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Final Result – RCB win by 7 wickets with 7 balls to spare.
Second innings middle and death overs, RCB Score: 159-3
A measured and mature chase
- This low total chase was a tricky one. The ball stayed low and it was not easy to slog from ball one. The batters showed a lot of maturity and stayed in control for the length of the chase.
- Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli changed the nature of the nature with excellent running between the wickets.
- The duo found the occasional boundaries, but it was with their running that they cut down the chase and avoided any pressure.
- The chasemaster’s transitions are wonderful. Once he saw that DDP was taking the charge, he decided to hold down the other end. With consistent doubles and singles, even good overs went for nearly 9 runs.
RCB too strong away from home
- Punjab failed to break the 103-run partnership between Kohli and DDP early and that took the game away from them
- Another win away from home to bolster their position among the top 3 as RCB need only to set themselves well at home.
- This is RCB’s 5th win in 5 away games, a brilliant run. Touchwood for the boys and hoping for a similar streak to start at home.
Second Innings, after powerplay, RCB Score: 54-1
- This was a more controlled powerplay. RCB lost Phil Salt early to Arshdeep Singh’s bouncer.
- In came, Devdutt Padikkal who paired up nicely with Kohli and stitched together a crucial partnership.
- The running between the wickets has been the highlight of the powerplay. Using the large dimensions of the ground to perfection, Kohli and DDP even ran 4 runs off a single ball.
Target for RCB – 158
First Innings middle overs and death, Score: 157-8
RCB’s superb fielding
- The fielding by RCB has been absolutely cracking. The stops, the dives, the catches and the resulting runout. It was a delight to watch the fielders pounce on every ball.
- Virat Kohli at covers was the most lethal, every ball that went past the infield saw Virat cover the stumps in lightening quick pace. That bore fruit as he collected the ball from Tim David. The throw from the boundary towards the bowler end was quickly sent to the keeper by Kohli and Nehal Wadhera was dismissed as a result. It was the culmination of all the good work in the field by RCB.
- Krunal Pandya’s catch off Shreyas Iyer was another fantastic moment. The elder Pandya covered 24 meters in a moment’s notice to catch the ball hit straight down to the boundary.
The counterattack by the bowlers
- RCB fight back ferociously in the middle overs. Krunal led the charge, followed by Romario Shepherd and Suyash Sharma.
- Suyash Sharma made a big blow with two wickets in one over. Marcus Stoinis and Josh Inglis were dismissed as the leggie broke through their stumps with clever googlies.
- The death bowling was precision taken to a new level. Non-stop yorkers from the duo of Bhuvi and Hazlewood completely suffocated the last of the Punjab middle order. the last 7 overs saw just 47 runs given away by RCB.
After Powerplay, PBKS score: 62-1
- Punjab dominated the powerplay. The RCB bowlers found it difficult to find their line and length on this pitch as the homeside batters were always taking the attack to the opposition.
- Prabhsimran and Priyansh took the fast bowling attack apart and consistently scored at a runrate of 10.
- Rajat Patidar brought in Krunal Pandya to get the breakthrough. The shrewd southpaw delivered his captain’s wish with finesse as he dismissed Priyansh Arya.
Lineups:
RCB: Virat Kohli, Philip Salt, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Yash Dayal.
PBKS: Priyansh Arya, Nehal Wadhera, Shreyas Iyer(c), Shashank Singh, Josh Inglis(wk), Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Toss:
RCB won the toss and chose to bowl first.
Preview: PBKS vs RCB
RCB went down to Punjab at home two days ago and the chance to take revenge is presented swiftly. The Bengaluru boys are in Punjab as they look to continue their run of wins away from home.
Match details:
Teams: Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Date: 20th April 2025
Match start time: 3:30pm IST
Venue: Maharaja Yadavindra Singh cricket stadium, New Chandigarh
OTT: JioHotstar
TV: Star Sports Network
