After a long group stage of two months, the top two teams of this IPL season are ready to fight in the first playoff match. The Royal Challengers Bangalore will take on the Gujarat Titans in a big Qualifier 1 match at the beautiful HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. The winner goes straight to the final in Ahmedabad. The loser gets one more chance in Qualifier 2.
RCB are the defending champions. They have carried their winning form from last year into this season. They finished at the top of the points table because of a better net run rate. They lost their last game against Sunrisers Hyderabad, but the team is still confident and not worried about that small setback.
Gujarat Titans are coming in with a lot of momentum. They have won six of their last seven games. They finished second on the points table. This is their fourth time in the playoffs in five seasons. They look very dangerous right now.
Both teams have a strong batting lineup. But the form of Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan gives Gujarat a small edge. RCB has just lost a bit of momentum at a very important time. That could cost them heavily. This is a big match between two great teams. Only one will go directly to the final.
RCB vs GT Win Probability
RCB vs GT Match Details
| Match | Indian Premier League 2026, Qualifier 1 |
| Date | Tuesday, 25 May 2026 |
| Time | 07:30 PM (IST) |
| Venue | HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala |
| Live Streaming (TV) | Star Sports Network |
| Live Streaming (Mobile) | JioHotstar |
RCB vs GT Team Form – Who Will Win Today’s Match?
Royal Challengers Bangalore
RCB’s recent form reads L, W, W, W, L. They finished at the top of the table but lost their last game. Their key strength is a strong batting unit. Virat Kohli is their best batter and leading run scorer. Venkatesh Iyer is in good touch, scoring 44 off just 19 balls in the last game. The middle order has match winners like Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, Tim David, and Krunal Pandya.
Their bowling is led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He is the tournament’s top wicket taker with 24 wickets. Josh Hazlewood and Rasikh Salam give him good support. The spinners Krunal Pandya and Suyash Sharma have taken 20 wickets together.
Gujarat Titans
Gujarat’s recent form reads L, W, W, L, W. They have won six of their last seven games. Their key strength is their opening pair. Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill are the top two run getters in the tournament. Sudharsan has five half centuries in a row. He is the leading run scorer with an average of 49 in 14 innings. Jos Buttler adds great power at number three.
Their bowling attack is world class. Kagiso Rabada is the joint highest wicket taker. He gets great support from Mohammed Siraj, Jason Holder, and Prasidh Krishna. Rashid Khan has taken 19 wickets and is still a big threat in the middle overs.
RCB vs GT Probable Playing XI
Royal Challengers Bangalore Probable XI-
Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam Dar, Suyash Sharma.
Impact Player: Romario Shepherd / Jordan Cox.
Gujarat Titans Probable XI-
Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Rahul Tewatia, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Nishant Sindhu.
Impact Player: Arshad Khan / Glenn Phillips.
RCB vs GT Head-to-Head Record
| Total Matches | 08 |
| RCB Won | 04 |
| GT Won | 04 |
| NR | 00 |
RCB vs GT Pitch Report
Our Dharamsala pitch report says this is a batter’s paradise. The pitch is hard and flat. It gives true pace and consistent bounce. The ball comes nicely onto the bat for big shots. To feel safe, the team batting first must target a big score of 220 to 230 runs.
Fast bowlers might get some early swing with the new ball. But they will quickly need to use cutters and slower balls. Spinners will need to be very accurate.
RCB vs GT Weather Report
The weather looks perfect. There will be clear skies and cool temperatures around 15 degrees. No rain is expected. It will be a full match.
RCB vs GT Toss Prediction
The toss trend at HPCA Stadium is very clear. In the last ten matches here, the captain winning the toss chose to field first every single time. We strongly expect this pattern to continue in the Qualifier. The winning captain will bowl first.
RCB vs GT Match Prediction
This is a big match between the top two teams of the season. It is very hard to pick a winner. But our expert prediction gives Gujarat Titans a very small edge.
Gujarat Titans have the best opening pair in the tournament. Sudharsan and Gill are the top two run getters. Sudharsan has five half centuries in a row. Jos Buttler adds more power at number three. Their bowling attack is the most complete in the league. Rabada, Siraj, Holder, and Rashid form a deadly attack. They have won six of their last seven games and are peaking at the right time.
Royal Challengers Bangalore have Virat Kohli, who is still one of the best. Venkatesh Iyer is in good touch. Their middle order has many match winners. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the top wicket taker with 24 wickets. They finished at the top of the table. But they have lost some momentum at a very bad time. Their opening pair has not been as consistent as Gujarat’s.
The key battle will be Gujarat’s openers against RCB’s new ball bowlers. If Sudharsan and Gill get going, they can take the game away from RCB very quickly. If Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood take early wickets, RCB can put pressure on Gujarat’s middle order.
This will be a very close and exciting match. But Gujarat’s unstoppable top order and complete bowling attack give them a very small edge.
We predict that Gujarat Titans will win this match and go directly to the final.
RCB vs GT Dream11 Team
- Wicketkeeper- Jos Buttler, Jitesh Sharma
- Batters- Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli
- All-rounders- Krunal Pandya, Jason Holder, Washington Sundar
- Bowlers- Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kagiso Rabada, Rashid Khan
Captain (C) Pick- Sai Sudharsan.
Vice-Captain (VC) Pick- Virat Kohli.
