Tim David, Rajat Patidar (skipper) and Devdutt Padikkal delivered a ruthless batting display as Royal Challengers Bengaluru overpowered Chennai Super Kings by 43 runs in an IPL encounter at Bengaluru on Sunday. Padikkal struck 50 from 29 balls and David blasted 70 off just 25 deliveries, overwhelming the Super Kings attack with a relentless blend of power and precision. Patidar then finished the innings unbeaten, contributing 48 off 19 balls, helping RCB post a commanding 250 for three.
Quick facts
- Match: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Chennai Super Kings
- Venue: Bengaluru
- Result: RCB won by 43 runs
- RCB innings: 250/3
- CSK innings: 207 all out in 19.4 overs
- Key knocks: Padikkal 50 (29), David 70 (25), Patidar 48* (19)
Chasing 251, CSK struggled from the outset and were bowled out for 207 in 19.4 overs. The five-time champions also suffered their third consecutive defeat of the season, underlining how one-sided the contest became once Bengaluru built momentum.
CSK’s run chase went off the rails early when Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ayush Mhatre departed with the team still on only 30. From there, the target was always going to be difficult, and the match slipped further away as innings wickets kept falling.
RCB’s defensive phase
Pacer Jacob Duffy played the starring role during CSK’s collapse, finishing with figures of 2/58. He removed Samson and Gaikwad as both batters were caught by Padikkal at first slip, turning the contest decisively in Bengaluru’s favour during the crucial middle overs.
Samson’s struggles in the IPL continued for his new franchise after his standout form in the T20 World Cup. In this game, the Kerala batter tried to be clever against Duffy by guiding the ball with a bat held in a perpendicular angle, but the execution wasn’t enough and he could only manage a gentle touch to Padikkal.
Mhatre’s dismissal brought Bhuvneshwar Kumar his 200th wicket in the IPL. It also made him only the second bowler to reach that milestone after Yuzvendra Chahal, adding a landmark moment to an otherwise difficult night for CSK.
Sarfaraz Khan showed fight with a 25-ball 50, but the chase still remained beyond reach. Krunal Pandya struck to remove Sarfaraz, and then Bhuvneshwar returned to dismiss Prashant Veer for 43, ending a 57-run partnership between him and Jamie Overton (37) as the storied Southern Derby failed to ignite.
RCB’s innings: from key stands to a big finish
Earlier, RCB’s march toward a second straight win began with two crucial partnerships built by Devdutt. He put together a 56-run stand (37 balls) with Phil Salt for the second wicket and then followed it with a 58-run alliance (21 balls) for the third wicket alongside Patidar.
Those connections proved especially valuable on a Chinnaswamy surface that offered a hint of slowness at the start, particularly after CSK opted to field first. With the innings gradually finding rhythm, the early pressure eased and Bengaluru began to add runs more freely as overs progressed.
Salt was the more commanding partner in the second-wicket stand, helping RCB navigate the early setback of Virat Kohli. Kohli made 28 before being dismissed, and the wicket also came after he had been dropped on seven by Shivam Dube off Khaleel Ahmed.
Salt’s controlled aggression kept the scoreboard moving, including a pair of sixes—one each off Noor Ahmad and Anshul Kamboj. As a result, RCB reached the Power Play at 51 for 1, setting up a platform from which the innings could accelerate.
However, Salt’s stay at the crease was short-lived. After the six-over phase, he gave a straightforward catch to Ahmad in the deep off Dube, and the dismissal shifted the tempo of RCB’s innings.
Devdutt, who was on 18 off 17 balls at that stage, then raised the pace immediately. He struck Dube for two sixes and a four, pushing RCB’s run rate past the ten-mark per over for the first time in the innings.
The left-hander also secured his second consecutive IPL fifty by taking a single off Matt Henry to get there. Still, he couldn’t last much longer, as an attempt at a reverse scoop against Jamie Overton left his stumps disturbed and ended his stay.
By that point, Bengaluru had already banked 62 runs between the 11th and 15th overs. Once Devdutt was back in the dugout, Patidar joined Tim David and the duo built strongly on the foundation.
After 15 overs, RCB were 153 for 3, and they then piled on 97 runs in the final five overs. The late surge also reflected some wayward bowling lines from CSK during the death overs, which allowed Bengaluru to cash in at the right time.
Patidar and David were particularly destructive during their fourth-wicket partnership. The ball was sent to all parts of Chinnaswamy as they added 99 runs (36 balls) without losing another wicket, taking the innings to a level CSK couldn’t realistically defend.
Patidar punished Khaleel Ahmed with repeated precision, as the bowler kept feeding the batter into his scoring zone. In Khaleel’s fourth and final over, Patidar struck two sixes and a four.
David then took over the acceleration in the 17th over, hitting Ahmad for three sixes and further inflaming the run chase for CSK. The Australian rounded off the assault in the 19th over by carting Overton for four sixes in the over—three in a row—exposing Bengaluru’s momentum and CSK’s bowling frailties once again.
