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Vaibhav Arora dropped an absolute sitter as Devdutt Padikkal gets a lifeline after having mistimed a pull shot off Cameron Green’s bowling.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru started off with a fine season and continued with their good form. With Virat Kohli still showing good form this season, the Bengaluru side were off to a flyer. They started off with a stunning partnership.
RCB were off to a good start after the Kolkata Knight Riders were restricted to a total less than 200 runs. Though it seemed very much possible at one stage, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salam, and Josh Hazlewood restricted Rinku Singh and Angkrish Raghuvanshi from getting it past the 200-run total.
Devdutt Padikkal dropped by Vaibhav Arora
Kolkata bowlers could not control the situation a lot after their pacers got hit for many runs. However, Kartik Tyagi controlled the innings with a slow run rate as compared to his teammates and dismissed Jacob Bethell in his first over.
However, when Cameron Green was brought into the attack, he produced a chance of a wicket in the first over. Devdutt Padikkal looked to pull one, and it went straight into the hands of Vaibhav Arora in the square leg region. The pacer fumbled, and the dropped chance handed the RCB batter a lifeline.
Padikkal has been in some promising form in this season and has scored crucial runs for them throughout the season. He has produced runs at crucial junctures of the game and has contributed in several significant chases for the Challengers.
Devdutt Padikkal added 92 runs for the second wicket alongside Virat Kohli
The left-handed batter went on to add 92 runs in a second-wicket partnership alongside the legendary Indian batter Virat Kohli. Virat Kohli and Jacob Bethell’s opening stand was broken after a promising start of 37 runs for the first wicket.
With Devdutt Padikkal coming out in the powerplay, he was off to a flying start alongside the veteran batter. Kohli scored another half-century for the Challengers during a chase and backed the run chase for his side in Raipur.
Padikkal added a crucial 37 runs in the massive partnership and tackled the spinners well, almost seeing through the three overs of Sunil Narine. Narine was also hit for boundaries by the left-hander after the off-spinner was unleashed in the power play.
Kartik Tyagi returned with a second spell to dismiss Padikkal
The only wicket-taker in the game, Kartik Tyagi, returned to the match with a second spell today. He dismissed Jacob Bethell earlier with a quick bouncer that almost took the head off of the English batter.
He dismissed Devdutt Padikkal with a slower ball off the very first ball of his returning spell. He landed it outside the off-stump, and the batter, looking to slash it over the off-side, was caught over the head by Ajinkya Rahane after he failed to get a proper elevation.
This remained the fifth half-century partnership for RCB between Padikkal and Kohli, while they also shared two massive century stands in this season of IPL 2026.
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