Virat Kohli reclaimed the Orange Cap as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) defeated Gujarat Titans (GT) by 4 wickets in their Indian Premier League clash at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday.
Faf du Plessis top-scored with a blistering 64 while Dinesh Karthik applied the finishing touches after a batting wobble as the duo ensured Royal Challengers Bengaluru kept alive their playoff hopes with a four-wicket win over Gujarat Titans at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday.
IPL 2024: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Gujarat Titans – HIGHLIGHTS | REPORT
After Yash Dayal, Vyshak Vijaykumar and Mohammed Siraj picked two wickets each in a superb bowling performance to bundle out GT for a below-par 147, du Plessis and Kohli gave RCB a blazing start with a 92-run opening stand coming in just 35 balls.
Du Plessis was more aggressive of the two, hitting 10 fours and three sixes in his 23-ball stay at the crease. After he fell, GT triggered a spectacular RCB batting implosion by picking up six wickets from overs 6-11.
It took Karthik’s 21 not out and Swapnil Singh’s unbeaten 15 to get RCB over the line and help them jump to seventh place in the points table. RCB’s win also meant GT slid to ninth place and Mumbai Indians became the new occupants of tenth position in the points table.
Chasing 148, Kohli began by lofting and whipping Mohit Sharma for a brace of sixes in the opening over. Du Plessis greeted Joshua Little with a pulled four, followed by taking two fours and a six in the 20-run second over.
He then took the attack to debutant spinner Manav Suthar, taking a six and four in the third over, followed by heaving Mohit over mid-wicket to bring up RCB’s fifty in just 19 balls. There was just no stopping du Plessis as he took three more fours off Mohit in an 18-run fourth over.
After a sublime Kohli dispatched Suthar for two sixes, du Plessis completed his fifty in 18 balls and went on to slam Little for two fours and a six in the last over of power-play. But Little had the last laugh by cramping du Plessis for room and a short fine leg took the catch on top-edge, as RCB ended the Power-play at 92/1.
The fast and furious styled scoring from RCB in power-play was brought to a halt afterwards by GT as Will Jacks, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green perished quickly. When Kohli nicked behind off Noor Ahmad to fall for a 27-ball 42,
Stay updated with the latest from IPL 2024, including top contenders for the IPL 2024 Orange Cap and IPL 2024 Purple Cap. Explore the complete IPL 2024 Schedule, IPL 2024 Points Table and players with the Most Sixes, Most Fours and Most Fifties in IPL 2024
Top 5 Batsmen In IPL 2024 Orange Cap Standings
Virat Kohli: Consistency seems to be running in Kohli’s blood and RCB will have a lot to thank him if they can make an emphatic turnaround to the season. The Orang Cap holder’s contributions with the bat will be something that they look to as they look to make one final run to secure a playoff spot.
Ruturaj Gaikwad: Taking charge of the Chennai Super Kings has certainly not weighed down his ability to score with the bat. He has been outstanding through the season and CSK will hope to see him deliver consistently as the season gets to the business end.
Sai Sudarshan: The young left-handed batter has been the shining light in a struggling Gujarat Titans side. Despite the side not firing on all cylinders and being marred by injuries and departures, Sudharshan has continued to deliver with the bat and is the leading scorer for the side this season.
Riyan Parag: Despite a brief period with the bat where he was not scoring runs, he has put that behind him with a valiant knock against SRH despite being in a losing cause. But the Royals camp will be glad that they backed the youngster through the years and it has finally paid off.
KL Rahul: Despite being snubbed for the T20 World Cup, runs have been flowing from the LSG skipper’s bat and he continues to perform for the franchise when it’s needed most and is eyeing up their third qualification to the playoffs in as many years.
Top 5 Bowlers In Purple Cap Standings
Jasprit Bumrah: The MI pacer continues to show his wrath with the ball especially during the death overs as he continues to build the lead for the purple cap race. He finished with figures of 3/18, displaying yet another excellent performance with the ball.
T Natarajan: The World Cup snub has not bothered the left-arm pacer at all as he continues being a consistent wicket-taker in an explosive Sunrisers Hyderabad. The franchise will hope he can continue delivering with wickets as the season goes on to the business end of the tournament.
Mustafizur Rahman: The Bangladeshi player has played his last game for the 2024 season, he now will head back for national duties and prepare himself for the T20 World Cup. However, his presence will be missed by the defending champions who used to rely on his services for wickets on regularly.
Harshal Patel: Despite going for runs, one thing the pacer has the knack for is to grab wickets regularly. Punjab will look to him for wickets throughout the season as they aim to put in a late charge for a potential spot in the playoffs.
Sunil Narine: The West Indian all-rounder has been the go-to man for the Knight Riders. Apart from scoring the runs at the top of the order, the KKR star has been stopping the flow of runs and getting wickets too with the ball.
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