IPL 2025 Playoffs Race: Top-Two Dreams Hang by a Thread as Playoff Race Heats Up
The IPL 2025 playoff race heats up as GT, RCB, PBKS, and MI battle for top-two spots and a direct final berth. GT leads with 18 points, while RCB and PBKS trail close behind. MI, with 16 points, must win and hope other results go their way to qualify.
The playoff spots are set in IPL 2025. Now, the focus moves to the IPL 2025 playoffs race to finish in the top two with a direct path into the final. The teams competing for those spots are Gujarat Titans (GT), Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Mumbai Indians (MI). The teams that end up first and second will square off in Qualifier 1 on May 29, playing for a direct ticket to the final. The loser will get a second opportunity in Qualifier 2.
With 16 points and a net run rate of 1.292, MI are in fourth place and will need to climb up the ladder to secure a spot in the playoffs. MI's final league match is against PBKS on May 26 in Jaipur, but by that time, their fate may have already been decided.
GT, the current league leaders in Point table, sit at 18 points and a net run rate of 0.602. With a win in their final fixture against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), they can secure a top-two finish unless both RCB and PBKS win their remaining matches, leapfrogging them to end up with 21 points each. Even if GT lose against CSK, they could still grab a top-two finish if RCB and PBKS both lose their final two matches.
RCB and PBKS have 17 points each. They have the best chance of securing a top-two finish; RCB will face SRH and LSG in Lucknow while PBKS will face Delhi Capitals and MI. Conceivably, RCB has the better net run rate and arguably the easier route to the top two spots.
The equation is clear, albeit very difficult for MI (and RCB and PBKS too, really). MI needs to beat PBKS (let's say they do) and hope that (max) one of GT, RCB, or PBKS has no more than 18 points at the end of the group phase. In theory, if RCB loses both remaining matches and PBKS loses to MI, MI may just sneak into the second spot based solely on net run rate.