RCB demolish PBKS in Qualifier 1 to seal final berth after 9 years

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru stormed into the IPL final after nine long years as they secured a clinical 8-wicket win against Punjab Kings, derailing them in stunning fashion.

RCB’s much-talked about bowling unit came together to dish out an absolute masterclass, bowling out the home side for just 101 in 14.1 overs.

With the bat, despite a challenge from Kyle Jamieson, RCB rode on a stunning knock from Phil Salt, who smacked a 27-ball 56 that enabled them to chase the target in just 10 overs.

Earlier, Rajat Patidar was back to lead the side and he won an important coin flip. RCB had one change to the team and that was the return of Josh Hazlewood in place of Nuwan Thushara. Making an early impact, RCB secured the all-important breakthrough as Yash Dayal sent Priyansh Arya (7) packing. Bhuvneshwar Kumar struck a second as he got the better of Prabhsimran Singh (18) with a regulation catch from Jitesh Sharma.

The return of Hazlewood was scary enough for the Kings and his very first over entrenched the fear deeper in the hearts of his counterparts. Shreyas Iyer (2) wanted to hoick a length ball outside off and all he could manage was to get a thick outside edge and Jitesh did the rest behind the stumps.

Punjab were already in deep trouble and Hoff simply added salt to their wounds as he bagged another crucial scalp, this time the big one of his national teammate, Josh Inglis (4). Hazlewood’s shorter delivery saw Inglish trying to pull him, only to produce a top edge. Bhuvneshwar Kumar slotted comfortably under the ball at deep fine leg.

The woes kept on accentuating for the Kings as Dayal added another one to his already glistening tally. Dayal pounded a good length ball which was too quick for Nehal Wadhera (8) to free his arms. A half-hearted drive from Wadhera saw the ball angling back in and crashing onto his furniture to present a sticky situation that read 50/5.

PBKS’s relentless quest of big shots added to the wounds of the side as the next one to go down was Shashank Singh (3). It was the introduction of Suyash Sharma that left Shashank rattled. A flatter googly on the stumps saw the ball skidding off the surface and Singh had no response to it whatsoever as his timbre was pegged back.

Suyash doubled his tally with another wicket in his very first over as he saw the back of Musheer Khan without the latter troubling the scorers at all. Marcus Stoinis was the only beacon of resilience for Punjab as he managed to add 26 during his stay in the center, propelling PBKS to 78. However, Suyash Sharma’s floater outside off proved to be costly enough for Stoinis as RCB could smell capitulation.

Azmatullah Omarzai did add some salve to the wounds of PBKS, dragging them across the three-figure mark but Romario Shepherd and Josh Hazlewood cleaned up the resistance without any trouble at all. PBKS was bundled out for 101. Hoff and Suyash claimed six wickets between them while they had support from Yash Dayal who registered a brace.

Phil Salt and Virat Kohli stormed out to a feisty start and RCB were already cruising despite the tricky surface on offer. The opening duo added 30 runs before Kyle Jamieson could get the better of Kohli (12). The following couple of overs had RCB at siege from all directions with the ball moving around vehemently and patience being the need of the hour.

However, as time went by, Salt would soon recapture the reins of the game and would start blasting in no time at all. Once Salt opened up the Pandora’s Box for PBKS, it was only a matter of moments before RCB would secure their final ticket. Salt registered his fastest half-century in IPL with a single against Harpreet Brar while an incoming Rajat Patidar sealed the game with a stormy 15 off just eight balls, finishing the game in style.

Suyash Sharma won the Player of the Match award for his incredible spell while RCB registered the biggest victory in IPL play-offs in terms of ball remaining as they won the game with ten overs to spare.