Following their high-stakes IPL 2026 encounter in Dharamsala, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) wasted no time in trolling Punjab Kings (PBKS) on social media. The playful banter came shortly after RCB secured a 23-run win, a crucial win that officially crowned them as the first team to qualify for the tournament playoffs.
RCB take sly dig at PBKS after playoff entry
Capitalising on the post-match celebration and their newly minted playoff status, RCB’s official handle posted a cheeky message directly aimed at their defeated opponents. The social media dig added another entertaining chapter to the brewing rivalry between the two franchises, much to the delight of Bengaluru fans online.
The social media posts were a direct callback to an old, viral tweet from the Punjab Kings admin earlier in the season. In that original update, PBKS had posted a scoreline of “49/1 (4.3 overs),” which fans immediately recognized as a blatant dig at Bengaluru’s infamous historical low of 49 all out. While the tweet was initially meant to mock RCB, it unexpectedly aged poorly, transforming into a massive talking point as Punjab’s form completely collapsed from that exact moment onward.
Following that controversial post, the Kings completely lost their momentum in the tournament. What had started as a highly promising season quickly spiraled into a nightmare campaign, culminating in a disastrous six-match losing streak that included Sunday's costly defeat against RCB. This latest loss has severely damaged their playoff aspirations, leaving the Punjab Kings entirely dependent on the results of other matches to keep their tournament hopes alive.
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PBKS' 6th straight loss puts playoff hopes in jeopardy
In an incredible twist of irony, PBKS have failed to win a single game since uploading that fateful social media post. Prior to that specific fixture against the Rajasthan Royals, the franchise was arguably the most dominant team in the tournament, having triumphantly won six out of their first seven matches. Their only other early-season blemish was a completely washed-out third game that ended in a rainy no-result.
However, that initial defeat against the Royals triggered a catastrophic downfall, snowballing into a dismal six-game losing streak. Despite this collapse, Punjab miraculously clings to the fourth spot on the IPL 2026 points table, holding a fragile 13 points from six wins out of 13 matches. To keep their rapidly fading playoff hopes alive, they face an absolute must-win situation in their final league fixture.
The road ahead looks incredibly bleak for the IPL 2025 runners-up. Even if they manage to snap their losing streak and secure a victory in their final match, a spot in the playoffs is far from guaranteed. Their fate is no longer entirely in their own hands, and they will need a complex mathematical combination of external results to go their way just to sneak into the knockout stage.
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