Kohli, Devdutt power Royal Challengers Bengaluru to five-wicket win over Gujarat Titans

Royal Challengers Bengaluru chased down 206 to defeat Gujarat Titans by five wickets, powered by Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal. Sai Sudharsan’s century helped Gujarat post 205, but RCB held their nerve to seal a crucial IPL victory

Bengaluru: Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli played quintessential T20 knocks of 55 and 81 respectively, trumping Sai Sudharsan’s century to power Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a five-wicket win over Gujarat Titans in an IPL match here on Friday.

Once Devdutt and Kohli added 115 runs for the second wicket in no time, RCB’s chase of 206 was right on track, which they eventually completed in 18.5 overs and moved to the second spot in the points table (10 points).

---

The champion batter and his understudy tore apart GT bowlers after the early dismissal of Jacob Bethell in a mesmerising display of aggressive batting, in total contrast to the measured way their rivals went about gathering runs in the first innings.

Kohli, who was dropped on zero by Washington Sundar off Mohammad Siraj, measured the bounce of the pitch to perfection, tackling Prasidh Krishna and Kagiso Rabada with ease.

Prasidh was hit for two fours, Rabada was flicked away for a six and Rashid Khan, his eternal nemesis, was pulled over mid-wicket for a six as Kohli reigned at Chinnaswamy, reaching his fifty in 30 balls.

At the other end, Devdutt was equally impressive, hitting Karnataka statemate Prasidh for a couple of sixes and Rashid too was dispatched for a maximum, reaching his fifty in 10 balls fewer than his senior.

It took a fine delivery from Rashid to bowl Devdutt, and Kohli, who till then read the bounce well, dragged a Jason Holder delivery on to his stumps.

It pushed RCB into a wobbly period as they lost skipper Rajat Patidar and Jitesh Sharma as well, slipping to 173 for five.

But Krunal Pandya (23, 12b) and Tim David (10) carried them past the target from that point, as RCB signed off from their home venue with a victory. This was their fourth win at Chinnaswamy from five matches this season.

Earlier, Sudharsan produced a fine 100 that was different from typical T20 batting, but still strong enough to carry Gujarat to a competitive 205 for three.

In fact, the first 12.4 overs of the Titans’ innings showed that runs can be made in this format without aggressive hitting.

Sudharsan’s 58-ball knock, his third hundred in the IPL, was the cornerstone in GT’s effort with the bat.

The left-hander dominated the 128-run partnership with his opening partner and captain Shubman Gill (32, 24b). Sudharsan faced 29 balls in the Power Play compared to Gill’s seven.

The 24-year-old Tamil Nadu batter, who also became the fastest to score 2000 IPL runs during his innings, made 46 runs in the Power Play, and then reached his fifty off 33 balls in style, hitting Romario Shepherd for a six.

The next fifty came quicker, in 24 balls, during a phase where he handled RCB’s spin duo Krunal and Suyash Sharma well.

Krunal tried his bouncer to keep Sudharsan quiet, but the batter responded with an upper cut over backward point for a six.

He followed that with a boundary and a swept six off the same bowler as Patidar looked for different options.

Gill’s dismissal did not change the course of the match much, as Sudharsan, who was dropped on 91 by Suyash off his own bowling, continued to score steadily.

Sudharsan reached his hundred with a single off Suyash but could not build on it further, giving a return catch to Josh Hazlewood.

He fell at an individual score of 100, the same total they made against Mumbai Indians in a 99-run defeat a few days back.

But his departure helped RCB pull things back in the death overs.

In the overs between 17 and 20, when GT were 174 for two, the Titans managed only 31 runs, with some contribution coming from Holder’s cameo (23 not out, 10b).Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli played quintessential T20 knocks of 55 and 81 respectively, trumping Sai Sudharsan’s century to power Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a five-wicket win over Gujarat Titans in an IPL match here on Friday.

Once Devdutt and Kohli added 115 runs for the second wicket in no time, RCB’s chase of 206 was right on track, which they eventually completed in 18.5 overs and moved to the second spot in the points table (10 points).

The champion batter and his understudy tore apart GT bowlers after the early dismissal of Jacob Bethell in a mesmerising display of aggressive batting, in total contrast to the measured way their rivals went about gathering runs in the first innings.

Kohli, who was dropped on zero by Washington Sundar off Mohammad Siraj, measured the bounce of the pitch to perfection, tackling Prasidh Krishna and Kagiso Rabada with ease.

Prasidh was hit for two fours, Rabada was flicked away for a six and Rashid Khan, his eternal nemesis, was pulled over mid-wicket for a six as Kohli reigned at Chinnaswamy, reaching his fifty in 30 balls.

At the other end, Devdutt was equally impressive, hitting Karnataka statemate Prasidh for a couple of sixes and Rashid too was dispatched for a maximum, reaching his fifty in 10 balls fewer than his senior.

It took a fine delivery from Rashid to bowl Devdutt, and Kohli, who till then read the bounce well, dragged a Jason Holder delivery on to his stumps.

It pushed RCB into a wobbly period as they lost skipper Rajat Patidar and Jitesh Sharma as well, slipping to 173 for five.

But Krunal Pandya (23, 12b) and Tim David (10) carried them past the target from that point, as RCB signed off from their home venue with a victory. This was their fourth win at Chinnaswamy from five matches this season.

Earlier, Sudharsan produced a fine 100 that was different from typical T20 batting, but still strong enough to carry Gujarat to a competitive 205 for three.

In fact, the first 12.4 overs of the Titans’ innings showed that runs can be made in this format without aggressive hitting.

Sudharsan’s 58-ball knock, his third hundred in the IPL, was the cornerstone in GT’s effort with the bat.

The left-hander dominated the 128-run partnership with his opening partner and captain Shubman Gill (32, 24b). Sudharsan faced 29 balls in the Power Play compared to Gill’s seven.

The 24-year-old Tamil Nadu batter, who also became the fastest to score 2000 IPL runs during his innings, made 46 runs in the Power Play, and then reached his fifty off 33 balls in style, hitting Romario Shepherd for a six.

The next fifty came quicker, in 24 balls, during a phase where he handled RCB’s spin duo Krunal and Suyash Sharma well.

Krunal tried his bouncer to keep Sudharsan quiet, but the batter responded with an upper cut over backward point for a six.

He followed that with a boundary and a swept six off the same bowler as Patidar looked for different options.

Gill’s dismissal did not change the course of the match much, as Sudharsan, who was dropped on 91 by Suyash off his own bowling, continued to score steadily.

Sudharsan reached his hundred with a single off Suyash but could not build on it further, giving a return catch to Josh Hazlewood.

He fell at an individual score of 100, the same total they made against Mumbai Indians in a 99-run defeat a few days back.

But his departure helped RCB pull things back in the death overs.

In the overs between 17 and 20, when GT were 174 for two, the Titans managed only 31 runs, with some contribution coming from Holder’s cameo (23 not out, 10b).