Gujarat Titans toil to finally overcome Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s under-par total
Royal Challengers Bengaluru – 155 (Arshad Khan 22/3, Jason Holder 29/2, Rashid Khan 19/2) lost to Gujarat Titans – 158/6 (15.5) (Shubman Gill 43 off 18 balls, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 28/3) by 4 wickets
Man of the Match: Jason Holder
The IPL match between Gujarat Titans (GT) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) was a contest between Gujarat’s bowling prowess and RCB’s batting might. Once GT won the toss and elected to field first, RCB started aggressively but played a few shots too many. In an attempt to maximise scoring, they lost wickets at regular intervals and ended up with a score that was well below par. The GT top order did enough for their frail middle order to stagger and stumble on their way to the target of 155 with 25 balls to spare, but concerns related to their batting order remain.
RCB openers put on a base for a decent total
There are some days when a player can reach the ground really fired up. On this day, Virat Kohli seemed to be in that mood. While batting or fielding, he was animated, ready to go. Even more than his usual high intensity. He came after Rabada in his first over and took him to the cleaners. The over cost 21 runs with five consecutive boundaries. Kohli showed his full repertoire of shots through the offside, including a majestic cover drive that took one’s breath away. Next over, he also stepped out to Siraj and dispatched the ball over the long on boundary for an incredible six.
The GT bowlers Siraj and Rabada, along with their RCB counterparts Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood, have been among the best new-ball bowlers this IPL. So good that GT have often made them bowl three overs on the trot in the powerplay. Siraj dismissed Bethell for 5 as the batsman chipped a legside ball straight to mid-wicket. Siraj had bowled brilliantly throughout the match and got his only wicket of the match with probably his worst delivery. That’s T20 for you.
Rabada had allowed Kohli to free his arms in his first over and made the necessary corrections and immediately struck. A bouncer straight on Kohli’s body, cramping him for room, and Kohli was hurried on to his pull and top-edged to midwicket, where Rashid Khan held on to a difficult chance over his shoulder. Kohli was dismissed for 28 off 13 balls, and RCB were 39/2 in 4 overs.
Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal came in and kept the scoreboard moving. Padikkal, in particular, was aggressive and played some elegant shots, including a handsome six over midwicket off Siraj.
RCB wickets start tumbling
Patidar was not so convincing as a Rabada delivery reared up at pace to hit his bat and fly towards third man for a boundary. After a clean hit over midwicket for a six off Arshad Khan, he was caught off a top-edge to the same bowler near deep square leg, as Jason Holder took a spectacular running catch, all the while managing to avoid a collision with Rabada, who was running in from the opposite direction. The RCB dugout, led by Kohli, protested that Holder had grounded the ball during the catch, but the umpires stood their ground.
Holder then bowled the next over and dismissed Jitesh Sharma, caught behind by the keeper. A healthy score of 71/2 in the 7th over suddenly became 80/4 in 8.1 overs.
Tim David swung for the hills, but a googly from Rashid Khan caught the inside half of the bat and the catch was taken by Holder at midwicket. Krunal Pandya chipped a leg-side delivery from Arshad Khan straight to Holder, who safely pouched his third catch of the match.
Padikkal and Shepherd tried to stabilise the innings, as Padikkal punched a Rabada length ball for a boundary towards extra cover and then hooked the same bowler for a superb six over fine leg. Shepherd was having difficulty reading Rashid’s googly, but as the bowler started searching for wickets and bowled full, he was hammered for two massive sixers, one straight down the ground and one over deep midwicket. Just when the partnership was starting to take off, Rashid had Padikkal dragging the ball, first on his pads and then ricocheting onto his stumps. RCB were 126/7 with 6 overs remaining.
The situation was dire, and RCB had to opt to bring Venkatesh Iyer as the impact substitute, thus sacrificing a bowler in the second innings. If Shepherd was expected to bat a bit responsibly now, he did the exact opposite. The very next delivery, a length ball by Holder was lofted with precision straight down the throat of deep midwicket, and Shepherd was dismissed for 17 off 15 balls. Venkatesh Iyer and Bhuvneshwar pottered on, trying to play the whole innings. At 155/8, with 1 over remaining, a big over might have actually given RCB something to bowl at.
Venkatesh Iyer swung his first shot in anger straight towards deep midwicket, where Sudharsan took a splendid forward diving catch. Next ball, Hazlewood, was involved in a farcical run out where he could have been out at either end, and the third umpire was involved in deciding which end he was eventually dismissed. The score of 155 looked quite inadequate on a good batting track.
GT top order led by Shubman Gill off to a flyer
The GT openers have been consistent throughout this IPL, but have often been criticised for playing within themselves. On this occasion, looking to boost their NRR, Gill threw caution to the wind. An inside edge to a Bhuvneshwar inswinger for a boundary was followed by the most majestic of lofted drive for a six. Next, Hazlewood was taken for 24 of the most gorgeous, breathtaking runs one could see within the duration of an over. Bhuvneshwar was bowling on a different level, though. Repeatedly beating the edges of the bat, he dismissed Sudharsan, caught behind by the keeper.
All this while, Kohli was pumped up and animated as could be. He seemed to be in the midst of everything. Whether giving the batsmen an earful, or being at the centre of a run out chance, where he missed a direct throw in order to dismiss Gill and also to a wild overthrow resulting in 4 extra runs. His disposition did not improve as Jitesh dropped a relatively simple catch of Buttler, and GT were 55/1 in 4 overs. Gill finally smashed one straight to him off a Bhuvneshwar Kumar length ball, and Kohli, after completing the catch, flung the ball to the ground in all fury. Gill was dismissed for 43 off 18 balls.
The required rate was around six and a half and Buttler decided to finish the match at the earliest. In a space of 4 balls from Hazlewood and Suyash Sharma, he smashed 3 sixers and a boundary, all of them being crisp, clean hits down the ground. The equation read 70 runs required in 78 balls, with 8 wickets remaining.
RCB bowlers turn on the screw
Just when things were looking too easy, Bhuvneshwar Kumar saw Buttler coming towards the offside to play the ball on the leg, and got his leg stump cartwheeling with a pinpoint accurate yorker. Buttler was dismissed at 39 off 19 deliveries and Bhuvneshwar Kumar completed his 4th consecutive over with figures of 28/3.
Seven wickets remained, but trouble were brewing under the surface. The GT middle order has been a worry since the 2026 IPL season began. After Buttler, it appeared that some of the batsmen were batting a couple of positions too high for them. But RCB had already used up their impact sub during batting and were a bowler short. Hazlewood was having an off day and Suyash Sharma was getting some tap from the batsmen.
Strangely, Krunal did not bowl a single over on this day. Shepherd, who hasn’t bowled much recently, was given a full spell. Amazingly, he got both Shahrukh Khan and Washington Sundar in his first over. Rahul Tewatia was sent as the impact substitute for GT. 5 wickets remained with 45 required in 57 deliveries.
The required rate was below 5, but Tewatia started hoicking and reverse sweeping with impunity. Just to make things interesting, Holder holed out in the deep to a Suyash googly. With 15 runs still required, Tewatia seemed to have settled down and batted sensibly along with Rashid Khan. The target was far too low, and the only possible way to win this match was by taking all 10 wickets. RCB, with a bowler short, just did not have enough firepower on this day to defend such a small total on this pitch. GT finally won by 4 wickets and with 25 balls remaining.
RCB are still well placed on the table and their batting has been one of the best all-around batting teams in this tournament. Shepherd bowling his full quota should be considered a bright spot. They have played an aggressive brand of cricket throughout this tournament, but maybe the middle order should recalibrate their approach with the fall of wickets. Their spin department, which has proved expensive, also needs to be looked into.
GT, with this win, are in touching distance of getting into the top four, especially in case any of them slips up at a later stage of the tournament. However, their middle-order weakness remains, and they should keep in mind that, in this tournament of high scores, their bowling may not be able to rescue them every time.