IPL 2026: RR vs RCB Highlights, Match 16 - Stats, Player of the Match & More

Match Overview

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's whirlwind 78 off just 26 balls helped Rajasthan Royals earn the bragging rights in a battle of royals, as they beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by six wickets in the 16th match of the ongoing IPL 2026.

It was an eagerly anticipated clash as both teams were coming into the fixture unbeaten, but that only stands true about Rajasthan now. Chasing 202, Rajasthan's openers were quick off the blocks, but Josh Hazlewood, playing the first match of the season, nicked Jaiswal off on the last ball of the second over after getting hit for two sixes in the over.

His partner's loss didn't deter him as Sooryavanshi hammered Abhinadan Singh for 16 and then smashed Hazlewood for three consecutive boundaries and a maximum in the fourth over to take Rajasthan to 56.

The southpaw then struck two sixes and a four in the fifth over, bowled by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, to reach his fifty off just 15 balls, a second such instance this season after he took the same amount of balls for the milestone against CSK. 

Rajat Patidar's decision to bring Abhinandan back for the last over in the powerplay turned out to be a horror. Dhruv Jurel and Sooryavanshi smashed him for 24 in that over to help Rajasthan post 97 at the end of the powerplay - the highest powerplay score so far this season.

While Sooryavanshi holed out to long-on on the first ball of the ninth over against Krunal Pandya, he had already done irreparable damage, and RCB could never recover from the onslaught.

Jurel top-scored in the game, scoring a 43-ball 81*, and saw the team over the line with two overs to spare. He struck eight fours and three sixes and batted at a strike rate of 188.37.

Earlier, Rajasthan won the game and put RCB in after rain delayed the start of the fixture. RCB lost Phil Salt on the opening ball of the match, but they raced to 45 runs in just three overs after Virat Kohli (32 off 16) and Devdutt Padikkal (14 off 7) flicked the switch.

However, RCB kept losing wickets at regular intervals and could never really capitalise. Patidar's 63 off 40 balls and a late surge by Venkatesh Iyer (29* off 15) propelled them beyond 200. Brijesh Sharma (2/37), Ravi Bishnoi (2/32), and Jofra Archer (2/33) were the standout performers for Rajasthan in the field.

Top run-scorer of the match

Top wicket-taker of the match

Player of the Match

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

Though Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is not playing for reputation and just expressing himself in the middle, he is certainly playing with the reputation of a lot of bowlers. He bossed both Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood and struck as many as eight fours and seven sixes and batted at a strike rate of 300.

Turning Point

Losing both Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli in a span of 12 balls was the turning point of the game. Both players had stitched a 45-run stand and appeared unfazed by the early loss of Phil Salt, but their departure opened the floodgates, and RCB could never really stitch another match-defining stand.

What the captains said

Winning Team Captain, Riyan Parag (RR)

Keeping previous years in mind, we were not up to the mark (at this venue) but today was very clinical. The way we bowled, the way we started, we would have taken 200 but still felt 20 above par (because of the wickets we took through the middle). Should have restricted them to 170ish. This is a wicket where not a lot of sixes are hit down the ground off the spinners. We gave room and played into the batter's hands. We put enough prep in Guwahati and Jaipur. We knew what the black soil does here. We were well prepared for any home game. Did not feel like a home game, but we were prepared. Before the start of the season, we wanted to be a team that assesses and adapts well. Having played on some sticky pitches, once we get a belter, we will do even well. (On Sooryavanshi) Everyone loves him and having him around. He likes eating stuff and going out. We try to make that available for him. He is still a kid. And he loves batting.

Losing Team Captain, Rajat Patidar (RCB)

The way we started in the powerplay, to get to 200, is a positive sign for us. The way their batters, especially Vaibhav, batted in the powerplay, it made the difference. The way we are batting in last few matches was brilliant but lots of learnings from this game. (On the Impact Player sub) Venky, Shepherd and KP were there, so we had to manage those overs with those bowlers, so it did not make a huge difference (not having Suyash). When we are playing this sort of competitive cricket, there will be lots of errors. But we need to learn from our mistakes.