Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Match Scorecard 61th Match at Dharamsala 17 May 2026
The Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru played out a high-scoring thriller in the 61st match of Indian Premier League 2026 at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala on 17 May, 2026. It was hard-fought contest between the two sides but Better performance in “the best moments.” powered Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a comprehensive win
Punjab Kings won the toss and decided to give chase. The batting-friendly pitch hosted excellent opportunities for batters, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru scored a mammoth 222 runs at the loss of 4 wickets in 20 overs. Punjab Kings responded but could manage only 199 runs for seven wickets in 19.5 overs
Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Shashank Singh all batted with power to hit in the match. Fans also witnessed some crucial bowling spells from Harpreet Brar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Rasikh Salam Dar.
Match Information
| Match | PBKS vs RCB, 61th Match, IPL 2026 |
|---|---|
| Date | 17 May 2026 |
| Venue | Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala |
| Toss | Punjab Kings won the toss and chose to bowl |
| Result | Royal Challengers Bengaluru won |
| Umpires | Adrian Holdstock, KN Anantha Padmanabhan |
| Third Umpire | Parashar Joshi |
| Match Referee | Pankaj Dharmani |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Innings
Royal Challengers Bengaluru began the innings on a high. Jacob Bethell opened the batting and went after every ball before quickly falling for 11. This change turned the match upside down once everyone lost a wicket, with Virat Kohli set to engage after not scoring well in his prior issues and fellow Kohli fan Devdutt Padikkal playing solidly alongside him.
Virat Kohli played a classy inning of 58 runs from 37 balls. With an incredible strike rate, he smashed four fours and three sixes. Devdutt Padikkal helped him along with a rapid 45 from 25 balls.
Venkatesh Iyer scored 115 runs in one of the best innings of the whole season and made a huge difference. He finished with 73 runs from just 40 balls without losing his wicket. The left-hander hit eight fours and four sixes during his innings. Tim David also contributed a quick-fire cameo at the end with 28 runs from just 12 balls.
RCB bounced back with a big score of 222 runs in 20 overs and made Punjab King’s to feel tough.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Batting Scorecard
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacob Bethell | b Harpreet Brar | 11 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 157.14 |
| Virat Kohli | c Priyansh Arya b Yuzvendra Chahal | 58 | 37 | 4 | 3 | 156.76 |
| Devdutt Padikkal | c Shreyas Iyer b Harpreet Brar | 45 | 25 | 4 | 3 | 180.00 |
| Venkatesh Iyer | not out | 73 | 40 | 8 | 4 | 182.50 |
| Tim David | c Harpreet Brar b Arshdeep Singh | 28 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 233.33 |
| Extras | 7 | |||||
| Total | 4 wickets in 20 overs | 222 |
Punjab Kings Bowling Scorecard
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | ECO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arshdeep Singh | 4 | 0 | 43 | 1 | 10.80 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 4 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 9.50 |
| Harpreet Brar | 4 | 0 | 35 | 2 | 8.80 |
| Lockie Ferguson | 3 | 0 | 43 | 0 | 14.30 |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | 3 | 0 | 42 | 1 | 14.00 |
| Shashank Singh | 2 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 10.00 |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Fall of Wickets
| Wicket | Score | Over |
|---|---|---|
| Jacob Bethell | 21-1 | 2.2 |
| Devdutt Padikkal | 97-2 | 9.1 |
| Virat Kohli | 157-3 | 14.6 |
| Tim David | 222-4 | 19.6 |
Punjab Kings Innings
Punjab Kings suffered a dismal start in their chase of 223 runs. This was after Priyansh Arya fell for a duck on the third ball of the innings and Prabhsimran Singh didn’t get fired. The batting side was put under more pressure with Captain Shreyas Iyer succumbing to a cheap goal.
Aiming to set up the innings again with their aggressive style of batting were Cooper Connolly and Suryansh Shedge. Connolly made 37 while Shedge chipped in with 35. Marcus Stoinis added a quickfire 37.
Shashank Singh top-scored for Punjab Kings. He was off the mark with minimum fuss after scoring 56 runs in just 27 balls including five fours and four sixes at an almost 215 strike rate. His belligerent batting kept Punjab alive, but the run rate was climbing higher.
Azmatullah Omarzai and Harpreet Brar were still there, but Punjab Kings finished at 199 for 7 in 19.5 overs
Read More: ucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings, Match Scorecard 59th Match at Lucknow 15 May 2026
Punjab Kings Batting Scorecard
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Priyansh Arya | c Romario Shepherd b Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Prabhsimran Singh | c Devdutt Padikkal b Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 40.00 |
| Cooper Connolly | c Jacob Bethell b Romario Shepherd | 37 | 22 | 3 | 3 | 168.18 |
| Shreyas Iyer | c Jitesh Sharma b Rasikh Salam Dar | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Suryansh Shedge | c Virat Kohli b Suyash Sharma | 35 | 22 | 2 | 2 | 159.09 |
| Marcus Stoinis | lbw by Josh Hazlewood | 37 | 25 | 5 | 0 | 148.00 |
| Shashank Singh | c Virat Kohli b Rasikh Salam Dar | 56 | 27 | 4 | 4 | 207.41 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | not out | 14 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 155.56 |
| Harpreet Brar | not out | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 166.67 |
| Extras | 12 | |||||
| Total | 7 wickets in 19.5 overs | 199 |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Bowling Scorecard
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | ECO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 4 | 0 | 38 | 2 | 9.50 |
| Josh Hazlewood | 4 | 0 | 36 | 1 | 9.00 |
| Rasikh Salam Dar | 3.5 | 0 | 36 | 2 | 9.40 |
| Suyash Sharma | 4 | 0 | 50 | 1 | 12.50 |
| Romario Shepherd | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 8.00 |
| Krunal Pandya | 3 | 0 | 27 | 0 | 9.00 |
Punjab Kings Fall of Wickets
| Wicket | Score | Over |
|---|---|---|
| Priyansh Arya | 1-1 | 0.3 |
| Prabhsimran Singh | 18-2 | 2.5 |
| Shreyas Iyer | 19-3 | 3.2 |
| Cooper Connolly | 62-4 | 7.3 |
| Suryansh Shedge | 93-5 | 10.5 |
| Marcus Stoinis | 160-6 | 16.1 |
| Shashank Singh | 194-7 | 19.2 |
Key Moments of the Match
Virat Kohli—Devdutt Padikkal: One of the biggest moment of the game was that partnership They continued to play attacking cricket and ran the scoreboard quickly. The duo shifted gears effectively, and RCB monopolized the middle overs.
Venkatesh Iyer’s batting was another key turning point. He upped the ante in the death overs and pummeled nearly every Punjab Kings bowler. RCB completed their innings with a flourish thanks to his unbeaten 73.
By eliminating early wickets Punjab Kings got the pressure right from the very first ball. The chase was quickly made difficult by the losing of Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh and Shreyas Iyer in quick succession. Shashank Singh bowled with the best effort, but this target was just too high.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar also bowled well in the powerplay, an important phase RCB managed to pull through. Two early wickets from him put Bengaluru firmly in the driver’s seat.
Read More: ucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings, Match Scorecard 59th Match at Lucknow 15 May 2026
Best Performers of the Match
Venkatesh Iyer
Venkatesh Iyer scored the most runs on the night. His 73 not out came at a blistering pace, cutting through the 220 barrier in RCB’s total.
Virat Kohli
As for Virat Kohli, he once again knows what those two words can mean. An inning of 58 runs gave the batting order stability and confidence.
Shashank Singh
Hashank Singh’s aggressive hitting stunned everybody even in defeat. His fifty kept Punjab Kings in the hunt till the last few overs while chasing.
Harpreet Brar
Punjab Kings also made some timely moves, in particular Harpreet Brar, who took crucial wickets including Jacob Bethell and Devdutt Padikkal.
Match Summary
The Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru match scorecard is a stark illustration of how quantitatively RCB managed each phase. The conditions were well exploited by their batters while the bowlers remained steady in the pressure moments.
Despite some spirited effort from Punjab Kings, their starting up and down the order proved to be too costly a cost. With both bat and ball RCB looked stronger, which paved the way for an important win for them in IPL 2026.
The match between both the teams went all the way up, fully entertaining at Dharamsala with boundaries, sixes, partnerships, and its excitement. The simplicity of the format helped it deliver one more hard-fought contest, demonstrating why IPL continues to be among the most celebrated cricket tournaments across the world.
FAQs
Q1. Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, 61st Match, IPL 2026 Who won?
Answer: RCB won vs PBKS at Dharamsala
Q2. Where was Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru match played?
Answer: Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala
Q3. How many runs had Virat Kohli scored?
Answer: Scored 58 (37) by Virat Kohli
Q4. Who won the toss?
Answer: Punjab Kings, meanwhile, won the toss and elected to field first.
Q5. How was the total score of Royal Challengers Bengaluru?
Answer: Royal Challengers Bengaluru 222 Runs in 20 Overs (4 Wickets)
