New Delhi: It was a cakewalk for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the first qualifier of the Indian Premier League as they roared their way into the final of the 18th edition of the cash-rich tournament with a thumping win over Punjab Kings in Mullanpur on Thursday.
The battle, that was between the best two sides in this edition, turned out to become a one-sided contest with the Royal Challengers hunting down the meagre target with 60 balls to spare after a ruthless bowling effort that bundled out PBKS for just 101 runs. In what was supposed to be a 40-over contest, spectators witnessed just 24.1 overs of play as RCB made a mockery of PBKS in the most important clash.
RCB proved themselves as the most deserving unit after reaching their fourth IPL final, with the last one coming 9 years back in 2016. The Rajat Patidar-led side scripted history as they became they won a playoffs match in IPL by the biggest margin in terms of balls remaining. With the RCB booking a ticket for Ahmedabad, they have certainly proved themselves as champions and the best contenders for the title.
RCB a step away from glory
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru continued their brilliant run in the most important contest playing like pure champions. They were unstoppable on their path to the final exhibiting determination, dominance and diligence on a day which could have proved to be quite challenging with an opponent like PBKS on the other end, which has been one of the toughest sides in the competition.
The win has not only brought RCB a step closer to glory, which could be a first for them, but also revealed their intentions to emerge triumphant ending their title-victory hoodoo in the league. Right from word go, Bengaluru looked promising, composed and aggressive against the ultra-aggressive approach adopted by Punjab that backfired for them. In their near perfect performance, it seems that RCB would replicate the show in the summit clash on June 3.
PBKS to get another shot
The kind of performance PBKS showcased in the league stage took a backseat in the first qualifier as they got drowned in their own den. Punjab, who had reached the playoffs for the first time since 2014, failed to gather momentum and hit through the line despite having quality batters in their brigade. The wickets fell like a pack of cards with just couple of batters able to hit the double digit score. The Punjab batsmen got exposed in front a superlative bowling display by RCB, who were sensational but not unplayable certainly.
While they were able to defend a low total in one of the past clashes but after a poor batting display, the bowlers also couldn’t showcase any charisma to give their team a hope of a win. Meanwhile, the Shreyas Iyer-led unit will get another shot at qualifying for the final and they can’t afford to commit any blunder in the next game, which would be a do or die affair. But overpowering sides like Gujarat Titans or Mumbai Indians wouldn’t be either easy for them as the table-toppers would have to bring out their best show.
Punjab would play the winner of the Eliminator clash between Gujarat and Mumbai in the second qualifier in Ahmedabad on Sunday, wishing for a rematch of Qualifier 1 against RCB in the summit clash.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru raced to their first Indian Premier League final since 2016 with an eight-wicket thrashing of Punjab Kings in a lopsided Qualifier 1. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
