Absolute scenes unfolded in Raipur after Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Mumbai Indians by 2 wickets. With this, they move to the top of the IPL points table. And this will also ensure an official elimination of Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants.
It was indeed a thrilling win with major credits going to the cramped Krunal Pandya, who stood on the crease despite RCB keeping losing wickets. Rashik Dar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar had to keep their nerves still at the end. And Rashi successfully managed to glide back to this crease before Rickelton could topple the bails. And soon after that, Virat Kohli was seen jumping on his teammates' shoulders with his characteristic aggression.
With the ball, Bhuvneshwar played the crucial role of breaking the backbone of MI batting. It was Naman Dhir and Tilak Varma who added some runs on the board. However, Tilak would regret dropping the catch Naman almost made. The two sixes that came after that before Krunal Pandya became crucial in the final over.
Read also: Six or not? Tilak Varma and Naman Dhir engages in heat after dropping Krunal Pandya's catch in deep
Bhuvneshwar dismantles Mumbai’s top order
Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s bowlers ensured Mumbai Indians never found sustained momentum despite a fighting effort from Tilak Varma and Naman Dhir at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur. Bhuvneshwar Kumar triggered the collapse early, dismissing Ryan Rickelton, Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav inside the first three overs to leave MI at 28/3. His four-over spell of 4/23 included 12 dot balls and completely disrupted MI’s powerplay plans. Josh Hazlewood then removed Raj Bawa, while Rasikh Salam and Romario Shepherd chipped in with one wicket each.
Naman Dhir counterattacked with 47 off 32 balls, striking five fours and two sixes, before Tilak Varma carried the innings through the middle overs with 57 from 42 deliveries. However, neither batter managed to convert the partnership into a late surge as MI lost wickets regularly at key intervals. Mumbai Indians reached 166/7 after scoring just 56 runs in the final eight overs, with RCB’s attack conceding only three wides across the innings.
Krunal anchors chase as MI leak extras
Mumbai Indians struck early during the chase as Deepak Chahar removed Virat Kohli for a first-ball duck and Devdutt Padikkal soon after. Corbin Bosch further tightened the contest with a four-wicket haul, dismissing Jacob Bethell, Rajat Patidar, Jitesh Sharma and Tim David. Bosch finished with figures of 4/26 and bowled 14 dot balls, while Jasprit Bumrah delivered an economical spell of 0/20 in four overs.
Yet MI’s bowling unit failed to close out the innings despite reducing RCB to 39/3 and later 131/6. Krunal Pandya absorbed the pressure with a 46-ball 73, smashing five sixes and four boundaries at a strike rate of 158.69. He added a crucial 55-run stand with Bethell and accelerated after the strategic timeout. Mumbai Indians also hurt themselves with 11 wides and a no-ball, including five wides from Raj Bawa alone. The lower order still needed 18 runs from the final two overs, but Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s unbeaten seven off two balls ensured RCB crossed the 160-run mark in the last over.
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