Professional RCB inflict further misery on PBKS to seal playoff berth

Defending IPL champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru became the first team to seal a spot in the IPL 2026 playoffs with an all-round display in the rematch of last year's final against Punjab Kings. Venkatesh Iyer, promoted to No. 4 in a reshuffled line-up, lit up Dharamsala with a 44-ball 73*, while Virat Kohli (58 off 37) and Devdutt Padikkal (45 off 25) chipped in with key contributions to power RCB to 222.

That proved well beyond PBKS once they lost three inside the Powerplay. Shashank Singh fought valiantly with a quickfire half-century but lacked support. The defeat extended PBKS' slump - they are yet to win since April 25, having lost six on the bounce after going unbeaten through the first half of the league stage.

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Royal Challengers Bengaluru 222/4 in 20 overs [Venkatesh Iyer 73* (40), Virat Kohli 58 (37); Harpreet Brar 2-35] beat Punjab Kings 199/8 in 20 overs [Shashank Singh 56 (27); Rasikh Dar 3-36, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2-39)] by 23 runs.

For the third time this season, Devdutt Padikkal sent the first ball he faced over the ropes, a mark of a man who has emphatically turned a corner in T20 corner. His straight loft off Harpreet Brar came after Jacob Bethell fell cheaply once more.

RCB's defeats while batting first this season have often been marked by clusters of Powerplay wickets. But Padikkal and Virat Kohli ensured there was no repeat, even if the six-over score of 61 felt a touch underwhelming. Kohli made 24 off 15, Padikkal 23 off 14. The lift-off came immediately after the Powerplay when Yuzvendra Chahal's first over disappeared for 21, sending RCB's run rate soaring past 11.

Rajat Patidar missed the game with a concussion after wearing a Kartik Tyagi bouncer on the helmet in the previous match. That forced RCB back to an older combination, with Romario Shepherd returning in place of Jacob Duffy and Venkatesh Iyer slotting in at No. 4.

After Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli added yet another half-century stand - 76 off 41 - Iyer kept the momentum going alongside Kohli. While Kohli eased his way to a fifty, Iyer took a little longer to break free, moving to 15 off 14 before turning on the charge. He picked off a pair of boundaries against Harpreet Brar and then launched into Yuzvendra Chahal for two sixes, ensuring RCB maximised their matchups.

Kohli fell off the last ball of the 15th over, giving Tim David the perfect entry point. He faced only two balls across the next two overs, but it hardly mattered with Iyer going berserk at the other end.

He smashed 27 off the 10 balls he faced in that phase, including 19 in one over off Lockie Ferguson. Azmatullah Omarzai delivered a strong 19th over, but David found crucial boundaries at the death, finishing with 28 off 12 to push RCB to 222 while Iyer finished unbeaten, serving a reminder of his values and offering RCB an alternate option at a team balance.

PBKS's chase of 222 hinged heavily on how their young openers handled Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood upfront. As it turned out, they couldn't survive the Purple Cap holder's Powerplay burst.

Priyansh Arya miscued a pull off a ball that held in the surface and picked out mid-on. Prabhsimran Singh tried to cut Bhuvneshwar and feathered an edge to slip. PBKS then suffered a body blow when Rasikh Dar struck in his first over, a good-length ball finding Shreyas Iyer's edge through to the keeper. Cooper Connolly and Suryansh Shedge briefly counterpunched, but at 49 for 3, PBKS were already staring at a steep climb.

By the 11th over, PBKS had lost half their side with their run-rate still going under 9 RPO. The tide turned when Shashank Singh, promoted above Omarzai, smashed three sixes off Suyash Sharma in a 20-run over. Bethell then put down Marcus Stoinis off Krunal Pandya, an over that brought Shashank two more boundaries. The pair added 67 off 32 balls before Stoinis fell for 37 after missing a friendly full toss from Hazlewood and was adjudged LBW.

PBKS needed 77 from the final five overs, which would be considered chaseable under the easing conditions, but as was the case in last year's final, Shashank's 27-ball 56 proved to be futile because of the blip that preceded it, especially against RCB's death-bowling trio of Bhuvneshwar, Hazlewood and Rasikh Dar.

RCB will close out the league phase against SRH on Friday (May 22). Punjab Kings will face the Lucknow Super Giants away at the Ekana Stadium on Saturday (May 23) with their qualification now hanging by a thread.