IPL 2026: RCB’s historic title defence, Kohli’s big-final heroics and Sooryavanshi’s breakthrough – A season full of records

Teams to Win Back-to-Back IPL Titles:

  • Chennai Super Kings – 2010, 2011
  • Mumbai Indians – 2019, 2020
  • Royal Challengers Bengaluru – 2025, 2026

The title also elevated RCB into an elite group of franchises with multiple IPL championships.

Most IPL Titles:

  • Mumbai Indians – 5
  • Chennai Super Kings – 5
  • Kolkata Knight Riders – 3
  • Royal Challengers Bengaluru – 2

Adding further, RCB became only the fourth team to win multiple IPL finals at the same venue, having lifted both the 2025 and 2026 trophies in Ahmedabad.

Winning two IPL finals at the same venue:

  • MI – Kolkata (2013, 2015)
  • MI – Hyderabad (2017, 2019)
  • KKR – Chennai (2012, 2024)
  • RCB – Ahmedabad (2025, 2026)

Virat Kohli Delivers on the Biggest Stage

Virat Kohli once again proved why he remains one of the greatest players in IPL history. The former RCB captain produced a match-winning performance in the final as he scored unbeaten 75 off 42 balls and became the second-oldest player ever to win the Player of the Match award in an IPL final.

Oldest Players to Win Player of the Match in an IPL Final:

  • Anil Kumble (RCB, 2009) – 38 years, 219 days
  • Virat Kohli (RCB, 2026) – 37 years, 207 days
  • Faf du Plessis (CSK, 2021) – 37 years, 94 days
  • Shane Watson (CSK, 2018) – 36 years, 344 days

The Qualifier 1 Advantage Continues


RCB’s title run also reinforced a long-standing IPL trend. Since the current playoff format was introduced in 2011, the winner of Qualifier 1 has gone on to win 13 of the 16 IPL finals. Remarkably, every IPL champion since 2018 has come through Qualifier 1.

Krunal Pandya Joins Elite IPL Winners Club

RCB all-rounder Krunal Pandya added another remarkable achievement to his decorated IPL career. He became one of only six players to feature in five or more IPL title-winning campaigns.

Players Featuring in Five or More IPL Final Wins:

  • Rohit Sharma – 6
  • Ambati Rayudu – 6
  • MS Dhoni – 5
  • Kieron Pollard – 5
  • Hardik Pandya – 5
  • Krunal Pandya – 5

Rabada’s purple patch creates history

Kagiso Rabada enjoyed a sensational season with the ball, finishing as the Purple Cap winner with 29 wickets. In doing so, he became only the fourth bowler in IPL history to win the Purple Cap more than once.

Multiple Purple Cap Winners:

  • Dwayne Bravo – 2013, 2015
  • Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 2016, 2017
  • Harshal Patel – 2021, 2024
  • Kagiso Rabada – 2020, 2026

The Season of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

If one player symbolised IPL 2026, it was 15-year-old sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. The teenager not only dominated opposition bowlers but also swept multiple individual honours.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s IPL 2026 Awards: Emerging Player of the Season, Super Striker of the Season (Strike Rate: 237.3), Super Sixes of the Season (72 sixes), Orange Cap (776 runs).

Other Major IPL 2026 Award Winners

  • Fair Play Award – Punjab Kings
  • Catch of the Season – Manish Pandey (stunning catch to dismiss Tim David)
  • Most Dot Balls Bowled – Mohammed Siraj (172)
  • Most Fours – Sai Sudharsan (75)
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IPL 2026: The Most Explosive Edition Ever?

Almost every major batting metric reached unprecedented heights in IPL 2026.

Tournament Records:

  • Most Runs in an IPL Season – 27,450
  • Highest Runs Per Wicket – 31.26
  • Highest Run Rate – 9.88
  • Most Fours – 2,332
  • Most Sixes – 1,426
  • Most Individual Hundreds – 15
  • Most 200+ Totals – 65
  • Most Successful 200+ Chases – 17

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