The Royal Challengers Bangalore clinched their third win in a row to keep their hopes of qualifying for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 playoffs as they overcame a tough challenge from table toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad to record a 14-run win.
AB de Villiers and Moeen Ali struck breezy half-centuries as Royal Challengers Bangalore held their nerves under pressure to eke out a 14-run win over table-toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad in a must-win match and stay afloat in the Indian Premier League here today.
Asked to bat, RCB posted a mammoth 218 for six before surviving a scare from Sunrisers skipper Kane Williamson (81 off 42) and Manish Pandey (62 off 38) to restrict the visitors to 204 for three.De Villiers (69 off 39) and Ali (65 off 34) overcame a bad start to stitch 107 runs off just 57 balls for the third wicket to not only set the platform for RCB’s total but also keep their team in contention.
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Chasing the mammoth total, Sunrisers started on a positive note piling up 47 runs off the first five overs before Shikhar Dhawan hit one straight back to Yuzvendra Chahal off his own bowling in the next over.
Williamson went about his business in elegant fashion without taking much risk and was ably supported by Pandey at the other end as the duo stitched magnificent 135 runs for the second wicket off just 68 deliveries to virtually take Sunrisers home. But it was not to be as Williamson’s dismissal in the first delivery of the final over sealed Sunrisers fate and they eventually fell short by 14 runs.
By virtue of this win, RCB climbs up to the fifth spot with 12 points from 13 games and need to win their last league game against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Saturday to harbour any playoff hopes.
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