Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Gujarat Titans took revenge against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru to make it 1-1 in IPL 2026, registering a comfortable four-wicket win at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Thursday. Chasing a modest 156-run target, Shubman Gill-led GT survived a few hiccups en route to their fifth win of the season.The two points from their home win took GT’s tally to 10 as they marched towards the playoff spots while consolidating their mid-table position. GT reduced the gap with fourth-placed Rajasthan Royals to just two points, while increasing their lead over sixth-placed Chennai Super Kings to four points.RCB remained second in the standings despite the defeat — their third of the season in nine games. They have 12 points, like third-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals, but their net run rate (NRR) took a hit after GT chased down the target in just 15.5 overs.Still, RCB’s NRR of +1.420 remains the best in the season so far.Punjab Kings continue to lead the standings with 13 points from eight games, and also boast a strong NRR of +1.043.The bottom half of the table remains unchanged. CSK are sixth with six points, ahead of Delhi Capitals, also on six points, on superior NRR. Kolkata Knight Riders sit eighth with five points, while Mumbai Indians are ninth with four points, just ahead of bottom-placed Lucknow Super Giants on NRR.With the league stage entering a crucial phase, the playoff race is heating up. GT have kept themselves firmly in contention with this crucial win against RCB on Thursday.
IPL 2026 Points Table after GT vs RCB match:
| Position | Team | M | W | L | NR | Points | NRR |
| 1 | PBKS | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 13 | +1.043 |
| 2 | RCB | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 | +1.420 |
| 3 | SRH | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 | +0.832 |
| 4 | RR | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 | +0.617 |
| 5 | GT | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 10 | -0.192 |
| 6 | CSK | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | -0.121 |
| 7 | DC | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | -1.060 |
| 8 | KKR | 8 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 | -0.751 |
| 9 | MI | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 | -0.784 |
| 10 | LSG | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 | -1.106 |
