Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) posted a mammoth score of 213/ 5 in their 20 overs against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Chinnaswamy in Bengaluru on Saturday.
CSK won the toss and opted to bowl first. As has been the trend with CSK, nothing fell to plan for the side as the bowlers were pummelled to all parts of the ground.
The innings started with Virat Kohli (62 runs in 33 balls) and Jacob Bethell (55 runs off 33 balls) both scoring fifties and adding 97 for the first wicket. The partnership was broken by Matheesha Pathiraba (3 wickets for 36) runs who looked the best of the CSK bowlers on the night.
Jacob Bethell Scored His Maiden IPL Fifty
He came back to dismiss Kohli as well as RCB were reduced to 21 for 2 in the 12th over, Devudutt Padikkal (17 runs off 15 balls) and RCB skipper Rajat Patidar (11 runs off 15 balls) could not keep up with the scoring rate in the middle overs as CSk bowlers controlled overs 12 to 17.
However, it was Romario Shepherd's cameo of 53* off 14 balls that brought RCB back into the game. He hit one of the quickest fifties ever in the IPL to take Bengaluru well past 200 after the end of their 20 overs. He hit four fours and six sixes and scored his runs at a strike rate of nearly 350.
The hard work of the CSK bowlers in the middle-overs was all undone by Khaleel Ahmed (65 runs in 3 overs). He was taken for 33 runs in the 19th over by Shepherd who took him to the cleaners. Then again, Pathirana, who had bowled two good overs was taken for 21 runs in the 10th over as RCB posted 213 after the end of their 20 overs.
Shepherd Took Khaleel For 33 Runs In 19th Over
Bengaluru scored at a fair clip at every phase of the game. They scored 71 runs in the first six overs, 73 runs in the middle-overs and 69 runs at the death. They lost two wickets in the middle overs and three at the death but they will be very happy with the final score.
CSK now need to score 214 runs to win. Notably, they are already out of the tournament with 8 losses from their first 10 games.
Also Read: IPL 2025: ‘We got ₹20 lakhs!’- Virat Kohli fondly recalls his IPL journey, RCB vs CSK epic rivalry
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