Royal Challengers Bengaluru all-rounder Krunal Pandya had a light-hearted reminder for Devdutt Padikkal and mentor Dinesh Karthik after RCB’s dominant Qualifier 1 win over Gujarat Titans in IPL 2026. In a funny dressing-room moment that followed the 92-run victory at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Pandya made sure his match-winning contribution did not go unnoticed.
Karthik praised the team’s fearless approach and professional mindset while addressing the squad after the game. He highlighted the strong intent shown from the start, especially from Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal, and said RCB had played like true champions in a high-pressure knockout clash.
“This was a clinical effort, a professional effort. A one-versus-two playoff game is always a big game, but we played like champions,” Dinesh Karthik said in the dressing-room video shared by Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
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He also added that RCB maintained their tempo throughout the innings and did not allow the pressure of the occasion to affect their approach. However, as the video continued, Krunal Pandya quickly stepped in when he felt his name had been left out of the praise.
𝗥𝗖𝗕 𝘃 𝗚𝗧: 𝗗𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗩𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗱𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝗻
Rajat’s brilliance, Bhuvi’s consistency, the team recognising every little contribution, and staying focused with eyes on the bigger prize – here we are bringing you all the behind… pic.twitter.com/6YvdJqddn8
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 27, 2026
With the dressing room bursting into laughter, Pandya jokingly said, “Mera naam bhool gaya bhai,” making the moment one of the most entertaining post-match scenes from the RCB camp. Karthik immediately corrected himself and responded with appreciation for Pandya’s performance, saying, “Krunal, good job,” before adding, “Well done, Krunal. Good effort on the bat.”
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Pandya had every reason to remind his teammates of his impact. After RCB slipped to 94 for 3 in the ninth over, he stitched together a crucial 95-run partnership with captain Rajat Patidar for the fourth wicket. He later fell for a well-made 43 off 28 balls to Kagiso Rabada.
With the ball, Pandya also delivered an impressive spell, finishing with figures of 3.3-0-16-2 and dismissing Rabada and Mohammed Siraj to help RCB seal a comprehensive victory.
