Punjab Kings Dominate Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Rain-Shortened IPL Match

Punjab Kings' Bowlers Shine in Rain-Shortened Encounter

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India] April 18: In a rain-affected match, the bowlers of Punjab Kings effectively executed their strategy, limiting Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a mere 95 runs for 9 wickets in a game where both teams played 14 overs.

Punjab Kings' captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to field first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

RCB's opening pair, Virat Kohli and Phil Salt, took to the crease, but Arshdeep Singh struck early, dismissing Salt for just 4 runs in the first over. RCB's captain Rajat Patidar then joined Kohli.

In the second over, Patidar reached a milestone of 1000 IPL runs, becoming the second fastest Indian to achieve this feat. However, Arshdeep continued his impressive form, taking Kohli's wicket for just 1 run in the third over, bringing Liam Livingstone to the crease.

Xavier Bartlett then dismissed Livingstone for 4 runs in the fourth over. The PBKS fielders excelled during the power-play, with Jitesh Sharma entering the game but falling to veteran spinner Yuzvendra Chahal for just 2 runs in the seventh over. RCB struggled to maintain their wickets throughout the innings.

Manoj Bhandage, RCB's impact player, failed to make a mark with the bat, getting out for 1 run in the ninth over, courtesy of Jansen.

Harpreet Brar, making his season debut, made an immediate impact by taking two wickets in his first over, dismissing Bhuvneshwar for 8 runs and Yash Dayal in the 12th over.

Tim David emerged as the standout performer for RCB, hitting three sixes in the final over and finishing with a score of 50 runs not out.

Marco Jansen was the standout bowler for PBKS, taking 2 wickets for just 10 runs. Arshdeep, Chahal, and Brar each claimed two wickets, while Xavier Bartlett added one to the tally.

Brief score: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Tim David 50*, Rajat Patidar 23; Marco Jansen (2/10) vs Punjab Kings.