Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Mumbai Indians by four wickets on Wednesday, further heating up the IPL 2026 playoffs race. Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans, Sunrisers Hyderabad have already qualified for the playoffs. There is only one more playoff berth left, with Rajasthan Royals, Punjab Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad fighting for it. Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super KIngs are also in contention, but they have outside mathematical chances.
RR need to defeat MI in their last match to guarantee qualification and is now fourth in the standings with 14 points in 13 games. If they beat MI, they will qualify regardless of other results. But if RR lose, then PBKS need to defeat Luckow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders have to clinch victory against Delhi Capitals. If PBKS and KKR win, both teams will finish with 15 points, and NRR will be the decisive factor.
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CSK and DC need to win their respective last games, and also need other results to go in their favour. Both franchises require RR, PBKS and KKR to lose heavily, and also need to win their matches by huge margins to improve their NRR.
Chasing 148 runs, KKR reached 148/6 in 18.5 overs, beating MI by four wickets in Kolkata. Manish Pandey’s 33-ball 45 was key as KKR secured a crucial victory. For MI, Corbin Bosch struck thrice. Initially, two-wicket hauls from Cameron Green, Saurabh Dubey and Kartik Tyagi saw KKR restrict MI to 147/8 in 20 overs.
Speaking after the match, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane pointed out that the belief in his side has been key to their late resurgence. “I think the belief which we had after six matches, we had a couple of good discussions amongst everyone, frank discussions. We were playing some good cricket, but this format is about, winning those crucial moments. And after that game, when we went to that break, that win was really important. That changed the mood for us and then everyone started believing,” he said.
The KKR captain also had special praise for the support staff.
“Belief was already there, but I thought the credit goes to all the support staff. The atmosphere is really difficult when you lose six games and then going into the break, it’s really challenging, but no credit to everyone. We kept nice and positive atmosphere. Preparation has been fantastic. So yeah, that’s the reason,” he added.
