Rishabh Pant reserved his finest performance for the end, scoring an impressive unbeaten 118 off 61 balls (including 11 fours and 8 sixes). However, his innings was eclipsed by the remarkable display from Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s acting captain, Jitesh Sharma, who achieved an extraordinary 85* off just 33 deliveries (featuring 8 fours and 6 sixes). This performance enabled his team to secure a place in Qualifier 1 for the first time since 2016, culminating in a six-wicket victory. Pant’s partnership of 152 runs for the second wicket with Mitchell Marsh laid the groundwork for LSG’s formidable total of 227 for 3. RCB also enjoyed a century partnership, as Jitesh was ably assisted by Mayank Agarawal in an unbroken 107-run partnership for the fifth wicket, which ultimately clinched the match with 1.2 overs remaining. Additionally, Virat Kohli contributed significantly with 54 runs off 30 balls, helping RCB maintain momentum during the initial phase of the chase before Jitesh’s standout performance.
Lucknow Super Giants set up a huge total
Nuwan Thushara, who took the place of Lungi Ngidi, delivered a remarkable opening over where he successfully moved the ball away, beat the bat, conceded two fours, and also caused RCB to lose a review. Matthew Breetzke, making his debut in the IPL, dispatched Krunal Pandya for a six in the second over, accumulating 21 runs from the first two overs. Subsequently, Breetzke was hit on the helmet by a short delivery from Thushara, before a yorker from the Sri Lankan bowler knocked the stumps down. Skipper Pant entered at No.3 and played freely, starting with a six and two fours off Yash Dayal. Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled a subdued over while Thushara also bowled a neat over, despite Marsh edging a free-hit for a four, with a change of pace restricting the batters.
The breakthrough occurred in the seventh over when Pant struck a six and a four off Bhuvneshwar, while Marsh, who had momentarily slowed down, regained his rhythm with a six off Romario Shepherd. Suyash Sharma bowled a commendable first over but was later hit for a six and two fours by Pant, who reached a fifty off 29 balls, as LSG advanced to 100 at the midway point of their innings. Dayal returned to bowl but was costly in his second over as well, conceding 14 runs, with Marsh and Pant securing crucial boundaries. A four and a six off Shepherd enabled Marsh to surpass 600 runs for the season and also marked the century partnership. The Australian then achieved his seventh fifty-plus score of the season, off 31 balls, with a six off Suyash, and the over concluded with Pant striking a boundary and a one-handed six. The assault continued as Shepherd was then hammered for two sixes by Pant, as the second wicket pair established an excellent foundation heading into the final overs.
The destruction persisted as Marsh struck two sixes off Bhuvneshwar before RCB finally experienced a moment of relief when the Australian edged behind in the same over, bringing an end to the significant partnership. Thushara, on the other hand, concluded with impressive figures of 1 for 26, allowing only seven runs in his last over. Nevertheless, Pant made sure that RCB was not granted any respite as he surged to a hundred off 54 balls, including two fours off Bhuvneshwar, and celebrated with a cartwheel. In the 19th over, Dayal was hit for a four and a six by Pant, and the wicketkeeper-batter also launched a six off Shepherd in the final over.
Jitesh's magical inning help RCB chase the target
The RCB openers commenced their innings positively, consistently hitting boundaries. In the initial three overs, they scored eight runs, with five of those coming in the second over bowled by William O’Rourke, four of which were struck by Kohli. The partnership reached fifty in the fourth over as Salt hit two fours off Shahbaz Ahmed. Avesh Khan allowed two fours in his first over before Akash Singh took the wicket of Salt, who was dismissed while attempting to play a slow, short delivery outside off. Kohli concluded the over with a boundary, but both he and Rajat Patidar, the Impact substitute who entered at No.3, were under pressure to maintain RCB’s competitiveness in the match.
Patidar’s initial four was scored off an outside edge, followed by a flick of an O’Rourke delivery that resulted in RCB’s first six of the innings. Kohli also managed to hit a four off O’Rourke, but the bowler achieved success as Patidar was caught at point, departing for 14 runs. Liam Livingstone, who replaced Tim David, was dismissed for a first-ball duck after being trapped in front during the same over. Shahbaz maintained a tight over in the ninth, conceding only seven runs despite Kohli hitting a four off him. The star batter reached his fifty, marking his third consecutive score of over 600 in a season, with a four off Akash. In that same over, Mayank Agarwal added three boundaries, bringing RCB’s total to 115 for 3 at the conclusion of the 10th over.
However, LSG retaliated as Kohli chipped an Avesh delivery to long-off. Jitesh hit a six and a four in a 17-run over off O’Rourke and was fortunate not to be run out following a mix-up with Mayank. A further 21-run over off Shahbaz alleviated the pressure on RCB, reducing the target to 51 runs off 30 balls.
Jitesh persisted in scoring boundaries, achieving two of them in a 12-run over from Avesh, which lowered the required run rate to below 10. Fortune smiled upon Jitesh as well – he believed he was dismissed on 49 while attempting a reverse-sweep against Digvesh Rathi, but the third umpire deemed it a back-foot no-ball. The ensuing free-hit was dispatched for a six, propelling him to a fifty off just 22 balls. The over was further dramatic as the bowler attempted to run Jitesh out for straying too far at the non-striker’s end, but Pant retracted the appeal. At the commencement of the 18th over, the equation stood at 28 runs needed from 18 balls, which was reduced to 7 runs from 12 balls, thanks to Jitesh’s two fours and two sixes off O’Rourke, who concluded with bowling figures of 2 for 74. Jitesh fittingly sealed the match by hitting a six off Ayush Badoni, celebrating exuberantly as RCB achieved their highest successful chase.
SCORECARD: Lucknow Super Giants 227/3 in 20 overs (Rishabh Pant 118*, Mitchell Marsh 67; Nuwan Thushara 1-26) lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru 230/4 in 18.4 overs (Jitesh Sharma 85*, Virat Kohli 54; William O’Rourke 2-74) by 6 wickets.
