Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) continued their dominance in the Indian Premier League (IPL) by defeating Gujarat Titans (GT) in the IPL 2026 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The victory helped RCB secure their second successive IPL title, making them only the third franchise in tournament history to win back-to-back championships.
As always, Virat Kohli once again stepped up for Bengaluru. The former RCB captain remained unbeaten on 75 off 42 balls and guided his side to a comfortable five-wicket victory while chasing 156. His match-winning knock earned him the Player of the Match award in the final.
The celebrations continued long after the final, and Kohli added a memorable moment during a post-match interaction with RCB insider and comedian Danish Sait, popularly known as Mr. Nags. Referring to Gujarat Titans’ popular slogan “Aava De”, Kohli jokingly said, “Trophy aava de and home java de, thank you very much.”
The moment quickly went viral on social media, with fans interpreting it as a playful sign-off after RCB denied GT the IPL trophy on their home ground.
Kohli creates history with first IPL final POTM award
Apart from helping RCB defend their title, Kohli also achieved a significant personal milestone.
The Player of the Match award in the IPL 2026 final was the first IPL final POTM award of Kohli’s defining career. The honour also took his overall IPL Player of the Match tally to 22, surpassing Rohit Sharma (21) to become the Indian player with the most Player of the Match awards in IPL history. He is now level with Chris Gayle on 22 awards, while AB de Villiers remains at the top with 25.
RCB Outclass GT In One-Sided Final
Earlier in the match, Gujarat Titans endured a difficult outing with the bat as their star-studded top order failed to make an impact. Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler departed cheaply, leaving GT under pressure from the start.
Washington Sundar fought a lone battle with an unbeaten half-century, but regular wickets prevented Gujarat from building momentum. RCB’s bowling attack was led by Rasikh Salam Dar, who claimed three wickets, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood chipped in with two wickets each.
In reply, RCB got off to a strong start before Kohli took complete control of the chase. The batting icon anchored the innings perfectly and stayed unbeaten till the end, sealing the victory with another composed match-winning effort.
Kohli caps off another remarkable IPL season
Kohli ended IPL 2026 with 675 runs in 16 innings, including one hundred and four fifties. Having amassed 657 runs during RCB’s championship-winning 2025 campaign, the batting icon became the first player in IPL history to score 650-plus runs in two different title-winning seasons.
