Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra showered praise on Royal Challengers Bengaluru for their complete performance in IPL 2026. RCB won their second consecutive title and became the third team, after Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians to successfully defend their title.
RCB were able to top the league phase as they won nine out of their 14 games. They were able to come up with a collective effort and played with an aggressive approach throughout the tournament.
In the final, RCB defeated GT by five wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, on Sunday.
“The first win only gives you the realization of what you can do. You tried to do one thing for 17 years, and if you achieve that in the 18th year, you feel a dream was fulfilled. If you have to convert that start into an era, you need to win trophies continuously,” Aakash Chopra said on JioHotstar.
“The seniors always used to say that winning the trophy once is difficult, but defending it is much more difficult, and we have realized that in the 19-year history. Only three teams have been able to do that. They have become the third team now, and the two teams before this have lifted the trophy five times apiece. There was expectation and anticipation, and then to dominate like this, take a bow,” he added.
On the other hand, former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar hailed RCB for playing like a champion team throughout the season.
“The standout story has to be the way RCB have played like champions throughout. Yes, they lost an odd match in between, but if you see their all-round performance, they had depth in batting and variety in bowling. They had top-class new-ball bowlers, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood, then Jacob Duffy, and Rasikh Salam Dar bowled so well,” he said.
Gavaskar praised the duo of Krunal Pandya and skipper Rajat Patidar for delivering the goods for the franchise.
“Krunal Pandya is an extremely shrewd cricketer. What more do you need? The biggest thing was Rajat Patidar’s captaincy. Rajat Patidar’s captaincy made a huge difference because he himself absorbed the pressure that was created on the team, and didn’t let the team feel that pressure,” Gavaskar observed.
RCB will aim to replicate the same show in the next season as well.
