Toss & Conditions

The match is on the same surface that hosted last year’s IPL final, where RCB defended 190. In the only IPL game on this deck this season, KKR were bowled out for 180 (below the par score of 199) and GT chased it down by five wickets; ESPN describes it as an even red-soil surface with runs aplenty.

Head-to-Head

RCB lead 2-1 in the last three head-to-heads, winning on 2026-04-24 and 2024-05-04 while GT won on 2025-04-02.

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 206/5

GTGujarat Titans 205/3

2026-04-24 · RCB won by 5 wickets (with 7 balls remaining)

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 169/8

GTGujarat Titans 170/2

2025-04-02 · GT won by 8 wickets (with 13 balls remaining)

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 152/6

GTGujarat Titans 147/10

2024-05-04 · RCB won by 4 wickets (with 38 balls remaining)

Gujarat Titans

GT are #5 on 8 points in the IPL regular season with a 4W-4L record and NRR -0.475, currently outside the playoff zone. Their last three results are W-L-L, including a win over CSK by 8 wickets and a 5-wicket loss to RCB.

GTGujarat Titans 162/2

CSChennai Super Kings 158/7

2026-04-26 · GT won by 8 wickets (with 20 balls remaining)

GTGujarat Titans 205/3

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 206/5

2026-04-24 · RCB won by 5 wickets (with 7 balls remaining)

GTGujarat Titans 100/10

MIMumbai Indians 199/5

2026-04-20 · MI won by 99 runs

Royal Challengers Bengaluru

RCB are #2 on 12 points in the IPL regular season with a 6W-2L record and NRR +1.919, currently in the playoff zone. Their last three results are W-W-L, including wins over DC by 9 wickets and GT by 5 wickets.

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 77/1

DCDelhi Capitals 75/10

2026-04-27 · RCB won by 9 wickets (with 81 balls remaining)

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 206/5

GTGujarat Titans 205/3

2026-04-24 · RCB won by 5 wickets (with 7 balls remaining)

RCRoyal Challengers Bengaluru 175/8

DCDelhi Capitals 179/4

2026-04-18 · DC won by 6 wickets (with 1 ball remaining)

Playing XI

News & Facts

Key Stats

Verdict

All four models favour RCB, with RCB at 57–67% and a model average of 61%. Bookmakers align with the models, pricing RCB at 55% (1.75) vs GT at 45% (2.11). Key stats favour RCB 7-0 overall; the matchup is framed by RCB’s stronger season indicators and GT needing their attack, including Rashid Khan, to regain wicket-taking control.

Arshad flips the script

Arshad Khan’s left-arm burst turned a pre-match underdog story into a Gujarat Titans heist. After Royal Challengers Bengaluru looked set for a 170-plus platform, Arshad ripped through the middle to leave them scrambling, and GT finished the job with a 4-wicket win and 25 balls to spare. The chase never drifted once Shubman Gill detonated the powerplay, and even Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s late strikes only delayed the inevitable as GT cruised to 158/6 in 15.5 overs.

Middle overs choke RCB

The match swung in RCB’s middle overs, where their innings collapsed from 59/2 in the powerplay to 133/8 by the end of the 18th. Arshad’s 3/22 in 3.2 overs was the hinge: he broke partnerships and forced new batters to hit into packed fields, while Rashid Khan’s 2/19 squeezed scoring options and made risk feel compulsory. RCB managed only 74/6 in the middle phase, turning a brisk start into 155 all out in 19.2.

Gill and Buttler blitz chase

Gill’s 43 off 18 balls set the tone, especially in a powerplay of 69/2 that effectively erased the target’s pressure. Jos Buttler’s 39 off 19 kept the chase in overdrive through the first wobble, ensuring Bhuvneshwar’s 3/28 couldn’t create a genuine squeeze. But the day belonged to Arshad: his spell turned RCB’s promising start into a total GT could hunt down at a canter.

Numbers liked RCB, conditions didn’t

The build-up favoured RCB: better recent form, a big NRR gap, and a bowling profile expected to control the powerplay. But this game punished anything short or overpitched early, and GT’s top order attacked before RCB’s plans could settle. Once RCB lost wickets in clusters, their supposed batting depth never got the time to reset, and the innings became a sequence of forced shots rather than managed risk.