Royal Challengers Bengaluru triumphed over Delhi Capitals in a thrilling contest, overcoming a shaky start during the powerplay. Chasing a target of 163, RCB's victory was anchored by a resilient partnership between Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya, who stitched together a crucial 100-plus stand to seal the win.
The partnership between Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya steadily and effectively guided RCB towards their target, as the duo crossed the 50-run mark, with Krunal reaching his half-century.
Jacob Bethell was caught by Karun Nair off Axar Patel for 12 runs off 6 balls, while Devdutt Padikkal was dismissed for a duck by the same bowler.
Delhi Capitals set a target of 162 runs for RCB to chase, with Tristan Stubbs scoring 34 before falling to Josh Hazlewood off Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashutosh Sharma bowled for 2, and Vipraj Nigam run out by Virat Kohli in the last over after a quick 12 off 6 balls.
KL Rahul scored 41 off 39 balls with three fours before being caught by Jacob Bethell off Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who also bowled Ashutosh Sharma for 2 runs off 3 balls.
Axar Patel scored 15 runs off 13 balls before being bowled by Josh Hazlewood in the 14th over.
Faf du Plessis was caught by Kohli off Krunal Pandya after making 22 runs off 26 balls
DC managed to score 52 runs in the powerplay but lost key wickets along the way. While Karun Nair fell soon after, caught by Bhuvneshwar Kumar off Yash Dayal for 4 runs from 4 deliveries. In the fourth over, Josh Hazlewood struck by removing Abishek Porel, who had scored a quickfire 28 off just 11 balls, with Jitesh Sharma completing the catch.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won the toss and opted to bowl against Delhi Capitals (DC) in their IPL clash at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
Both teams have made strong starts to the season, with RCB and DC each having 12 points. DC are currently second in the table, having won 6 of their 8 matches, while RCB are third, with 6 wins from 9 matches.
Both teams will be aiming to secure a top-four spot and confirm their place in the next stage of the competition.
RCB will also be seeking revenge, as the last time DC and RCB met at Bengaluru, DC defeated RCB with a brilliant knock from KL Rahul, who remained unbeaten on 93.
Playing XI:
Delhi Capitals: Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel (c), Tristan Stubbs, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Dushmantha Chameera, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethell, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal.
Impact players:
DC: Ashutosh Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Jake Fraser McGurk, Madhav Tiwari, Tripurana Vijay.
RCB: Devdutt Padikkal, Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Dar Salam, Manoj Bhandage, Swapnil Singh.