Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have secured a spot in the IPL final for the first time in nine years. In a dominant performance, they defeated Punjab Kings by 8 wickets in Qualifier 1 on Thursday. Opener Phil Salt set the tone with a composed half-century, while Josh Hazlewood and Suyash Sharma starred with the ball, taking three wickets each. Suyash was named Player of the Match.
Opting to bowl first at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium in New Chandigarh, RCB bowled out Punjab Kings for just 101 runs in 14.1 overs. Marcus Stoinis was the top scorer for Punjab with 26 runs. Yash Dayal contributed with two wickets. In reply, RCB chased down the target in just 10 overs, losing only two wickets. Skipper Rajat Patidar sealed the victory in style by hitting a six.
This marks RCB’s fourth appearance in an IPL final. The last time they reached the final was in 2016, where they finished as runners-up. They will now face their next challenge in the title match, set to be played in Ahmedabad on June 3.
Meanwhile, Punjab Kings will get another shot at the final when they take on the winner of the Eliminator in Qualifier 2 on June 1. The Eliminator, scheduled for Friday, will be contested between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans.
Playing XIs
Punjab Kings: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Josh Inglis (wicketkeeper), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harpreet Brar, Kyle Jamieson, Arshdeep Singh.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Rajat Patidar (captain), Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma.