Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Match Scorecard 61st Match at Dharamsala 17 May 2026
Match 61 of Indian Premier League 2026 Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru LIVE – A fabulous high-scoring contest at the scenic Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala, on May 17th, with a humdinger in store.Margin: Overwhelming victory by 39 runs (Result) The fans got to see hitting, important dives and vital wickets while fielding.
Punjab Kings won the toss and opted to bowl, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batted first. The batting unit of Bengaluru hammered a huge score of 222 runs for four wickets in the quota of 20 overs. Chasing, Punjab Kings put up a fight but fell short at 199 for 8. Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the match by 23 runs and further consolidated their position in the tournament.
The match witnessed stellar batting displays from Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Venkatesh Iyer. For Punjab Kings, Shashank Singh and Marcus Stoinis also attempted to do their bit, but the target was ultimately just a touch out of reach.
Match Information
| Match Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
| Match Number | 61st Match |
| Tournament | Indian Premier League 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 by 23 runs |
| Umpires | Adrian Holdstock, KN Anantha Padmanabhan |
| Third Umpire | Parashar Joshi |
| Match Referee | Pankaj Dharmani |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Innings
Royal Challengers Bengaluru had a positive start to the innings despite losing Jacob Bethell early in the first over. Harpreet Brar ended up dismissing the young batter after he made just 11 runs off 7 balls. Once the early wicket fell, Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal took full control of the innings.
Another splendid knock from Virat Kohli under pressure. The seasoned batter gave a brief response of 58 runs from 37 balls with four boundaries and three sixes. During the middle overs, Kohli rotated strike beautifully attacking only loose balls which is smart cricket.
From the other end, Devdutt Padikkal supported strongly. He showed intent from ball one and smashed 45 off only 25 balls. During his innings, he hit 4 fours and also 3 sixes. Bengaluru has a center wicket partnership that maintained a run rate.
The critical juncture came in the last few overs where Venkatesh Iyer completely decimated the Punjab Kings bowlers. He ended up winning the match with his score of 73 off merely 40 balls. In his innings, he hit eight fours and four other big sixes. Iyer blasted nearly every bowler and helped Bengaluru cross the 220-run mark.
Tim David also made a fiery cameo towards the end. He scored 28 runs off just 12 balls as he added vital runs during the death overs.
A batting wicket was also there in the Mohali match where Punjab Kings bowlers failed to find any regularity. The top wicket-taker was Harpreet Brar with two wickets and Arshdeep Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal claimed one wicket apiece.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Batting Scorecard
| Batter | Dismissal | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 20 Overs | 222/4 |
Punjab Kings Bowling Scorecard
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wickets | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arshdeep Singh | 4 | 43 | 1 | 10.80 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 4 | 38 | 0 | 9.50 |
| Harpreet Brar | 4 | 35 | 2 | 8.80 |
| Lockie Ferguson | 3 | 43 | 0 | 14.30 |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | 3 | 42 | 1 | 14.00 |
| Shashank Singh | 2 | 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 Run Chase
The visitors needed a mammoth 223 runs to win the match but Punjab Kings chase began horrifically. The moment into the innings and Priyansh Arya perished for a golden duck. Then, Prabhsimran Singh and captain Shreyas Iyer perished cheaply. When Punjab Kings were reeling, 19 runs for 3 wickets.
Cooper Connolly looked to counterattack. He played some splendid shots and scored 37 off just 22 balls where he thrashed incredible boundaries and sixes. He had dragged Punjab Kings back a touch in the middle overs alongside Suryansh Shedge.
Shedge, who opened the innings for India A, made 35 off just 22 balls. He looked composed and played some lovely cricket shots against the slow bowlers.
Marcus Stoinis subsequently joined the fightback and made a valuable 37 off 25 balls. He broke a key partnership with Shashank Singh to pull Punjab Kings back into the game.
One of Punjab Kings’ biggest positives during the chase was Shashank Singh. He batted with no fear at all and hit 56 runs off of only 27 balls. In his innings, he struck four boundaries along with four sixes. The partnership under pressure set the base for Punjab Kings’ batting order, and in the last overs of power he launched an assault on bowlers to keep Punjab in play until the end.
But the Royal Challengers Bangalore bowlers held their nerve. Bhuvneshwar Kumar gave early breakthroughs, and Josh Hazlewood contained in the middle overs. Rasikh Salam Dar claimed three crucial wickets in one of the best spells of the match.
Punjab Kings: 199/8 in 20 overs (Liam Livingstone 13, Sam Billings 79, Harpreet Brar 37) lost by 23 runs
Punjab Kings Batting Scorecard
| Batter | Dismissal | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 b 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 | c Tim David b Rasikh Salam Dar | 14 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 140.00 |
| Harpreet Brar | not out | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 166.67 |
| Extras | 12 | |||||
| Total | 20 Overs | 199/8 |
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Bowling Scorecard
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wickets | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 4 | 38 | 2 | 9.50 |
| Josh Hazlewood | 4 | 36 | 1 | 9.00 |
| Rasikh Salam Dar | 4 | 36 | 3 | 9.00 |
| Suyash Sharma | 4 | 50 | 1 | 12.50 |
| Romario Shepherd | 1 | 8 | 1 | 8.00 |
| Krunal Pandya | 3 | 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 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 199/8 | 19.6 |
Key Highlights of the Match
Virat Kohli’s Match Control
Once again, Virat Kohli showcased why he is one of the great T20 batsmen. He made the Bengaluru innings solid allowing other batters to take attacking positions.
Venkatesh Iyer’s Brilliant Finishing
It was during these final overs that Venkatesh Iyer swung the game totally in his favor. Bengaluru managed a massive target on the back of his hitting.
Early Wickets Hurt Punjab Kings
Batting first, Punjab Kings lost three wickets within the powerplay, and that turned out to be one of the major reasons behind them losing the match.
Shashank Singh’s Fighting Knock
However, Shashank Singh caught everyone’s eyes with his batting and ferocious stroke play in the defeat.
Rasikh Salam Dar’s Impact
He took important wickets at critical junctures as Bengaluru maintained control of the chase.
Player of the Match
Venkatesh Iyer scored an unbeaten 73 runs off 40 balls and was awarded the Player of the Match award.
Conclusion
Match Scorecard 61st match at Dharamsala 17 May 2026 Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru In IPL 2026 we saw some of the most thrilling matches imaginable. Aggressive batting, booming sixes, lethal bowling, and mind-blowing partnerships kept the fans entertained from start to finish.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru made a complete match of the batting and bowling performance. Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Venkatesh Iyer made terrific knocks and Rasikh Salam Dar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were terrific with the ball.
Punjab Kings tried their best, especially from Shashank Singh and Marcus Stoinis in the chase, but Bengaluru were always ahead in most of the matchup until they deservedly won.
FAQs
Q1. Who won the Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru 61st match?
Answer: Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the match by 23 runs.
Q2. Where was the match played?
Answer: The match was played at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.
Q3. Who scored the most runs in the match?
Answer: Venkatesh Iyer scored the highest runs with an unbeaten 73.
Q4. Who won the Player of the Match award?
Answer: Venkatesh Iyer won the Player of the Match award.
Q5. Who took the most wickets for RCB?
Answer: Rasikh Salam Dar took 3 wickets for Bengaluru.
