India, May 30 -- IPL 2026 league phase belonged, above all else, to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The defending champions topped the league table with authority, anchored by Rajat Patidar's remarkable run of form and a bowling attack that rarely gave opponents room to breathe. They proceeded to win Qualifier 1 and march into the final, where Gujarat Titans will meet them after knocking out Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 2. For RCB, the trophy remains one match away. For Rajasthan and Chennai, the season is over.

For Chennai Super Kings, the league phase offered moments of brilliance but also long stretches of inconsistency. For Rajasthan, it was a campaign of feast and famine: they scraped into the playoffs as the fourth seed, yet their sq...