Thanks to superb half-centuries by Krunal Pandya and Virat Kohli, Royal Challengers Bangalore defeated Delhi Capitals by six wickets, registering their seventh win of the season. This victory also marked RCB's sixth consecutive win away from home.
DC vs RCB: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) continued their winning streak, defeating Delhi Capitals by six wickets and claiming the top spot in the points table. In this match played at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium, RCB secured victory thanks to a brilliant partnership between Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya, which also became the highest fourth-wicket partnership of the season.
Delhi Capitals, winning the toss, opted to bat first and scored 162 runs for eight wickets in 20 overs. In reply, RCB chased down the target in 18.3 overs, losing four wickets. With this win, RCB now has 14 points and a net run rate of 0.521. Delhi slipped to fourth place with 12 points.
Delhi's Innings: A Weak Finish Despite a Strong Start
Delhi started bly. Opener Abhishek Porel scored quickly, adding 33 runs for the first wicket with Faf du Plessis. Porel scored 28 runs off just 11 balls, including two fours and two sixes. However, he was dismissed by Josh Hazlewood. Karun Nair, at number three, also failed to make a significant contribution, scoring only four runs before becoming Yash Dayal's victim. Captain Axar Patel then tried to steady the innings for a while but was dismissed for 15 runs.
KL Rahul played a commendable innings of 41 runs, attempting to take Delhi to a respectable score. Tristan Stubbs also batted aggressively, scoring 34 runs off 18 balls. In the final overs, Delhi failed to post a larger total, finishing on 162. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the most successful bowler for RCB, taking three wickets. Hazlewood took two, while Yash Dayal and Krunal Pandya each claimed one wicket.
RCB's Innings: Virat and Krunal Rescue the Chase After Early Setbacks
RCB's chase began poorly. Within just 26 runs, Jacob Bethell (12 runs), Devdutt Padikkal (0 runs), and captain Rajat Patidar (run out) were back in the pavilion. The team was in trouble, but then Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya took charge. They batted sensibly, not only stabilizing the innings but also accelerating the run rate.
Virat and Krunal shared a magnificent 119-run partnership, the highest fourth-wicket partnership of the season. Together, they completely thwarted Delhi's bowling strategy. Krunal Pandya completed his second IPL half-century after nine years. He reached his fifty off 38 balls and remained unbeaten on 73 off 47 balls, including five fours and four towering sixes.
Virat Kohli also played a composed innings, scoring 51 runs off 45 balls, his third half-century of the season. After Virat's dismissal, Tim David's quickfire 19 runs completed the victory.
RCB Takes Control of the Points Table
With this win, RCB now sits atop the table with 14 points. Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians follow in second and third place respectively, both with 12 points. Delhi has slipped to fourth position and needs b performances in their upcoming matches to remain in the playoff race.
