The 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season will remain a memorable one for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fans. After ending their 17-year wait for a maiden IPL title in 2025, RCB successfully defended their crown this season and became champions for the second consecutive year. With the latest final victory, RCB became the third IPL team to win two consecutive titles. Krunal Pandya played a key role in RCB's victories this season, both with the bat and with the bowling.
One of the key contributors to RCB’s success was Krunal Pandya. The all-rounder played a crucial role in the team's title-winning campaign, helping RCB maintain their dominance. The victory also marked Krunal’s fifth IPL trophy, making him one of the most successful players in the league’s history.
Krunal was an important member of the Mumbai Indians squads that won the IPL titles in 2017, 2019, and 2020. Krunal, who joined the Lucknow Supergiants team in 2022, played three seasons. After that, RCB bought him for over 5 crores in the auction. Thus, he joined RCB in 2025. Remarkably, he played a significant role in helping Bengaluru win the title in his very first season with the franchise and continued his impressive form in 2026 as well. With five IPL titles to his name, Krunal has now established himself as one of the most decorated players in the tournament.
Interestingly, Krunal’s younger brother Hardik Pandya has also won five IPL titles. Speaking about their relationship, Krunal said, “We are always discussing cricket. We talk about strategies, technical aspects, and ways to improve our game.” He also expressed happiness over the fact that the Pandya family now has a combined total of 10 IPL trophies.
However, while the brothers share an incredible legacy, the 2026 season brought contrasting fortunes for them. Krunal enjoyed another successful campaign, but Hardik endured a disappointing season.
As captain of Mumbai Indians, Hardik struggled to guide the team to positive results. The most successful Champions team in IPL history, played abysmally this year. And They failed to put up a winning matches and finished bottom of the points table. The poor performance has also sparked discussions about Hardik’s future as Mumbai Indians captain. It remains to be seen whether the franchise management will continue to back him next season or decide to move in a different direction.
