Dharamsala: Virat Kohli and Venkatesh Iyer scored fluent fifties to take Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) into the IPL 2026 play-offs with a 23-run win over defending champions Punjab Kings (PPKS) on Sunday.
Kohli continued his rich streak with 58 off 37 balls, while Venkatesh Iyer’s unbeaten 73 guided Bengaluru to 222-4.
In reply, Punjab Kings were restricted to 199-8 despite a spirited late effort from Marcus Stoinis’ 37 and Shashank Singh’s top score of 56.
As a result, Bengaluru, who won their first IPL title last year after 18 attempts, strengthened their position at the top of the table and became the first team to book a place in the play-offs.
In contrast, Punjab Kings—last season’s runners-up—slumped to their sixth straight defeat, leaving their qualification hopes hanging in the balance.
The top four teams at the end of the league will advance to the play-offs in the 10-team tournament.
Kohli, who scored an unbeaten century in the previous game, once again set the tone for Bengaluru’s innings. He hit four fours and three sixes before falling to leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal.
After losing Jacob Bethel early on for 11 runs, Kohli put together a crucial 78-run partnership with Devdat Padal, who contributed 45 runs, which helped rebuild the momentum. Kohli reached his fourth fifty of the season and 67th in the IPL.
Venkatesh then accelerated the scoring, combining aggressively with Tim David, who added 28 runs as Bengaluru maintained a strong finish to their innings.
Punjab’s chase got off to a rough start as openers Priyans Arya (0) and Prabsimran Singh (2) were dismissed early by Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s controlled new delivery.
Captain Shreyas Iyer (1), Cooper Connolly (37) and Suryansh Shedge (37) fell at regular intervals as Punjab slumped to 93-5.
Although Stonis and Shashank restored confidence with a 67-run partnership, Bengaluru’s bowlers held firm in the closing stages to clinch their ninth win in 13 matches.
Rasik Salam finished with impressive figures of 3-36, including two wickets in the last over, as Bengaluru wrapped up a comprehensive win.