Kohli’s unbeaten century lifts RCB to 16 points in win over KKR

Virat Kohli gave Royal Challengers Bengaluru the innings they needed at the point in the season they most needed it. His unbeaten 105 off 60 balls carried RCB to 194 for 4 in 19.1 overs and a six-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in Raipur on May 13, lifting Bengaluru to 16 points and the top of the IPL 2026 table on net run rate. Kolkata had posted 192 for 4 after Angkrish Raghuvanshi made 71 and Rinku Singh finished unbeaten on 49. The result left RCB level on points with Gujarat Titans but ahead on net run rate, while KKR stayed in the lower half of the table with two league matches left. ### How did Kohli control a chase of 193? Kohli finished on 105 not out from 60 balls with 11 fours and three sixes, and he was named player of the match after taking RCB through a target of 193 with five balls to spare. His innings came after consecutive ducks in his previous two matches, according to ESPNcricinfo’s report and stats page. (iplt20.com) Devdutt Padikkal made 39 off 27 balls and shared a 92-run second-wicket stand with Kohli after Jacob Bethell fell for 15. Rajat Patidar added 11, Tim David made 2, and Jitesh Sharma finished unbeaten on 8 as RCB kept the asking rate in range through most of the chase. ### What did KKR get from Raghuvanshi and Rinku? (espncricinfo.com) KKR’s 192 for 4 was built around Raghuvanshi’s 71 off 46 balls and Rinku’s unbeaten 49 off 29. Cameron Green added 32, while Ajinkya Rahane made 19 and Finn Allen scored 18 in the powerplay. Raghuvanshi put on 68 with Green and then 76 with Rinku, which gave Kolkata a platform for a total close to 200. (iplt20.com) But RCB’s attack kept KKR to four wickets down rather than allowing a late surge beyond 200, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood and Rasikh Salam Dar taking one wicket each. ### What records did Kohli reach in this innings? (iplt20.com) ESPNcricinfo’s stats page said Kohli’s 105 not out was his 10th century in T20 cricket, making him the first Indian batter to reach that mark. The same innings also took him past 14,000 T20 runs, a milestone ESPNcricinfo said he reached in 409 innings, faster than Chris Gayle’s 423. (iplt20.com) The innings was also Kohli’s ninth IPL hundred, two more than the next-best tally of seven held by Jos Buttler, ESPNcricinfo said. The stats page also said Kohli, playing his 279th IPL match, moved past MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma to become the league’s most capped player. (espncricinfo.com) ### What changed in the points table after this result? RCB moved to No. 1 in the standings with 16 points from 12 matches and a net run rate of 1.053, according to ESPNcricinfo’s points table. Gujarat Titans were also on 16 points from 12 matches but had a lower net run rate of 0.551. Sunrisers Hyderabad were third on 14 points from 12 matches in the same table, keeping the race for the top four open across the remaining league fixtures. (espncricinfo.com) KKR’s defeat left them needing results in other matches as well as wins in their own remaining games. ### How much did the weather matter around this game? (espncricinfo.com) ESPNcricinfo reported the match began after a rain delay of an hour and a quarter in Raipur. That delay mattered because any washout at this stage of the league would have split points and changed the qualification race differently from a full-result game. (espncricinfo.com) The full result instead gave RCB two points and left the standings to be separated by net run rate at the top. With only a handful of league matches remaining, that margin remains part of the playoff calculation alongside points. ### What comes next for both teams? Punjab Kings are scheduled to play Mumbai Indians on May 14 in match 58, the next fixture in the league schedule, while RCB’s next game is against Punjab Kings in Dharamsala on May 17. (espncricinfo.com) Kolkata Knight Riders next play Gujarat Titans at Eden Gardens on May 16, according to ESPNcricinfo’s fixtures list. (espncricinfo.com 1) (espncricinfo.com 2)