Masterful Kohli leads Bengaluru into IPL playoffs

Virat Kohli's enduring class has helped him score another consummate match-winning century, become the quickest batter to make 14,000 T20 runs and transport his champion Royal Challengers Bengaluru oufit to the top of the IPL.  

Faced with a challenging 193 to win in Raipur on Wednesday, Kohli, smarting after falling for ducks in his previous two knocks, demonstrated once again why he's the 'chasemaster', scoring his ninth IPL hundred and finishing on 105no as Benagluru beat Kolkata Knight Riders by six wickets.

Having fist-pumped to celebrate getting off the mark, Kohli timed his run to a century perfectly, able to watch partner Jitesh Sharma clout a boundary off the first ball of the final over in Raipur to take RCB to their target on 4-194, and admit afterwards: "The fact I did not score runs in the previous games, it eats me up because I have been playing well."

Kolkata ended up paying for his indignation, with Cameron Green just one of those who suffered. Kohli helped himself to 14 off eight balls when facing the Aussie allrounder, who only bowled two overs for his 22.

In all, the 37-year-old Kohli hit 11 fours and three sixes in his latest 60-ball masterclass at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, going past 14,000 runs in T20s in his 409th innings and getting there quicker than anyone, including Chris Gayle (423).

"There is a reason people say pressure is a privilege - it keeps you humble," mused Kohli. 

"Good pressure always helps you improve your game. A couple of games that do not go your way, you feel a bit of nervousness - and that helps you, it takes a lot of effort, but it helps your game go up."

RCB didn't even need a contribution from the in-form Tim David who smashed a thunderous low shot behind point when on just two, barely able to believe how he'd been dismissed by an extraordinary diving catch from Manish Pandey, one of the best of the season. 

Kohli's teammate Josh Hazlewood also seems to share his champion's mentality. The veteran Aussie quick took a bit of stick, going for 1-35 off his four, but he still grabbed the key wicket of KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane when he was going well on 19, caught and bowled.

Angkrish Raghuvanshi did most of the damage for the inserted KKR, scoring his third half-century of the season (71), and he got valuable help from an unbeaten 49 from Rinku Singh and a useful 24-ball 32 from Green, featuring a six and three fours as they got to 4-192.

But their hopes of qualifying for the playoffs have taken a big hit, as they're now unlikely to make it as they stand four points off the top-four in eighth place. RCB, though, are almost there, leading on 16 points alongside Gujarat.

IPL 2026 standings

Team	Matches played M	Wins W	Losses L	Ties T	No results N/R	Net Run Rate NRR	Deductions Ded.	Total points PTS
1 Royal Challengers Bengaluru Men RCB	12	8	4	0	0	1.053	0	16
2 Gujarat Titans GUT	12	8	4	0	0	0.551	0	16
3 Sunrisers Hyderabad SUN	12	7	5	0	0	0.331	0	14
4 Punjab Kings KXI	11	6	4	0	1	0.428	0	13
5 Chennai Super Kings CSK	11	6	5	0	0	0.185	0	12
6 Rajasthan Royals RAJ	11	6	5	0	0	0.082	0	12
7 Delhi Capitals Men DEL	12	5	7	0	0	-0.993	0	10
8 Kolkata Knight Riders KKR	11	4	6	0	1	-0.198	0	9
9 Mumbai Indians MI	11	3	8	0	0	-0.585	0	6
10 Lucknow Super Giants LSG	11	3	8	0	0	-0.907	0	6

Legend

M: Matches played

W: Wins

L: Losses

T: Ties

N/R: No results

NRR: Net Run Rate

Ded.: Deductions

PTS: Total points

Australians in IPL 2026

Chennai Super Kings: Matt Short ($255k), Spencer Johnson ($255k, replaces Nathan Ellis ($340k))

Delhi Capitals: Mitchell Starc ($2m)

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Josh Hazlewood ($2.13m), Tim David ($510k)

Punjab Kings: Marcus Stoinis ($1.9m), Ben Dwarshuis ($745k), Mitchell Owen ($510k), Cooper Connolly ($510k), Xavier Bartlett ($136k)

Kolkata Knight Riders: Cameron Green ($3.5m)

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins ($3.5m), Travis Head ($2.38m), Jack Edwards ($510k, withdrawn)

Lucknow Super Giants: Josh Inglis ($1.49m), Mitchell Marsh ($578k)