KOLKATA, APRIL 11, 2026: Rajasthan Royals (RR) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), winning by 6 wickets (12 balls left) for the first time this season, helped by a sizzling performance by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in a high-intensity clash encounter in the 16th match of the season IPL 2026, at Barsapara Stadium, Guwahati.
The last-year title champions started their campaign this season with two consecutive wins in two matches, but after scoring 201/8, RCB faced defeat against RR. Vabihav Sooryavanshi became the main cause of the victory in this high-voltage clash with a blistering 78 off just 26 balls, and with that, RR won 4 out of 4 matches and became the table toppers with eight points. Due to rain, the toss was delayed and happened around 8 PM. RR won the toss and chose to bowl first. Phil Salt and Virat Kohli came to open, while Jofra Archer came with the new ball and, with a brilliant delivery, dismissed Phil Salt for a golden duck. Devdutt Padikkal came in at third drop, scoring a few runs with Virat, then lost his wicket again (beautifully caught by Shimron Hetmyer, bowled by Jofra Archer), scoring 14 off 7. The captain came in after that. Virat was bowled by Ravi Bishnoi after scoring 32 off 16. Then Krunal came and also got out by Ravi Bishnoi, and the score looked under pressure at 64/4 in 6.2 overs. But Rajat Patidar played a fantastic captain’s knock of 63 off 40, strongly reviving the score in favor of RCB. Jitesh Sharma, T. David, and R. Shepherd contributed a little with Rajat. Then after Rajat got out (caught by Donovan Ferreira, bowled by Sandeep Sharma) at 166/8 in 17.1 overs, impact player Venkatesh Iyer came and helped quickly push RCB to a competitive total with 29 not out off 15 balls. At the finish of the innings, RCB scored 201/8 to chase. RR once again showed a strong performance in bowling, especially Ravi, the current Purple Cap holder (4 overs, 2 wickets for 32 runs), and Jofra Archer (3 overs, 2 wickets for 33 runs). Both took major wickets at very crucial moments.
The second innings started with a 15-year-old boy , the young star, delivering a massive performance—a scorching knock of 78 in 26 balls, including eight fours and seven sixes. He brought up a sensational 15-ball half-century—his second of the season—leaving the RCB bowlers, including the highly experienced pace duo Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, with no room for error, and became the Player of the Match. But he was dismissed after the powerplay when Krunal Pandya came to bowl and took the crucial wicket, caught by Virat Kohli. Jaiswal got out early in the powerplay, scoring 13 off 8, and Dhruv Jurel came in at third drop and played a fantastic knock of 81 off 43 not out. After Vaibhav’s wicket, RR quickly lost two more wickets—Riyan Parag and Shimron Hetmyer—making it 134/4 in 9.4 overs. But then Ravindra Jadeja came with Dhruv Jurel and built a strong and match-winning partnership. Jadeja scored 24 off 25 not out. Jurel, with the support of Jadeja, took the match out of the hands of RCB and finished the match at 202/4 with 12 balls left.
A huge positive momentum for RR to start and carry forward the same confidence in the league, while RCB lost their first match of the season. RCB will play their next match against MI on Sunday, and it will be interesting to see how they bounce back after the loss, while RR will play against SRH on Monday, 13 April, and it will be interesting to see RR carry forward their excellent form.
