The 2026 Indian Premier League is heading towards a dramatic end, as without the Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants, all eight teams are in contention for the Tata IPL 2026. Apart from the two teams, all others have managed to sum up their equation and seen success. KKR, which has not been able to do well, has made a dramatic comeback after winning three consecutive wins.
On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad, with their recent success coming into the business end of the tournament, has secured first position, and PBKS has slipped from the top after warming the hot seat for a while. Last night, Lucknow Super Giants defeated Royal Challengers Bengaluru, ending their winning drought.
With RCB facing its second consecutive loss, the league is now going to open up many teams' possibilities in the race for the playoffs. Today's match is going to be one of the most important for the Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders; whoever wins the game, that will be a big jump in terms of strengthening their hold in the table at this stage of the league.
What will the teams need to qualify for the playoffs?
Sunrisers Hyderabad is currently holding the first position after playing 11 games. They are in a comfortable position with 14 points, and they are going to need one more win to be the first team to reach the magic figure of 16 points.
In the second place, PBKS, which recently slipped from the hot seat, losing three consecutive matches, though they are in a comfortable position, needs to make a comeback in terms of wins. They are currently with 13 points, playing 10 games and in a tournament like IPL, where the bottom of the table is roaring back, this can turn out to be one of the important aspects in the coming weeks, how PBKS is going to manage the loss. They need two more comfortable wins with a big margin to stay firm at the top.
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Royal Challengers Bengaluru has played some of the best cricket so far, winning 6 matches out of 10. They need two more wins to secure their place at the top. The defending champions have faced back-to-back defeats with four matches remaining, and they will seek a top-notch performance as a group. They are now standing with 12 points, the same as the Rajasthan Royals. The Pinks have gone through a bit of ups and downs in the last five matches. They also need at least two or three more wins.
As well as RCB and RR, the Gujarat Titans are also currently blocking the road with 12 points. They also need more wins to secure their ticket to the playoffs.
IPL 2026 POINTS TABLE IS GETTING CLOSE - NO ONE CAN PREDICT THE TOP 2 🔥 pic.twitter.com/6NX4nmz7QS
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) May 7, 2026
Chennai Super Kings showed resilience after losing the first three games; they have summed up their plans and are now dreaming towards the playoffs, 10 matches and 10 points. They have four matches left and to really showcase their comeback in the playoff stage, they will try to win all of the next games. Chennai has back-to-back matches with Lucknow, and the other two are GT and SRH; all of the four games are going to be interesting for the Super Kings as all of the opponents are coming with a winning taste.
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KKR and DC will face each other this evening, the 7th and 8th position holders are going to play one of the most important games of the league. Whoever wins the game will be relieved in this stage.
Other than that, the Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants seem to be losing all the possibilities of their qualification.
