IPL 2026: Rajasthan Royals Inflict First Defeat Of Season On RCB, Maintain Unbeaten Run

Guwahati: Rajasthan Royals maintained their unbeaten run and inflicted the first defeat of IPL 2026 on defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) with a six-wicket victory in Guwahati on Friday. Thanks to the explosive batting of Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Dhruv Jurel, the RCB bowlers were unable to defend their total of 201 runs. RR successfully chased down the target of 202 runs in just 18 overs.

With this victory, the Rajasthan Royals have registered their fourth consecutive win, while RCB has suffered their first defeat of the tournament. With four wins in four matches, Rajasthan Royals remain at the top of the IPL points table. Their bowler, Ravi Bishnoi, currently holds the Purple Cap, while Vaibhav Suryavanshi holds the Orange Cap.

What happened during the match?

In a match delayed by over an hour due to rain, Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag won the toss and elected to bowl first. His decision proved to be spot-on in the opening overs. The Rajasthan bowlers undoubtedly dominated the Powerplay; they not only succeeded in restricting the flow of runs but also dismissed three key batsmen. Jofra Archer sent Phil Salt packing on the very first ball of the innings.

Subsequently, on the final ball of the third over, he claimed Devdutt Padikkal as his victim as well. In the fifth over of the innings, Ravi Bishnoi clean bowled Virat Kohli. Thereafter, RCB continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, and at one stage, the team had slumped to 6 wickets down for a score of just 93 runs. From that precarious position, reaching a total of 201 seemed like a daunting task; however, Captain Patidar—and later, Venkatesh Iyer, coming in as an Impact Player—stepped up to make a significant impact and propelled the team to a formidable total.

Patidar scored 63 runs off 40 balls, studded with four fours and four sixes. Venkatesh Iyer contributed 29 runs off 15 balls, while Romario Shepherd scored 22 runs off 11 balls. Earlier in the innings, Kohli had scored 32 runs off 16 balls. Apart from these batsmen, no other player managed to post a substantial score. Now it remains to be seen whether the Rajasthan Royals batsmen will be able to chase down the score of 202.

How did ​​Rajasthan's Chase Unfold?

The Rajasthan Royals did not get off to a good start in their run chase. In just the second over, the Royals lost the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal (13 runs), who was caught behind off a delivery from Josh Hazlewood. While Yashasvi departed, Vaibhav Suryavanshi's explosive batting continued unabated. Vaibhav smashed a fifty off just 15 balls, an innings that included seven fours and four sixes.

Dhruv Jurel provided excellent support to Vaibhav Suryavanshi, matching his aggressive batting style. The pair forged a blistering 108-run partnership for the second wicket off just 37 balls. Krunal Pandya eventually broke this partnership, sending Vaibhav back to the pavilion. Vaibhav scored 78 runs off 26 balls, studded with 8 fours and 7 sixes.

On the very next delivery, Krunal Pandya also dismissed Shimron Hetmyer (0 runs). Meanwhile, Josh Hazlewood claimed the wicket of Riyan Parag (3 runs). At the time of Parag's dismissal, Rajasthan's score stood at 134/4. From that point on, Ravindra Jadeja (24* runs) and Dhruv Jurel added an unbeaten 68 runs to guide their team to victory.

Did Josh Hazlewood Make Successful Comeback?

For this match, Royal Challengers Bangalore brought Josh Hazlewood into their Playing XI, replacing Jacob Duffy. Hazlewood had missed the first two matches as he was not yet fully fit. On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals gave an opportunity to Brijesh Sharma in place of Tushar Deshpande.

Matches between the Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bangalore have historically been thrilling encounters in the Indian Premier League. So far, 35 matches have been played between the two teams in the IPL. Of these, Royal Challengers Bangalore have won 17 matches, while Rajasthan Royals have secured victory in 15 matches. Three matches ended without a result. Two matches were played between the two teams during the last IPL season, in which Royal Challengers Bangalore emerged victorious.

What were the Playing XIs?

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (Wicketkeeper), Riyan Parag (Captain), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma.

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli, Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (Captain), Jitesh Sharma (Wicketkeeper), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Abhinandan Singh, Josh Hazlewood.