Kagiso Rabada, the Gujarat Titans (GT) pace spearhead etched his name into the Indian Premier League history books during the high-stakes Qualifier 1 clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Tuesday.
The 31-year-old Rabada gave Gujarat Titans a solid start with the ball by removing dangerous Venkatesh Iyer (19 off 7) with a fine delivery in the 2nd over of the innings. With Venkatesh’s wicket, Rabada broke veteran India pacer Mohammed Shami’s record for the most wickets in the first six overs (powerplay) in a single IPL season.
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The Record-Breaking Feat
Heading into the IPL 2026 playoffs, Kagiso Rabada was already enjoying a sensational season, sitting level with Mohammed Shami’s long-standing record of 17 powerplay wickets in a single IPL edition.
With the massive stakes of a direct ticket to the IPL 2026 Final on the line, Rabada wasted no time making the new ball talk. Striking early in his opening spell, he removed Venkatesh Iyer in the 2nd over of the innings to dent RCB and surpass Shami to claim the absolute crown as the IPL’s ultimate powerplay king.
Most wickets in first six overs in an IPL edition
18 Kagiso Rabada (2026) *
17 Mohd Shami (2023)
16 Mitchell Johnson (2013)
16 Trent Boult (2020)
Rabada’s dominance this season has been nothing short of extraordinary. Bowling in tandem with Mohammed Siraj, he has formed one of the most feared new-ball partnerships in IPL history. The duo has collectively terrorized opposition openers, with GT bowlers boasting the most wickets in overs 1-6 this season at the best average and strike rate.
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Lineup For RCB vs GT IPL 2026 Qualifier 1
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Playing XI: Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Venkatesh Iyer, Jitesh Sharma(wk), Krunal Pandya, Jacob Duffy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar
Gujarat Titans Playing XI: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(wk), Nishant Sindhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Prasidh Krishna, Kagiso Rabada, Kulwant, Mohammed Siraj,
RCB Impact substitutes: Romario Shepherd, Suyash Sharma, Kanishk Chauhan, Abhinandan, Jordan Cox.
GT Impact substitutes: Rahul Tewatia, Anuj Rawat, Glenn Phillips, Sai Kishore, Kumar Kushagra
