Rabada though Kohli and RCB were not happy with this decision.

GUJARAT CHOKE RCB

Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya and Tim David departed in quick succession and RCB were suddenly reduced to 96 for six in 10.3 overs. In the last 53 balls, RCB managed only 59 runs. Romario Shepherd twice cleared the boundary off Rashid Khan, but still only managed 17 at a strike rate of 113.33.

Venkatesh Iyer, who came in as an Impact Player, also struggled to get going. Had it not been for Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s run-a-ball 15, RCB would have struggled to even cross the 150 mark. For the Titans, Arshad was arguably the best bowler with three wickets for 22 runs.

Holder had a dream outing as he finished with figures of 4-0-29-2 and also took three catches. Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada took one wicket each.

GILL SHOWS INTENT

The Titans had to watch closely what Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood did to the Capitals last night in Delhi. Shubman Gill departed with a clear intention to unsettle the RCB duo who can be destructive, especially in the power bowl. He started by smashing Bhuvneshwar Kumar for a four and then a six before taking 24 runs off Josh Hazlewood’s first over.

While Gill got off to a flying start, there was no joy for Sai Sudharsan, who had earlier scored a hundred against this opposition in Bengaluru. This time Sudharsan fell to single figures as Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided the much needed breakthrough for RCB. Gill also completed 100 IPL sixes for GT and looked set for a half-century before Bhuvneshwar got rid of him. You should have seen Kohli’s animated reaction after he caught Gill, underscoring how crucial that wicket was.

After both the openers departed, Jos Buttler (39) kept up the pace and reduced the required run-rate below the run-a-ball, putting GT in a comfortable position. Again it was Bhuvneshwar Kumar who stepped up. He took his third wicket and hugged Buttler around the legs.

The middle order was not the best for the Titans and a slightly jittery middle order meant that RCB still hoped to fight. Romario Shepherd added to the tension in the RCB camp by simultaneously dismissing Washington Sundar and Shahrukh Khan.

But a 30-run partnership between Jason Holder and Impact Sub Rahul Tewatia brought the Titans closer to victory.

More to follow…

– The end

Issued by:

sabyasachi chowdhury

Published on:

30 Apr 2026 23:15 IST