IPL 2026 points table: PBKS lead, SRH join RCB and RR at 12 points

After 41 matches of IPL 2026, the top four on the points table is finally starting to take a clear shape. Punjab Kings sit at the summit with 13 points from 9 games. Below them, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Rajasthan Royals, and Sunrisers Hyderabad are all locked on 12 points each, with net run rate separating the three. The race for the playoffs is genuinely tight at this stage, and the results over the next ten days will likely decide who qualifies.

How the top four looks right now

Punjab Kings remain the only unbeaten side after nine matches, though Rajasthan Royals handed them their closest call of the season in Match 40. PBKS's net run rate stands at 1.043, which gives them a reasonable buffer over the three teams tied below them. RCB sit second on net run rate of 1.919, the highest in the top four. Rajasthan Royals are third with 0.617, and SRH fourth after their win over MI pushed them to 12 points with a net run rate that will improve further once the scorecard is fully processed.

RCB's 1.919 net run rate is a direct result of their nine-wicket demolition of Delhi Capitals, where DC were bowled out for just 75 and RCB chased it in 6.3 overs. That win did not just give them two points. It gave them a net run rate cushion that means they can afford to lose a close game and still hold onto second place.

SRH's five-match winning run changes everything

A few weeks ago, SRH were sitting outside the top four with results going against them. Five consecutive wins have changed that completely. Their batting, led by Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, has been the difference. Abhishek currently has 380 runs in 8 innings this season. Head has been equally aggressive, and Heinrich Klaasen at number four has turned close chases into comfortable wins more than once.

The win over MI on April 29 was their most complete performance of the five. Chasing 243 at Wankhede, SRH got there with eight balls remaining. That kind of result does not just earn points. It puts the rest of the tournament on notice about what this batting lineup is capable of when it clicks.

The middle of the table and what it means

Gujarat Titans sit fifth with 8 points from 9 matches, and they host RCB on April 30 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. A win there would take GT to 10 points and pull them right back into the playoff conversation. A loss would leave them needing a strong run through their remaining fixtures. GT have been inconsistent this season, losing their opening two games before winning three in a row, then dropping results again.

Below GT, Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals are both on 6 points, in sixth and seventh place respectively. Both teams have played 9 matches. CSK's path to the playoffs is narrow but still open. DC's situation is similar, with KL Rahul's form being one of the few bright spots for the side this season. Rahul has scored 358 runs in IPL 2026 so far, placing him third in the Orange Cap standings.

Mumbai Indians and the teams running out of time

Mumbai Indians are in seventh place with 4 points from 9 matches, having won just twice all season. Ryan Rickelton scored 123 not out against SRH on Wednesday and still ended up on the losing side. That sums up MI's campaign fairly well. The batting has shown signs of life, but the bowling has not held up when it needed to. Defending 243 and losing by six wickets is not a batting problem.

Kolkata Knight Riders are eighth with 5 points. Lucknow Super Giants are ninth, and the table is tight enough in that lower half that even a two-match winning run could shift positions significantly. For MI specifically, the playoffs require winning most of their remaining games and hoping that results elsewhere break their way. With their current net run rate, even that scenario might fall short.

What to watch in the next round of fixtures

The GT vs RCB match on April 30 is the most immediate fixture with direct implications for the top five. If RCB win, they go clear in second place with 14 points. If GT win, the fifth-place race tightens considerably. PBKS still have games to play and would need to lose several before their lead at the top becomes vulnerable. Their NRR and current form suggest they will hold onto first place barring a dramatic collapse in the final stretch.

The IPL 2026 league stage runs through to late May, with the playoffs scheduled to follow. Based on current form, PBKS, RCB, RR, and SRH look like the most likely top four, though GT at 8 points are close enough to make it genuinely uncertain. The next five matches across the competition will tell us a great deal about whether that order holds.