I love tough situations – Krunal Pandya on his batting masterclass against MI

11 May, 2026

Editor

11 May, 2026 By Editor

As the Royal Challengers Bengaluru clinched the pole position in the points table with a thrilling win against Mumbai Indians in Raipur, Krunal Pandya hogged the limelight with a sensational knock. Pandya led the charge for RCB with a sparkling 73 off just 46 balls, hammering four fours and five sixes.

Talking at the post-match presentation, he opened up on his fitness after a marathon knock that got RCB into a comfortable position. He also opened up on the batting promotion he received, highlighting his willingness to take the challenge head-on.

Shedding light on his fitness after the game, Pandya said, “ I was cramping a lot. It started from my calf, went to glutes, went to my back, everywhere. I was cramping. I mean, not often I bat that long, right? (smiles) So it was something new for me. But yeah, I'm pretty happy. At the end of the day, what matters is those two points.”

Reflecting on the challenge after being promoted, Pandya added, “Yeah, obviously I love tough situations. As I've always prepared and I always look forward to tough situations whenever things are tough and today's situation was very ideal for me where things were against me and that gets me going. Obviously, I wanted to finish the game at the end of last two overs, but I was not able to do it. Glad that the shot that Bhuvi played was shot of the match in fact. “

Revealing the conversation that he had with Jacob Bethell at the halfway mark, Pandya added, “I mean, yes, it was a wicket where you had to play cricketing shots. This was not where you can line up a bowler and hit. You had to get into a good position. There were values for playing good shots because wicket was slightly up and down. And this was that wicket where you had to apply and grind and play the knock.”

He concluded with a quick word about hydrating himself, stating, “It's fine. Just a lot of cramps again, now onwards, I guess I'll take care of a lot of fluids and food and hopefully it will be better in the next game.”