IPL 2026: Rajasthan Royals enter playoffs by defeating Mumbai Indians, dream of Punjab and KKR broken, see full schedule

IPL 2026 Playoff Schedule: The exciting journey of the league stage of IPL 2026 is now over and the picture of the four teams reaching the playoffs is completely clear. In an important match played at Wankhede Stadium, Rajasthan Royals defeated Mumbai Indians and captured the last playoff spot.

With this victory, Rajasthan not only took their campaign forward but also put an end to the hopes of Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders. The playoff battle remained very interesting till the last round of the league stage, but Rajasthan’s victory ended all the equations and the names of the last four teams were decided.

Four teams to reach playoff decided

If we look at the points table, Royal Challengers Bangalore performed brilliantly and secured the top position. The team finished the league stage with 18 points and won the number-1 position on the basis of excellent net run rate. Gujarat Titans also played consistently well throughout the season and finished second with the same 18 points. Whereas Sunrisers Hyderabad secured the third position on the basis of its aggressive batting order. Rajasthan Royals won the last league match and collected 16 points and secured a place in the playoffs by finishing fourth.

RCB and Gujarat will face each other in Qualifier-1

As per the format of IPL, the top two teams of the points table will face off in Qualifier-1. In such a situation, the first qualifier will be played between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Titans. The winner of this match will directly enter the finals. At the same time, the tournament will not end for the losing team, because it will get another opportunity to reach the final through Qualifier-2.

Hyderabad and Rajasthan will clash in the eliminator

Third and fourth placed Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals will face each other in the eliminator match. This match will be very important for both the teams, because the journey of the losing team will end here. The winning team will enter the next stage and get the right to play Qualifier-2.

path to final

The winning team of the Eliminator will face the losing team of Qualifier-1 in Qualifier-2. The team that wins this match will make it to the finals. After this, the biggest match of the tournament will be played, where the winner of Qualifier-1 and the winning team of Qualifier-2 will face each other for the title of IPL 2026.

Also read: Rajasthan became the last team to reach the IPL 2026 playoffs by defeating MI, won the match by 30 runs at Wankhede.

The title battle became more interesting

With the league stage over, now four teams are left in the race for the trophy. There will now be a competition between RCB, Gujarat Titans, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals to win the title. All the teams have performed brilliantly throughout the season, so the excitement is expected to be at its peak in the playoff matches.