Persistent evening showers delayed the start, reducing the contest to a 14-overs-a-side affair, which commenced at 9:45 PM
Tim David, Punjab bowlers celebrate the fall of a wicket (Pic: iplt20/BCCI)
In a rain-affected thriller at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, Punjab Kings held their nerve to register a five-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bengaluru, climbing to second in the IPL 2025 points table. Despite a spirited fightback from RCB, spearheaded by Tim David and Josh Hazlewood, the hosts remained winless at home this season.
Persistent evening showers delayed the start, reducing the contest to a 14-overs-a-side affair, which commenced at 9:45 PM. Punjab skipper Shreyas Iyer elected to field first, a tactical decision that quickly paid off as his bowlers exploited the conditions superbly.
RCB’s powerplay woes were glaring, with the truncated four-over phase yielding just 26 runs for the loss of three key wickets. Phil Salt opened the innings with a crisp boundary but was dismissed in the very first over, attempting a reckless slog off Arshdeep Singh (2/23), with Josh Inglis completing a sharp catch behind the stumps.
Virat Kohli’s stay at the crease was brief as well. A moment of brilliance from Marco Jansen saw the pacer sprint back 20 metres to complete a stunning diving catch off Arshdeep’s bowling. The collapse continued when Liam Livingstone mistimed a drive off Xavier Bartlett, finding Priyansh Arya stationed at cover.
Yuzvendra Chahal (2/11), returning to familiar territory in Bengaluru, made his presence felt by removing Jitesh Sharma and Patidar, who had looked composed with a couple of elegant shots, including a majestic pick-up six off Bartlett. Patidar’s innings ended on 23, holing out to deep cover, halting what seemed like a stabilizing effort.
Marco Jansen (2/10) inflicted further damage with clever short-pitched bowling, sending back both Krunal Pandya and Impact Player Manoj Bhandage to leave RCB teetering.
In the midst of the collapse, Tim David emerged as the lone warrior. The Australian all-rounder played a resilient unbeaten knock of 50 off just 26 deliveries. His counterattack featured three towering sixes in one over off Harpreet Brar and helped RCB recover from a dire situation. Alongside Hazlewood, David added a crucial 32-run partnership for the final wicket, guiding RCB to 95 for 9, a total that at least gave their bowlers something to defend.
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