RCB vs GT IPL 2026: Preview, Head-to-Head Record As Bengaluru Looks To Win Back-to-Back Titles

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will square off against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the world's highest cricket stadium, the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.

The defending champions had a phenomenal IPL 2026 campaign, finishing at the top of the table with nine wins and five defeats from 14 matches. Although Gujarat Titans finished with the same win-loss record as Royal Challengers Bengaluru, their net run rate of 0.695 fell short of RCB's superior 0.783, allowing the defending champions to claim the top position.

The two sides faced each other twice this season, with each team comfortably winning on their home ground. Both RCB and GT boast strong units featuring in-form batters and bowlers. However, in the spin department, Gujarat holds a key advantage with Rashid Khan, a proven match-winner capable of turning games single-handedly.

RCB vs GT: Head-to-Head Records

• Matches Played: 08
• Won by RCB: 04
• Won by GT: 04
• Tie/NR: 00

RCB vs GT: Pitch Report HPCA

The HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala has staged three matches in IPL 2026 so far, with first-innings totals averaging roughly 211 runs. Teams batting second have won two of those encounters, highlighting the advantage of chasing. Given the high-scoring nature of the surface, captains winning the toss are likely to opt to bowl first, as defending totals have proved challenging.

RCB vs GT: Squads

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Jordan Cox, Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Venkatesh Iyer, Jacob Bethell, Swapnil Singh, Mangesh Yadav, Kanishk Chouhan, Vihaan Malhotra, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar, Vicky Ostwal, Abhinandan Singh, Jacob Duffy, Richard Gleeson

Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler, Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan, Anuj Rawat, Kumar Kushagra, Connor Esterhuizen, Rashid Khan, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Glenn Phillips, Jason Holder, Nishant Sindhu, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna, R Sai Kishore, Ishant Sharma, Luke Wood, Arshad Khan, Ashok Sharma, Gurnoor Brar, Jayant Yadav