Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) cruised past Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 6 wickets in the 57th match of IPL 2026 at New Raipur. After being asked to bat first, KKR posted 192/4 in 20 overs.
KKR lost two wickets in the powerplay. Angkrish Raghuvanshi added 68 runs for the third wicket with Cameron Green before Green was dismissed in the 13th over by Rasikh Salam. After that, Raghuvanshi added another 76 runs for the fourth wicket with Rinku Singh. He scored 71 runs off 46 balls and was dismissed on the last ball of the innings. Rinku Singh remained unbeaten on 49 runs.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the most successful bowler for RCB with figures of 1/34 in 4 overs. Josh Hazlewood and Rasikh Salam also took one wicket each.
While chasing, RCB lost Jacob Bethell in the fourth over, but Virat Kohli held one end firmly. He added 92 runs for the second wicket with Devdutt Padikkal. When Devdutt Padikkal was dismissed by Kartik Tyagi in the 14th over, RCB were 129/2. RCB lost a few more wickets after this, but Kohli continued to hold one end strongly.
He played a superb knock of 105 runs off 60 balls and remained unbeaten till the end. RCB won the match with five balls to spare. Kartik Tyagi was the most successful bowler for KKR with 3/32 in 4 overs. With this win, RCB moved to the top of the points table with 16 points and a net run rate of +1.053, while KKR slipped to the eighth position.
RCB go with three-man pace attack
RCB included all three frontline pacers — Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy, and Josh Hazlewood — in the playing XI. Leg-spinner Suyash Sharma was left out. The move showed that RCB expected seam movement and uneven bounce similar to their earlier match in Raipur against Mumbai Indians.
Although the pitch turned out to be better for batting after the rain delay, the seamers still managed to extract enough assistance.
Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood strike early
Bhuvneshwar Kumar gave RCB the perfect start. His clever cross-seam delivery moved away and dismissed Finn Allen in the third over. Soon after, Josh Hazlewood produced extra bounce from a short-of-length delivery to remove Ajinkya Rahane, who mistimed a pull shot back to the bowler.
Despite losing wickets, KKR still managed 56 runs in the powerplay. Much of the scoring came against Duffy, who conceded 31 runs in two overs as Rahane, Allen, and Angkrish Raghuvanshi punished loose deliveries.
Raghuvanshi and Green rebuild innings
After the early setbacks, Raghuvanshi and Cameron Green steadied the innings with a 68-run partnership for the third wicket. Both batters initially struggled against the seamers but later attacked left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya aggressively.
Raghuvanshi used the slog sweep effectively, while Green stayed deep in the crease to counter the spin. Krunal started well, but his final overs proved expensive.
Rasikh provides timely breakthrough
RCB finally broke the partnership when Rasikh Salam bowled a quicker delivery that beat Green’s defence in the 13th over. The wicket brought Rinku Singh to the crease, and he immediately started attacking the bowlers.
At the other end, Raghuvanshi accelerated brilliantly. After being on 21 off 16 balls, he raced to 57 off 35 with several stylish shots, including a beautiful inside-out six against Krunal.
KKR fail to capitalise at the death
KKR were strongly placed at 153 for 3 after 16 overs and looked set to cross 200 comfortably. However, RCB’s death bowling completely changed the momentum of the match.
Bhuvneshwar, Hazlewood, and Rasikh executed yorkers consistently and rarely bowled boundary balls. Even when they missed their yorker length, they mostly bowled low full tosses instead of short deliveries. The only major error came when Bhuvneshwar dropped short to Rinku Singh, who smashed the ball for a huge six over midwicket.
Still, RCB’s bowlers controlled the final overs superbly, restricting KKR to just 39 runs in the last four overs.
Debutant Saurabh Dubey impresses immediately
KKR handed a debut cap to 28-year-old left-arm seamer Saurabh Dubey, who replaced the injured Akash Deep in the squad. Dubey made an immediate impact after coming in as an Impact Player. Bowling with the new ball, he generated movement in both directions and repeatedly beat Jacob Bethell outside the off stump.
He conceded only one run off the bat in his first over, with Kohli celebrating his single with a humorous fist pump.
Kohli and Bethell counterattack strongly
KKR’s early momentum quickly disappeared after that opening over. Vaibhav Arora drifted too often onto Kohli’s pads, allowing the RCB batter to score freely. Bethell then attacked Dubey aggressively, smashing three consecutive boundaries in the third over.
Although Kartik Tyagi dismissed Bethell with a sharp short ball, he struggled to maintain control afterwards. Devdutt Padikkal punished loose deliveries to settle quickly. RCB ended the powerplay at 66 for 1, with Kohli already scoring 30 runs from just 14 balls.
Kohli controls the chase perfectly
Once the powerplay ended, Kohli shifted gears smoothly and controlled the chase with complete authority. He rotated strike regularly, ran hard between the wickets, and found boundaries whenever required. His ability to manage the chase without taking unnecessary risks once again stood out.
Padikkal and Rajat Patidar got starts but could not convert them into big scores. Sunil Narine also contributed with a clever carrom ball that dismissed Patidar.
Later, Manish Pandey produced a stunning one-handed catch at point to send back Tim David. Despite those wickets, Kohli remained completely unfazed.
Kohli finishes in style
As the target came closer, Kohli became more aggressive. He smashed Anukul Roy for a straight six with effortless timing before whipping Tyagi over the boundary with superb wristwork.
Kohli finally reached his century with a single off Arora in the 19th over, bringing up his ninth IPL hundred. Soon after, Jitesh Sharma sealed the victory by smashing Dubey over long-on, helping RCB complete the chase with five balls remaining and strengthen their hold on the top spot in the standings.
After registering ducks in his previous two innings, Virat Kohli bounced back in spectacular fashion with an unbeaten century to guide Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a commanding win over Kolkata Knight Riders in Raipur.
Kohli’s unbeaten 105 off 60 balls helped RCB climb to the top of the IPL 2026 points table. The innings was a reminder of his class and composure in run chases. He looked calm throughout, mixed elegant strokeplay with quick running between the wickets, and never appeared under pressure.
The match also highlighted the clear difference between the two bowling attacks. RCB’s seamers used the conditions brilliantly, while KKR’s inexperienced pace attack failed to maintain the same discipline. Stay tuned with JUSZNEWS for regular updates!