Titans pip RCB to make it 8 out of 9

There are times when no matter how hard you try, how close you come and how hungry you are, your destination will still elude you. After a couple of ordinary performances, the expectations in the RCB camp were sky high and the team fell just short on the day despite a valiant effort.

Despite a few major points being ticked during RCB’s innings, the total on the cards somehow felt just on par to be defended. Despite coming close to the finish line, Tewatia and Miller stitched together a fine partnership to finish the innings for Gujarat.

Winning the toss, the Challengers opted to bat first and Kohli showed early signs of promise with two convincing boundaries stamping his class in the boldest of liveries.

Virat was perfectly complemented by a marauding Rajat Patidar who shook off his chains and scored the first 50 of his IPL career, leading the charge like a fine rising youngster. He carved a handful of clean hits, giving the much-needed breathing space to Virat Kohli that finally saw the former RCB skipper arresting his decline.,

Maxwell and Mahipal Lomror did manage to pull off a seraphic display at the end to propel RCB to 170, a total that could be fought for.

The Titans were off to a fine start as Shubman Gill and Wriddhimaan Saha continued with their onslaught, making good use of the powerplay. It needed a while for the Challengers to strike the opening blow but it did come eventually through the arms of Wanindu Hasaranga. The Lankan leg-spinner endured a lean patch for a couple of games before putting up a fine display against the Royals first and then backed it up with another solid display against the Titans.

He claimed the big scalp of Wriddhiman Saha to yank open the floodgates of a turnaround for RCB. The remaining bowlers picked up the cue and started bringing out their multi-faceted weapons to spice up the chase. However, Gujarat did manage to keep the chase afloat with a constant flow of boundaries that would keep the asking rate at bay.

Shahbaz Ahmed and Wanindu Hasaranga claimed two wickets each to set up a platform for RCB from where a win seemed plausible. Sadly, for the Challengers, it felt like a lost cause when Tewatia and Miller started with the onslaught. A desperate lunge in the end couldn’t do anything significant either as the Titans walked away with the bragging rights with three balls to spare.

RCB will be up against the Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday, another challenge, that can be crucial to the fate of the team's top-four pursuit.