IPL 2026: All-round RCB thrash DC in low-scoring thriller
What's the story
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) thrashed Delhi Capitals in Match 39 of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) at Arun Jaitley Stadium. The hosts perished for 75 on a venue that saw an aggregate of 529 runs on Saturday alone. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood rocked the Capitals, who were once down to 8/6. RCB comfortably chased down the total in the seventh over.
Start
RCB seamers decimate home side
Bhuvneshwar struck early after RCB elected to field. He dismissed Sahil Parakh on the match's second ball. Hazlewood joined the attack, striking twice in his first two balls to get rid of KL Rahul and Sameer Rizvi. Tristan Stubbs survived the hat-trick ball before being removed by Bhuvneshwar. DC skipper Axar Patel also fell in the same over.
Wrath
Hazlewood continues his wrath
Hazlewood continued his wrath by dismissing Nitish Rana, with DC in shambles (8/6). Abishek Porel and David Miller somehow survived the next two overs. DC crawled to 13/6 in six overs, the lowest-ever Powerplay score in IPL history. The previous lowest was 14/2 by Rajasthan Royals against RCB from 2009 (Cape Town). Rasikh Salam Dar finally broke the Porell-Miller partnership, removing the latter.
Figures
DC perish for 75
While Porel farmed the strike, Kyle Jamieson scored some crucial runs down the order. Spinners came into action as DC were nine down for 71 runs. Hazlewood wrapped up the innings (75/10) by dismissing Porel (30). He took 4/12 in 3.3 overs. And Bhuvneshwar, who couldn't return for his fourth overs, recorded outstanding figures of 3/5 (ER: 1.70).
Milestone
50 IPL wickets for RCB
With his first, Hazlewood became the first overseas player to complete 50 IPL wickets for RCB. Overall, he is behind Yuzvendra Chahal (139), Harshal Patel (99), Mohammed Siraj (83), and Vinay Kumar (72) in terms of IPL wickets for the franchise. The Australian bowler surpassed the legendary Zaheer Khan, who took 49 wickets for RCB between IPL 2008 and 2013.
Information
More feats for Hazlewood
According to Cricbuzz, Hazlewood's 4/12 are now his joint-best T20 figures, with one against Sri Lanka in Sydney (2022). These are also the second-best figures for RCB against DCC in the IPL, behind Jaydev Unadkat's 5/25 on the same ground in 2013.
Records
Bhuvneshwar attains these feats
And Bhuvneshwar now has the second-most three-wicket hauls among fast bowlers in the IPL (20). He surpassed Lasith Malinga (19) and is behind Jasprit Bumrah (25). According to Cricbuzz, Bhuvneshwar now has the joint-most wickets in Powerplay since IPL 2023, with Trent Boult (32). The former also took his 29th wicket in the first over of an IPL game, the second-most after Boult (32).
Numbers
IPL numbers of the duo
Bhuvneshwar, the highest wicket-taker among pacers in the IPL, now has 212 scalps from 198 matches at an average of 26.64. His tally includes 2 fifers. The 36-year-old is also closing in on 350 wickets in T20 cricket. Meanwhile, Hazlewood now has 65 wickets from 44 IPL games at an average of 20.76. He recorded his career-best figures tonight.
Chase
How the chase panned out
It was a straightforward chase for RCB, who saw Jacob Bethell open the innings with Virat Kohli. While Kohli took his time, Bethell smashed an 11-ball 20 before falling to Kyle Jamieson. That was RCB's only wicket as Devdutt Padikkal's 13-ball 34* powered them to a staggering win. Kohli (23* off 15 balls) hammered 2 sixes to seal the chase in 6.3 overs.
Landmark
Kohli completes 9,000 IPL runs
With his 11th, Kohli completed 9,000 runs in the IPL. He tops the IPL run tally by a mile and is followed by Rohit Sharma (7,183). Across 275 matches, the former now has 9,012 runs at an average of 40.05. His tally includes a strike rate of 133.80. Kohli also owns the most tons (8), fifties (66), and fours (808) in the league.
Numbers
Other notable numbers
RCB won with 81 balls remaining, the second-most in a successful IPL chase, according to Cricbuzz. This was the third instance of DC being bowled out for 75 or below in the IPL. RCB top this tally with four such totals. Notably, the Capitals also recorded their third-lowest total in the league, also the third-lowest by a side versus RCB.
Information
RCB only behind PBKS
RCB, the second-placed side, now has six wins from eight games in IPL 2026. They have the highest Net Run Rate (+1.919) at the moment. Meanwhile, DC have lost five of their last six encounters, thereby occupying the seventh spot (NRR: -1.060).