RCB batter Tim David can take away any game single-handedly; despite this, Aiden Markram made a massive blunder as he overran an easy rebound catch from LSG teammate Abdul Samad, who had done the hardwork.
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru were marching towards a dominant victory over the Lucknow Super Giants anyway and were in a commanding position when they thrashed the LSG bowlers while chasing a low score.
The strong position was set by the RCB bowlers, who returned with some stunning figures. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Krunal Pandya and Josh Hazlewood, the three experienced bowlers, picked 6 wickets altogether, while Rasikh Salam made the LSG batters bite the dust with a four-fer.
Aiden Markram’s blunder hands Tim David a lifeline
Tim David and Romario Shepherd were on the crease, with RCB needing just 25 runs off 7 overs. Jitesh Sharma and skipper Rajat Patidar were dismissed in the same over of Prince Yadav, but it was too late for the LSG team to bounce back.
Tim David struck Digvesh Rathi for a six in the fourth ball of his final over, and the bowler, who had already been uneconomical in the game, returned with a ball slightly drifting off the surface. The ball was skied by Tim David and caught sharply at the edge of the mid-wicket boundary by Abdul Samad.
Having done all the hardwork Samad caught it near the fence and was unable to resist his momentum as he kept the ball in play by passing it to Markram, who came as his backup. However, Markram seemed unmindful as he missed the simplest of rebounds. Rathi was denied his first wicket of the night, and Tim David continued his onslaught with a boundary of the next ball.
Virat Kohli to Jitesh Sharma, RCB batters hand their side a massive surge in run-rate
None of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru batters looked in any kind of form to let the LSG bowlers get away with it. After Phil Salt’s dismissal, Virat Kohli led the onslaught as he scored 40 runs at a strike rate of 200 in the powerplay, before being dismissed off Avesh Khan‘s bowling.
However, the onslaught further increased with Jitesh Sharma and Rajat Patidar; the two new batters on the crease took charge against the likes of Digvesh Rathi and Mohammad Shami. Following the quick scoring overs, Tim David and Romario Shepherd handed RCB the finishing touch.
They chased the score of 148 runs within the 16th over of the game, as the match ended with 29 balls remaining in the innings. The match was won by the Royal Challengers, which helped them to increase their run-rate.
RCB back at the top of the table in IPL 2026
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru are back on the same page as the Rajasthan Royals, who have also managed to win 4 out of their 5 matches. They were formerly at the top of the points table with 8 points, and now RCB have also reached the same point.
RCB have won four matches and have taken a lead in the net run rate over the Royals. They now have the highest run rate in the competition with +1.503. Only the Punjab Kings stand a chance to top the points table if they win their next match tomorrow.
