Two teams that were assured of the playoff spot, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capital, went head-to-head for one last time in the league of IPL 2021 at the Dubai International Stadium. This season has been a witness to many firsts. For the first time, two matches kicked off at the same time on the last matchday before the knockout phase.

Captain Kohli won the toss and decided to bowl first. Our team remained unchanged for this match as well. Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw gave the table toppers a solid start. Our bowlers continued the trend of coming back stronger in the second half when we bowled. The man with the purple arm, Harshal Patel, provided the first breakthrough in getting the wicket of well-set Dhawan. With some pressure laid onto the opposition batsmen, wickets kept on coming in regular intervals. Despite a cameo from Shimron Hetmyer, RCB managed to pull back and not let Delhi put up a huge target. Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, and Dan Christian were among the wickets.

The Royal Challengers had a shocker of a start, losing both openers, Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli, in quick succession. It was time to steady the ship. KS Bharat and AB de Villiers were the two new batsmen on either side of the pitch. The wicketkeeper-duo put on a perfect balancing act. The 37-year-old tried to go downtown, but couldn't get the right elevation and this brought Glenn Maxwell to the crease. From there on it was Bharat and Maxi show, an unbeaten 111-run partnership was forged for the third wicket.

In such a nail-biting encounter, Bharat played a spectacular innings, bringing up his maiden IPL half-century in a crunch situation. On the other hand, the Aussie superstar yet again proved why he's a prized possession in white-ball cricket, scoring his fourth fifty in the last five matches for the men in Red and Gold in IPL 2021 UAE-leg. When it came down to the wire, one ball and five runs were needed. It promised to be a thriller to remember. It was that man, Kona Srikar Bharat, batting on 72, who faced the last final delivery, where he executed a proper connection from the willow and finished the match in style. "The dream! Victory for RCB. What a knock from Bharat!" Hearing Ian Bishop's reaction did absolute justice to this incredible performance. A pure cult classic. 

Bharat's heroics will surely remind the whole of Bengaluru of that Champions League night at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, when yet another wicketkeeper-batsman, Arun Karthik, won the game for RCB by hitting one out of the park when 6 was required off the last ball.

In the end, RCB completed an emphatic victory over DC by 7 wickets to finish the league stage and head into the playoffs with positive energy. This also makes the Royal Challengers only the fourth team, after Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, and Kolkata Knight Riders, to record 100 wins in the IPL.

Up next, RCB will face KKR in the eliminator of IPL 2021 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday, October 11.