Royal Challengers Bengaluru lit up their home ground, clinching a commanding 43-run victory over Chennai Super Kings on Sunday at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. After being asked to bat, RCB’s innings didn’t begin on a rather good note as the opening pair of Virat Kohli and Phil Salt struggled to find rhythm. The early dismissal of Virat Kohli, who managed 28 off 18 balls, added to the pressure. However, Phil Salt steadied things, scoring 46 off 30 deliveries. Meanwhile, the innings took a decisive turn when Devdutt Padikkal and Rajat Patidar came together.
The duo stitched a rapid 58-run stand in 21 balls and took RCB to 151/3 by the time Padikkal departed in the 15th over. In the final stretch of the innings, RCB piled on 99 runs from 35 deliveries. Tim David led the charge with a breathtaking display of power hitting, remaining unbeaten on 70 from 25 balls. His assault in the 19th over was devastating, as he hammered 30 runs off Jamie Overton, including four sixes and a boundary to take RCB to 250/3 in 20 overs.
In reply, Chennai Super Kings had a horrible start. Early wickets of Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad disrupted their chase, and the top order failed to build any meaningful partnerships. Sarfaraz Khan stood out as the lone fighter, notching up 50, but he lacked support from the other end. Prashant Veer also contributed 43, but CSK were bowled out for 207 in 19.4 overs.