Defending champions RCB were flying high in IPL 2026, but last afternoon, they were given a reality check as DC beat them in a thriller in Bengaluru. RCB, wearing the green jersey, did not find much luck with it as DC held their nerves in the crunch moments. RCB had their moments to cheer, but DC were the deserving winners, as for most parts, they did most things right. There were phases, RCB fell behind, and we will list out three reasons for their loss today.
Losing steam in the death overs while batting dented RCB
RCB were put into bat first and were off to a rollicking start, thanks mainly to Phil Salt, while Virat Kohli played his part as well. They were explosive in the power play scoring, 59 runs, and lost Virat Kohli. Salt continued his merry ways, as in the middle phase, though RCB lost wickets, they maintained the run rate. Salt fell for 63 while Padikkal got a start and fell. Rajat Patidar did not last long.
But the slowdown came in the end overs. RCB looked good with wickets in hand to get close to 200. But the innings was put on a massive break by excellent DC bowlers. RCB lost the plot as they lost wickets, and the run flow was a trickle. The RCB team scored 36 runs in the last 6 overs, and that is where they ended with a below-par score. Yes, we agree that the pitch was not the easiest to bat on, and it was not a typical Bengaluru track. 175 was challenging as we saw the game go down to the wire. But RCB will admit they were 15-20 runs short of where they should have been.
This is RCB’s second loss and second off-day with the bat in hand. It happens in a long tournament, as apart from Salt, no one got going or got starts but did not carry it through. You are never in on such a track. RCB needs to fix these minor issues and show more adaptability and game awareness to the pitch conditions. They tried to go one way and paid the price of getting an above-par score.
Lack of wickets in the middle phase hurts RCB
RCB started well with the ball as Bhuvneshwar Kumar was breathing fire as he got three early wickets of Nissanka, Karun Nair, and Sameer Rizvi. RCB were 18/3 and flying high. But Bhuvneshwar had no support from the other end. Krunal Pandya bowled an excellent spell and picked up a wicket, but the others were having an off-day. The Stubbs-Rahul partnership was not dismissed early, and they laid the platform for the others to do well later. RCB needed Suyash Sharma to have a good day, but he had an off-day.
It meant DC had wickets in hand and enough ammunition to hurt RCB in the end overs. The inability to stop KL Rahul and Tristan Stubbs hurt them. Axar Patel played his part before getting injured, while David Miller had his redemption story towards the end, as he won the game in the final stages of the game. RCB tried their best to claw back and create pressure on DC. But the Capitals were up for it and won the contest when put under pressure, and this win will hold them in good standing going forward.
RCB could not afford to have multiple bowlers having off-days, as Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam, and Suyash Sharma all had off-days on a pitch conducive to bowling. Only Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Krunal Pandya can hold their heads high after yesterday’s performance. Romario Shepherd, who hadn’t bowled earlier, bowled the last over and was smashed by Miller in the end. So, RCB have some bowling issues which they need to sort out and iron out their flaws for the future games.
Tactical errors in the field left RCB wanting
It was not the best of days for Rajat Patidar as a captain. Rajat missed out with the bat, and for the first time, he was found wanting in his captaincy a little bit, which affected the outcome of the match, we can say. RCB had a par score to defend and needed good bowling and excellent captaincy to win the contest. But Patidar made some errors which he would like to rectify going forward.
For instance, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the chief destroyer with the new ball as he got three wickets with the new ball and two in one over. He had bowled a couple of overs for 9 runs and picked up 3 wickets at that stage. In that predicament, RCB and Patidar should have gone for the kill and given Bhuvneshwar another over to see what happens next. But Patidar chose a defensive option and changed the bowling to Rasikh Salam, who leaked runs, and the floodgates opened after that.
If Bhuvneshwar got the extra over and struck by getting rid of KL Rahul, RCB might have gone on to win the match. The usage of bowlers was questionable, as Bhuvneshwar, after bowling with the new ball, was taken out of the attack and came back with the old ball. He was not as effective with the old ball and finished with 3/26 in 4 overs. Who bowled when was a big question, and he miscalculated somewhere in using them. It was such a situation that the main bowlers had bowled their quota of 4 overs. Suyash Sharma had an off-day, bowling 3 overs for 31 runs.
It meant that Romario Shepherd, the 6th bowler in the side, got his first over as the final over of the match. Shepherd was taken to the cleaners by David Miller in the end. Had he used his bowlers properly, a main bowler would have bowled the final over with 15 needed off 6 balls, and who knows, RCB might have won again. These things will have to be taken care of by RCB in crunch games.
What Lies Ahead
So, DC climbs to 4th in the table before slipping to 5th after the SRH-CSK game. RCB are still well-placed in 2nd place. Another double header on Super Sunday, as KKR takes on RR in the afternoon game in Kolkata at 3:30 PM IST and will be followed by PBKS up against LSG from Mullanpur, New Chandigarh at 7:30 PM IST. So, let’s see how these two matches shape up and shake the points table if they do it.
Also Read:Â RCB vs DC: Tristan Stubbs & Co Take DC Over The Line In Thriller