DC vs RCB | Delhi crumble under Bhuvneshwar’s wizardry and Kohli-Krunal’s clinical assault at Kotla

Debayan Sinha

ByDebayan Sinha,SportsCafe Editor

28

Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Delhi Capitals by six wickets to climb to the top of the table. Delhi’s batting faltered early, thanks to Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s three-fer, but Tristan Stubbs’ quick cameo helped them reach 162/8 while Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya’s 119-run stand secured a win for RCB.

‌A packed Arun Jaitley Stadium eagerly awaited the crucial clash between Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The visitors’ skipper, Rajat Patidar, won the toss and chose to bowl first. The decision didn’t pay off immediately as Abhishek Porel took full advantage of the batting-friendly Kotla pitch, pushing the score to 32/0 in just three overs. However, RCB’s pacers regained momentum when Josh Hazlewood dismissed Porel in the fourth over, followed by Yash Dayal removing Karun Nair in the fifth. The pitch began to slow down, making it difficult for KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis to find boundaries. The breakthrough came in the 10th over when Krunal Pandya scalped Faf, leaving DC at 72/3 at the halfway stage. Axar Patel failed to make an impact, scoring 15 off 13 before departing. Delhi’s innings then faced a mini-collapse as Rahul and Ashutosh Sharma fell in quick succession. With Tristan Stubbs and Vipraj Nigam at the crease, Delhi was 120/6 after 17 overs. However, Stubbs played a vital late cameo, smashing 34 off 18 balls, helping Delhi Capitals reach a respectable total of 162/8 in their 20 overs.

 

RCB’s chase got off to a rough start as Axar Patel dismissed debutant Jacob Bethell and Devdutt Padikkal early, followed by Rajat Patidar’s unfortunate run-out in the fourth over. At the end of the powerplay, RCB were struggling at 47/3, but Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya gradually steadied the innings, pushing the score to 64/3 after 10 overs. The pair then accelerated, building an 80-run partnership to reach 105/3 in 14 overs, setting the stage for a thrilling finish with 56 runs needed off 34 balls. Krunal Pandya shone with a quick 67 off 44, while Kohli contributed a steady half-century, but Kohli’s wicket in the 18th over ended their 119-run stand. Tim David then finished the game with a quick 19 off five balls, securing the win for Bengaluru and putting them at the top of the points table.

 Maybe

Lost it

Stolen loss

Litreally

Superb

The worst 

Quota system?

LOL

Peaked

Perfect

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