RCB fans on the streets of Bengaluru© X (Twitter)

The atmosphere was electric to say the least during the RCB vs CSK IPL 2024 match in Bengaluru on Saturday. It was not only a clash of two high-profile and star-studded teams but a knockout game that decided the last playoff spot in the IPL 2024. Quite naturally, the teams were charged up, especially RCB stars including Virat Kohli and Faf Du Plessis. Not only Kohli and Du Plessis provide a great start with the bat to RCB, but they were electric on the field too.

Every catch was celebrated fervently and every CSK wicket cheered madly. There was also a point during the CSK innings when Kohli and Faf du Plessis chatted animatedly with the umpires. The point of contention seemed to be a no ball by Lockie Ferguson to Rachin Ravindra. The duo seemed to be telling the umpire that the slippery ball was responsible. Something that the dup had complained a couple of overs back.

Kohli had an extended chat with the umpires and the internet blasted him for putting pressure on them.

Virat Kohli is very angry, he wants the umpire to change the ball. The umpire is not listening to him #IPL2024 #RCBvsCSK pic.twitter.com/Ei2VZrepvL

— Huzaifa Khan (@Huz69052510Khan) May 18, 2024

Matthew Hayden in commentary:

” Virat Kohli isn’t the captain of RCB, he shouldn’t have conversation with umpires. He’s involved too much.”#RCBvsCSK pic.twitter.com/fYI2Y7Ewhv

— ANSHUMAN (@AvengerReturns) May 18, 2024

Virat is gonna beat that umpire next time

— TheCubanKid (@cubankidsays) May 18, 2024

pic.twitter.com/7cYR8lNzny

— Out Of Context Cricket (@GemsOfCricket) May 18, 2024

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) got tied with Mumbai Indians (MI) for most 200-plus run totals in a single Indian Premier League (IPL) season on Saturday.

The Red and Gold accomplished this feat against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their game at Bengaluru.

RCB posted a total of 218/5 in 20 overs against CSK, their sixth total of over 200 this season. They have levelled with Mumbai Indians (six 200-plus totals in 2023) and Kolkata Knight Riders (six 200-plus totals in IPL 2024).

Also, RCB became the first-ever team to hit 150 sixes in a single edition of a T20 tournament. With 16 more sixers, RCB overtook Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) tally of 146 sixes to reach 150 sixes.

Coming to the match, CSK won the toss and opted to bat first. RCB put on a fine score of 218/5 on the board, with skipper Faf Du Plessis (54 in 39 balls, with three fours and three sixes), Virat Kohli (47 in 29 balls, with three fours and four sixes) put on a 78-run partnership, setting a fine platform for Rajat Patidar (41 in 23 balls, with two fours and four sixes) and Cameron Green (38* in 17 balls, with three fours and three sixes) to put on a 71-run stand for the third wicket.

Cameos from Dinesh Karthik (14 in six balls, with a four and six) and Glenn Maxwell (16 in five balls, with two fours and a six) took RCB to a 200-run plus total. In the end, RCB secured a 27-run win to qualify for the playoffs.

With ANI inputs

Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper Faf du Plessis on Saturday dedicated his player-of-the-match award to pacer Yash Dayal, who kept his cool in the final over to seal a 27-run win over Chennai Super Kings in the battle for the final IPL play-off spot. Du Plessis was adjudged the player-of-the-match for his 54 off 39 balls which along with Virat Kohli’s 47 set the foundation as RCB posted a solid 218 for five on Saturday night. CSK needed to score 200 plus to qualify and they came agonisingly close to sealing the berth with Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja going hammers and tongs towards the end.

CSK, in fact, needed 17 off the final over but Dayal held his nerves despite being hit for a towering six by Dhoni in the first ball to seal it in the end for RCB.

“I dedicate the Man of the Match (award) to Yash Dayal! I said to him pace off on this wicket is the best option,” Du Plessis said during the post-match presentation ceremony.

“What a night! Such a great atmosphere. Just a pleasure to finish the season in front of the home fans. There was a lot of rain falling on the pitch, and you don’t want that moisture. It felt like a day-five Test match in Ranchi!” Rain threat was looming on the match and there was a 40-minute rain interruption too but it didn’t matter in the end.

“The contributions from many batters at good strikes, I’m really proud. We were defending 175 (and neither 201 nor 218)! We tried to get the ball changed tonight.

“It’s crazy; even when we weren’t winning, we had the fans here. It was set up perfectly – CSK vs RCB! Incredible.” CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad said missing out on key players made a huge difference as they finished fifth in the standing.

“I think it was a good wicket to be honest, it was spinning and gripping a little bit, but I think 200 on this ground was gettable. We kept losing wickets at regular intervals, it was a matter of one or two hits, sometimes that can happen in a T20 game,” he said.

“Pretty happy with what the target was, to sum up the season, I am pretty happy to have seven wins out of 14 games. Just couldn’t get over the line in the last two balls.

“With the kind of injuries we had, missing out on two frontline bowlers, not having (Devon) Conway at the top of the order as well, I think missing out on three key players made a huge difference.” Talking about the spate of injuries which affected the team, Gaikwad said: “There were many challenges for us right throughout the first game. Injury to Fizz (Mustafiur Rahman), then injruy to (Matheesha) Pathirana as well, he came back and then again Pathirana missed out. When you have injuries around, you have to get that balance in the team and pick it (the team) for every game.

“I think this season sums up well where we had to tinker around with our playing XI, considering the injuries and all the illness (of the players) as well. Happy with the seven wins, couldn’t get over the line though. Happy with it.

“We got 10 from the last 2 balls in our last knockout game last year so this was a similar situation, things didn’t go our way (this season) though,” he added.

Gaikwad has been one of the top run-scorer this season but he said it doesn’t matter as he couldn’t take the team to the play-offs.

“For me, personal milestones don’t really matter a lot, after all the ultimate goal is to win. If you are not getting there it’s a disappointment. Doesn’t matter if you score 100 runs or 500-600 runs in a season. I am disappointed,” he said.

Star Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Virat Kohli achieved a new record in the Indian Premier League (IPL), becoming the first Indian player to have two seasons with 700-plus runs. Virat accomplished this milestone against RCB’s match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Bengaluru. In the game, Virat scored 47 runs in just 29 balls, with three fours and four sixes. His runs came at a strike rate of 162.06.

In 14 games this season, Virat leads the run-scoring charts with 708 runs at an average of 64.36 and a strike rate of 155.60. This is his highest strike rate in an IPL season.

Virat had crossed the 700-run mark in 2016 as well, scoring 973 runs in 16 matches at an average of 81.08 and a strike rate of over 152, with four centuries and seven fifties.

Virat is the second player overall to reach 700-run mark in a single IPL edition on two or more occasions, with Chris Gayle doing so twice as well. The West Indies legend scored 733 runs in IPL 2012 and 708 runs in IPL 2013.

Virat also ended the league stage of IPL 2024 with 37 sixes, the most by a batter this season. Virat’s all-time high tally of sixes in an IPL season was 38 maximums back in 2016.

Virat also continued his fine run of form in the IPL on May 18, a date which has been special for RCB and Virat, since they have won every game ever played on this date. With scores of 56*(29) vs. CSK, Bengaluru (2013), 27*(29) vs CSK, Ranchi (2015), 113(50) vs. Punjab Kings Bengaluru (2016), and 100 (63) against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Hyderabad (2023) on this date, in five innings, he has scored 343 runs at an average of 85.75, with two centuries and a fifty.

Coming to the match, CSK won the toss and opted to bowl first.

Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Rachin Ravindra, Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Daryl Mitchell, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (Wk), Mitchell Santner, Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande, Simarjeet Singh, Maheesh Theekshana.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Faf du Plessis (C), Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Rajat Patidar, Cameron Green, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik (Wk), Karn Sharma, Yash Dayal, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammed Siraj.

RCB batters came out with great intent in a do-or-die clash against CSK in the IPL 2024 on Saturday. It’s a do-or-die match for both teams to grab a playoff spot.  More so for RCB who have to beat CSK by 18 runs in order to qualify for the top-four. Starting with the opening dup of Virat Kohli and Faf Du Plessis, along with Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green, everyone contributed as RCB posted a huge target for CSK. While RCB skipper De Plessis scored a half-century, Kohli missed the mark by just three runs. 

He was caught on the boundary ropes by Daryl Mitchell off Mitchell Santner. Mitchell had a tricky situation as he lost balance but was aware of the ropes to take a clean catch. Even Virat Kohli’s wife and actor Anushka Sharma thought that Mitchell had gone past the rope. But then soon realised that Kohli was out. Her reaction went viral. 

Anushka Sharma also thinks Virat Kohli was not out @JayShah, please bring King Kohli back. He should be batting out there #IPL2024 #RCBvsCSK #tapmad #HojaoADFree pic.twitter.com/5fnBv6hAJO

— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) May 18, 2024

Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma & Whole RCB was not happy with decision given by Third Umpire, RCB vs CSK, IPL 2024 pic.twitter.com/M1ZlSP322y

— Republic of Games (@kohlilfc) May 18, 2024

We are with you AnushkaSharma we are are sad you are not only #Rcbvscsk #ipl pic.twitter.com/gP40NdEDPu

— Mohsin Raza (@MohsinRaza48135) May 18, 2024

Ahead of the all-important clash with Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League 2024, star India batter and Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s opener Virat Kohli revealed the reason behind his high strike rate in the ongoing season of the cash-rich league.

The Impact Player Rule allows a franchise to introduce a 12th player to the team from a five-player list which is given at the time of a toss. A team can bring in an impact player for the playing XI by replacing any player from the five-player list.

“I am telling you, with one extra batter there is a reason I am playing with 200 plus strike rate in the powerplays. I know there is a batsman waiting at No. 8 as well. I think it has disrupted the balance and a lot of people are feeling this way not just me,” Kohli said while speaking on Jio Cinema.

Earlier, Rohit also shared his views and said that due to the Impact Player Rule, players like Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar are not getting a chance to bowl, which is not a good thing for Team India.

“I genuinely feel it is going to hold back the development of all-rounders because eventually cricket is played by 11 players, not 12. So I am not a big fan of the Impact Player Rule because you are taking so much from the game just to make it a little more entertaining for the people around you. But just in the cricketing aspect of it, I feel guys like Washington Sundar, and Shivam Dube are not getting to bowl, which is not a good thing for us (India). I am not sure what you can do about it, but I am not a fan of it,” said Rohit in the Club Prairie Fire podcast.

With Ani inputs

RCB vs CSK, IPL 2024: A series of images shows Faf Du Plessis’s dismissal© Twitter

IPL 2024: File photo of MS Dhoni© AFP

RCB vs CSK, IPL 2024: Ground-staff covers the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.© AFP

RCB vs CSK – the ‘final showdown’ for the last playoff spot in the IPL 2024 is here! As former Indian cricket team coach Ravi Shastri said, the ‘El Clasico’ – Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Chennai Super Kings – is here. CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad won the toss and opted to field first. CSK are on 14 points from 13 matches (Net Run-rate +0.528) while RCB are on 12 points from 13 games (NRR +0.387). So, far Kolkata Knight Riders, SunRisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals have qualified for the playoffs. It leaves only one spot. 

Either CSK or RCB will grab that spot. And the RCB vs CSK match in Bengaluru on Saturday will decide the result. With RCB batting first, the equation is simple. RCB have to defeat CSK by 18 runs to surpass the latter’s higher run-rate. For CSK, even if they lose, the losing margin must be less than 18 for them to advance. A win, however narrow it may be, will see them through. 

A washout due to a huge rain threat would mean RCB, who are on a five-match winning streak, would be out of the competition and CSK would book their spot in the playoffs.

Meanwhile, Mitchell Santner replaced Moeen Ali in Chennai Super Kings’ playing eleven as captain Ruturaj Gaikwad won the toss and elected to bowl first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a highly anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 clash at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday.

Santner, the left-arm spin all-rounder, comes into the playing eleven as Moeen, the off-spin all-rounder, has returned to his home in England for international duty.

“The wicket looks good, conditions are overcast and we will look to make the most of the movement in the first 2-3 overs,” said Gaikwad.

“It looks a bit damp, but we’ll go with great intent. Every game in the IPL is must must-win, nothing changes for us, we’ll take it ball-by-ball, and try and win the small processes. We’ve won some crucial games to go ahead of the pack in the middle,” said Gaikwad.

RCB skipper Faf du Plessis said he would have bowled as well and added his playing eleven is unchanged. Faf didn’t mention though that Will Jacks is back in England and is replaced by Glenn Maxwell in the playing eleven.

“But we put up a good score when we batted first last (at the home venue). Losing the toss isn’t ideal, but we’ll take a lot of confidence from the last five games. The set-up is great, the last match before the knock-out stage, the scenario is nicely set up and we’re happy to play our last league game in front of our fans. Not thinking a lot, we’ll take it as it comes and do our best,” he said.

Playing XIs:

Chennai Super Kings: Rachin Ravindra, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Daryl Mitchell, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (wk), Mitchell Santner, Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande, Simarjeet Singh and Maheesh Theekshana

Impact Substitutes: Shivam Dube, Sameer Rizvi, Prashant Solanki, Shaik Rasheed, Mukesh Choudhary

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Faf du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Rajat Patidar, Cameron Green, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Karn Sharma, Yash Dayal, Lockie Ferguson and Mohammed Siraj

Impact Substitutes: Swapnil Singh, Anuj Rawat, Suyash Prabhudessai, Vyshak Vijaykumar, Himanshu Sharma

With IANS inputs

Royal Challengers Bengaluru players celebrate after winning a crucial match against the Chennai Super Kings at the M. Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit: K BHAGYA PRAKASH

When Royal Challengers Bengaluru went on a five-match winning run after hanging on to its fingernails for much of the season, even its most ardent fans wouldn’t have believed that their team’s stars had aligned.

But, on Saturday at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, the most definitive proof for it emerged as RCB beat Chennai Super Kings by 27 runs to qualify for the playoffs.

Rain didn’t play spoilsport as it was expected to.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru fans celebrate after Bengaluru won the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 cricket match against Chennai Super Kings, at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, Saturday, May 18, 2024.
| Photo Credit:
PTI

RCB lost the toss and put on a splendid batting show. And even the best efforts of Ravindra Jadeja (42 n.o., 22b, 3×4, 3×6) and M.S. Dhoni (25, 13b, 3×4, 1×6) couldn’t salvage things for CSK.

RCB made 218, effectively setting CSK 201 to qualify. Jadeja and Dhoni took their side from 129 for six after 15 overs to 184 for six after 19. When Dhoni smashed the first ball of Yash Dayal’s last over out of the ground, it appeared as if RCB had contrived to miss out. But Dayal dismissed Dhoni and held his nerve to carry his side through.

CSK, in fact, appeared well placed at 85 for two with Rachin Ravindra (61b, 37b, 5×4, 3×6) and Ajinkya Rahane (33, 22b, 3×4, 1×6) batting. But it slumped to 119 for five as Lockie Ferguson prised out Rahane, Shivam Dube struggled (7, 15b) and Ravindra was run out. Dhoni Jand adeja brought CSK close to the target, but it was not to be.

Earlier, RCB’s PowerPlay (42 runs) was punctuated by a 41-minute rain break and batting on either side seemed like chalk and cheese. The ball gripped and turned after the interruption as Maheesh Theekshana and Mitchell Santner revelled. Only when the length was marginally fuller did the scoreboard tick, with Virat Kohli (47, 29b, 3×4, 4×6) collecting two slog-swept sixes. A third such attempt to hit against the turn, however, cost him.

Rajat Patidar joined skipper Faf du Plessis (54, 39b, 3×4, 3×6) and was quickly off the blocks, smashing Theekshana over long-off and Simarjeet Singh over fine-leg. But an unfortunate run out ended du Plessis’ stay, curtailing an ominous-looking association.

Cameron Green (38 n.o., 17b, 3×4, 3×6) and Patidar (41, 23b, 2×4, 4×6) put on 71 runs from just 28 balls, with Ruturaj Gaikwad even dropping the burly Australian on 18. Cameos from Dinesh Karthik (14, 6b, 1×4, 1×6) and Glenn Maxwell (16, 5b, 2×4, 1×6) gave RCB the cushion which ultimately proved worth of qualification.