After an incredible contest of the bat and ball, RCB sealed their semi-final berth, drubbing an upbeat PBKS.
They started on a tardy note, with Kohli and Padikkal scrambling for runs at the start. Things went from bad to worse when they lost their top three in a span of just five runs, opening the floodgates for the Punjab bowlers to gush through.
The twist in the tale for RCB
However, destiny had other plans for them as whatever leaks the top three’s dismissal came with was plugged with brick and mortar by the following duo of Maxwell and De Villiers.
The partnership propelled Bangalore to a staggering 146 with ten balls to go. Maxwell took over the reins of destruction in his own hand and hacked his way to some severe carnage, with RCB making the beeline for a formidable 164.
Punjab’s batting woes continued
Punjab was off to a cracking start as Rahul and Mayank Agarwal seemed relentless and hammered their way to the top. Standing at 91 for no loss from just 10.4 overs, the target seemed like a cakewalk for the Kings.
This is where Bangalore made amends to their preceding sloppy display of bowling and fielding, as they managed to crack the opening partnership. With Rahul gone, Mayank seemed lost and didn’t survive for long as wickets started falling regularly.
This has been a regular spectacle for Punjab as they have managed to get the starts, but the brilliance at the top always fizzled away in between.
Ever since the opening partnership was taken out of the equation, Bangalore reeled Punjab back in and what seemed like a canter started looking a lot like a stutter and a crawl in no time.
Markram tried to flip things around, but it never felt the same. Despite a desperate lunge from Khan and Henriques towards the end, it wasn’t enough for the Kings to cross the line.
Bangalore had a shaky start after the resumption as they went down in back to back matches, but recovered brilliantly to become the third team to qualify for the play-offs.
This was their eighth victory and moving to 16 points from 13 games, they managed to seal their play-off birth and became the third team to do so with Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals being the other two.
Twitter was boiling with excitement and happiness as Kohli and company made it to the playoffs after a decent display throughout.
We Are Officially Into The Playoffs 🤩🔥
Let's Bring Cup Home This Time ❤#PlayBold • #RCB pic.twitter.com/o0LL4ySuKD
— Troll RCB Haters (@Troll_RCBHaters) October 3, 2021
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HUM JEET GAYE! RCB has qualified for the playoffs! 😭 That’s my team! Outstanding! It’s the year of the RCBian surely. 🔥 #RCBvPBKS
— Chloe-Amanda Bailey (@ChloeAmandaB) October 3, 2021
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We Are into Playoff 😎 #RCB pic.twitter.com/lUwLB9gq4h
— V I P E R™ (@VIPERoffl) October 3, 2021
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Virat's decision to bat justified by the team. Congrats #RCB on playoff spot 👏👏👏
— Saurabh Malhotra (@MalhotraSaurabh) October 3, 2021
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Despite another grt opening partnership between #KLRahul & Mayank 91(65) – #PBKS meet another defeat due to their abysmal batting afterwards!#RCB win by 6 runs & move to 16 points – 8/12 wins#RCB qualify for the playoffs too👍👍#PBKSvsRCB
— Kaushik LM (@LMKMovieManiac) October 3, 2021
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So @RCBTweets qualify again. This year?
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) October 3, 2021
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Second season in a row. #RCB are through to the playoffs. And this year they’re looking much better than last year. Race is on for only the fourth place. #IPL2021
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) October 3, 2021
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Bug effort from #RCB to stave off Punjab’s strong bid to win. At one stage, looked like this would be easy. Not for the first time, Punjab lost their way towards the end. Chahal’s bowling was the difference. #RCB now in the play-offs, enjoying a fruitful season
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) October 3, 2021
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So @RCBTweets are officially through to the last 4. Punjab should ask themselves how them have blown it time and again.
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) October 3, 2021
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