Who will win today’s IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 match?

For the second successive Indian Premier League (IPL) season, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) find themselves in Qualifier 1. This time, the defending champions will face off against the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.

RCB went through a brief midseason slump but recovered well to finish at the top of the standings, ahead of GT on net run rate. There are concerns over the fitness of Phil Salt, who might not feature on Tuesday despite having joined the squad. However, Rajat Patidar and company will be confident of getting the better of a strangely constructed Titans outfit.

GT, with a batting lineup that many believed wasn’t strong enough to take them to the playoffs, have defied the odds. Boosted by their lethal pace unit and wily spinner, Gujarat secured yet another top-two finish under Ashish Nehra. Conditions in Dharamsala may also suit the 2022 IPL champions, who have found a way to win throughout the tournament.

RCB’s squad for IPL 2026: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Phil Salt (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Jacob Bethell, Venkatesh Iyer, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thushara, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Dar, Suyash Sharma, Swapnil Singh, Abhinandan Singh, Vihaan Malhotra, Jordan Cox, Satvik Deswal, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Kanishk Chouhan, Jacob Duffy, Richard Gleeson.

GT’s squad for IPL 2026: Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Rahul Tewatia, Washington Sundar, Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan, Glenn Phillips, Jason Holder, Jayant Yadav, R Sai Kishore, Nishant Sindhu, Arshad Khan, Anuj Rawat (wk), Kumar Kushagra (wk), Connor Esterhuizen, Ishant Sharma, Kulwant Khejroliya, Luke Wood, Gurnoor Singh Brar, Manav Suthar, Ashok Sharma.

IPL 2026: Defending champions RCB seek second successive final against spirited GT

RCB’s bowlers have looked a bit off color in recent times, with Josh Hazlewood in particular being some way off his threatening best. But with Dharamsala not assisting the spinners much, Bengaluru could drop Suyash Sharma and boost their pace stocks for this encounter.

Conditions in the powerplay have been seamer-friendly, so it isn’t far-fetched to imagine the GT top three struggling to counter Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hazlewood. The Titans are heavily reliant on Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler, and the venue might work against the chances of a prolific wicketless powerplay.

RCB have some concerns of their own. Their overseas combination is up in the air, and key players like Jitesh Sharma have barely contributed over the course of the competition. However, it’s arguable that they have more batting depth and a pace unit that can exploit the conditions at least half as well as the GT fast bowlers can.

It’s always a tough one to call, and the toss will be crucial. The chasing team is expected to have a significant advantage, particularly if there is some swing upfront in the first innings. Taking those factors out of the equation, RCB look perhaps slightly more well-rounded.

Prediction: RCB to win Qualifier 1 of IPL 2026.