Virat Kohli walked to the crease at Raipur on May 13 carrying something no batter in 18 seasons of the IPL had ever carried, the weight of two consecutive ducks. The 105 not out he scored that afternoon against KKR wasn’t just a century. It was the first time in IPL history that any player had answered consecutive zeroes with a hundred. Not Chris Gayle. Not AB de Villiers. Not Rohit Sharma. Nineteen seasons in, Kohli wrote a record nobody had thought to anticipate.
The Two Ducks That Built Stakes
Kohli had been dominant coming into May 2026, 379 runs in ten innings, including an 81 off 44 balls against the Gujarat Titans that earned him the Orange Cap and made him the first batter in IPL history to reach 800 career boundaries. In Match 50, chasing a revised target of 213 in Lucknow, Prince Yadav’s nip-backer crashed through his defences on the second ball of the second over, Kohli’s 11th IPL duck, his first in a run chase in over nine years.
Three days later, Deepak Chahar had him caught at mid-off on the first ball against the Mumbai Indians in Raipur. Golden duck. Back-to-back zeros. Only the second time in 19 seasons he’d made consecutive ducks.
The 105* Against KKR: A Breakdown
Match 57, May 13. KKR had posted 192 for 4. Jacob Bethell fell early for 15, leaving Kohli alone at the crease chasing 193. What followed was 60 balls of controlled aggression, 105 not out, 11 fours, three sixes, strike rate 175. He paced through the powerplay, shifted gears in the middle overs, and finished the chase with five balls remaining. RCB won by six wickets. Kohli was Player of the Match.
The innings weren’t loud from the start. It was deliberate, a batter who’d made two consecutive ducks choosing precision over impulse. He absorbed the pressure of Bethell’s early exit, then accelerated when the match demanded it. The target was cleared with five balls to spare.
Virat Kohli IPL 2026 Century Records Milestones
The 105 not out against KKR triggered five simultaneous milestones, each significant on its own, collectively unprecedented. Kohli’s ninth IPL century moved him to the outright record; Jos Buttler, second on the list, has seven. His tenth T20 century across all formats (nine IPL, one T20I) made him the first Indian batter to reach that mark, placing him alongside Chris Gayle (22), Babar Azam (13), and David Warner (10 at that point). The first player in IPL history to score a century after back-to-back ducks. And his 279th appearance, the most by any player in tournament history.
# | Opponent | Score | Balls | Key Milestone |
1 | vs SRH | 69* | 38 | Season opener; RCB won by 6 wickets |
4 | vs PBKS | 50 | 38 | First half-century of the season |
5 | vs DC | 49 | 29 | Near-miss by 1 run |
7 | vs GT | 81 | 44 | First player to 800 IPL fours; Orange Cap |
10 | vs LSG | 0 | 2 | DUCK #1, bowled by Prince Yadav |
11 | vs MI | 0 | 1 | DUCK #2, caught off Deepak Chahar |
12 | vs KKR | 105* | 60 | 9th IPL 100 | 1st Indian with 10 T20 tons | 1st in IPL history: century after back-to-back ducks |
13 | vs PBKS | 58 | 37 | Half-century; strong return to form |
15 | vs GT (Q1) | 43 | 25 | Qualifier 1: RCB sealed the final berth |
16 | vs GT (Final) | 73* | 42 | Player of the Match | RCB 2nd consecutive IPL title |
Eighteen Seasons, One Impossible Standard
Fewer than 100 centuries have been scored across 19 seasons of the IPL. The format doesn’t produce them easily, and a century chasing 193 is rarer still. A century immediately after two consecutive ducks, with no batter in 18 prior seasons threading that sequence, is in a category the tournament hadn’t reached. Chris Gayle, with 22 IPL hundreds, never did it. AB de Villiers, averaging 40.7 across 184 IPL matches, never did it. Rohit Sharma, with over 6,000 IPL runs and a season-high 109 not out, never did it. The explanation isn’t talent; it’s that the sequence is so improbable that 18 editions produced no opportunity for it, and Kohli seized the first one he made.
The Season’s End: Titles Confirmed
Kohli didn’t coast after the KKR century. He scored 58 off 37 against Punjab Kings, then 43 off 25 in Qualifier 1 against Gujarat Titans, before closing with 73 not out off 42 balls in the IPL 2026 Final at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, Player of the Match as RCB beat Gujarat Titans by five wickets.
His full 2026 numbers: 675 runs in 16 matches, average 56.25, strike rate 165, one century, five fifties, his sixth 500-plus-run IPL season. RCB’s back-to-back titles in 2025 and 2026 placed them alongside the Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings as franchises that have retained the trophy. The Virat Kohli IPL 2026 century records milestones sit at the heart of a season that produced a second consecutive title and a record no one in 19 seasons had thought to anticipate.
Back-to-back IPL titles, nine centuries, the first ever duck-to-duck-to-hundred sequence in tournament history, is this Kohli’s greatest IPL season? Tell us in the comments.
FAQs
How many runs did Kohli score in IPL 2026?
Kohli scored 675 runs in 16 matches, averaging 56.25 at a strike rate of 165. The season included one century and five fifties.
What IPL records did Kohli break in 2026?
Kohli scored his 9th IPL century, became the first Indian with 10 T20 hundreds, and was the first in IPL history to score a century after back-to-back ducks. His 279 appearances are also an IPL record.
Did Virat Kohli score a century in IPL 2026?
Yes, 105 not out off 60 balls against KKR on May 13, 2026, his 9th IPL century. It came directly after back-to-back ducks in Matches 10 and 11.
Did RCB win IPL 2026?
Yes, RCB beat Gujarat Titans in the final at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, winning back-to-back titles in 2025 and 2026. Kohli scored 73 not out in the final and was named Player of the Match.