Royal Challengers Benagluru registered a dominant 60-run win over Punjab Kings to continue their resurgence in the IPL 2024 on Thursday. A win boosted Bengaluru's chances of making the playoff significantly but Punjab Kings became the second team after Mumbai Indians to suffer an early elimination.
Virat Kohli produced a memorable knock by smashing 92 runs off just 47 balls as Bengaluru posted a 241/7, their third-highest total in IPL, while batting first at Dharamsala's HPCA Stadium. Then spinners Karn Sharma and Swapnil Singh claimed early wickets to bowl out Punjab to an 181 total in 17 overs.
Both teams needed two points to remain in contention for the playoff qualification. Punjab recalled Liam Livingstone in the place of the South African pacer Kagiso Rabada while the speedster Lockie Ferguson replaced Glenn Maxwell for Bengaluru.
After being forced out to bat first, in-form Virat Kohli continued his red-hot form with an aggressive approach from the beginning. Bengaluru lost skipper Faf du Plessis and batting all-rounder Will Jacks early in the powerplay but Kohli kept the runs flowing a stunning batting.
Kohli and Rajat Patidar added 76 runs for the third wicket with the latter recording his fourth fifty of the season in just 21 balls. Kohli also introduced his sixth fifty in the IPL 2024 in 32 balls but missed out on his century by just eight runs. He top-scored with 92 runs off just 47 balls with the help of seven fours and six sixes to display his remarkable big-hitting skills again.
Cameron Green contributed with 46 runs and Dinesh Karthik played a quick cameo as Bengaluru posted a huge total in a must-win game. Harshal Patel took three wickets for 47 and the debutant pacer Vidwath Kaverappa picked two for Punjab Kings.
Chasing a record tough target, Punjab Kings lost opener Prabhsimran Singh in the very first over off Swapnil Singh's delivery. Rilee Rossouw and Jonny Bairstow then quickly added 65 runs for the second wicket to keep Punjab alive in the chase.
Rossouw produced his first fifty of the season in just 21 balls but was dismissed by Karn Sharma after scoring 61 off 27 balls. Punjab lost both settled Rossouw and Bairstow in quick succession to spin and then were never able to make a comeback.
Shashank Singh scored 37 runs off 19 balls to show some fight in the middle over but didn't get much support from his teammates. Mohammed Siraj made a late impact with three wickets to bowl out Punjab Kings to 181 in 17 overs. Virat Kohli bagged the Player of the Match award for his memorable knock.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Playing XI: Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Will Jacks, Rajat Patidar, Mahipal Lomror, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Swapnil Singh, Karn Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Lockie Ferguson.
Punjab Kings Playing XI: Jonny Bairstow (wk), Prabhsimran Singh, Rilee Rossouw, Liam Livingstone, Shashank Singh, Sam Curran (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Harshal Patel, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Vidhwath Kaverappa.
