Indian Premier League: Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Gujarat Titans, keep hopes alive

Bengaluru: Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Gujarat Titans by 4 wickets in a vital Indian Premier League match at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday night to keep hopes alive to enter into the play-offs. With this win RCB reached 7th spot in the points table with 8 points from 11 matches.

After restricting former champion at just 147, the hosts reached the target in 13.4 overs losing 6 wickets. Openers Fef du Plessis and Virat Kohli started with fire, by adding 92 runs in 35 balls. Du Plessis went back after scoring 64 runs from 23 balls with 3 sixes. RCB then lost 6 wickets in just 5 overs. Will Jack (1), Rajat Patidar (2), Glenn Maxwell (4), Cameron Green (1) went back cheply before Kolhi (42). The score was 117 in 10.4 overs when Kohli was out. Veteran Dinesh Karthik (21 off 12) and Swapnil Singh (15) ensured the victory for RCB in 13.4 overs.

Joshua Little took 4 wickets  for 45 while Noor Ahmed claimed two.

Earlier, Yash Dayal, Vyshak Vijaykumar and Mohammed Siraj picked two wickets each in a superb bowling performance as Royal Challengers Bengaluru bowled out Gujarat Titans for a below-par 147.

On a two-paced surface, Dayal, Vyshak and Siraj got their lengths and rhythm spot-on to bundle out GT for the lowest total at the venue in IPL 2024. They were also supported by Cameron Green and Karn Sharma taking a wicket apiece.

Shahrukh Khan, David Miller and Rahul Tewatia chipped in with sizeable 30s, but none of them converted it into a big knock to make it the third time GT have been bowled out this season.

Pushed into batting first, Wriddhiman Saha’s poor form continued when Siraj found late movement on a short and wide ball, which was good enough to find an outside edge. It was also the fourth time Siraj took out Saha in the IPL.

Siraj found late movement again when he forced Gill to whip and ended up with a deep point taking a leading edge. The consistent Sai Sudharsan was next to fall, pulling without footwork and top-edge caught by mid-off against Green, as GT ended the Power-play at a paltry 23/3, the lowest total in this six-over phase of IPL 2024.

Post a horror Power-play, GT got some boundaries flowing, starting with Shahrukh glancing and cutting off Vyshak in the seventh over. He and Miller, dropped on 23 by Karn Sharma off Green, got some sublime timing on their shots to keep GT innings going as 38 runs came from overs 8-11.

Shahrukh brought up the 50-run stand for the fourth wicket in the 11th over by smashing Green high over long-on for a 94-m six. But RCB launched a fight-back in successive overs - Miller holed out to long-on off Karn after hitting a six over extra cover, while Shahrukh was run out by a direct hit from Virat Kohli at non-striker’s end.

Tewatia took a liking to Karn by smashing three fours and a six to take 19 runs off the 16th over, followed by Rashid taking two boundaries off Siraj in the next over. But Dayal brought a halt to the 44-run stand by castling Rashid’s leg-stump with a yorker, before taking out Tewatia with a short ball, with the diving third man taking the catch off the top edge.

Brief Scores: Gujarat Titans 147 in 19.3 overs (Shahrukh Khan 37, Rahul Tewatia 35; Yash Dayal 2-21, Vyshak Vijaykumar 2-23) lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru 152/6 in 13.4 overs (Fef du Plessis 64, Virat Kohli 42, Joshua Little 4/45). Agencies

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