RCB done and dusted

PUNE, APRIL 29

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)  became the first team to be thrown out of contention for the playoffs after a humiliating 61-run defeat to Rising Pune Supergiant in an IPL encounter.

Although the RCB bowlers managed to keep the Pune batsmen under a tight leash, restricting them to 157/3, another shoddy batting performance saw them finish at a dismal 96/9 after 20 overs.

While Pune kept themselves in contention for the playoffs with their fifth win in nine games, RCB are practically out of the tournament with their seventh defeat in 10 games and only five points in their kitty.

Pune rose to the occasion defending a sub-par total with a controlled bowling performance. Imran Tahir was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/18 from four overs. Lockie Ferguson claimed 2/7 in four overs to claim the Man of the Match award.

Jaydev Unadkat, Daniel Christian and Washington Sundar took one wicket each.

This is one of the rarest occasions when a team has been bundled out below 100 runs twice in the Indian Premier League. RCB were shot out for 49 by KKR in an earlier game in the tournament.

Chasing a modest 158, Bangalore kept losing wickets despite skipper Kohli holding his ground at one end. Apart from Kohli, who came up with an uncharacteristic 48-ball-55, studded with four boundaries and a six, none of the RCB batting could reach the double-digit mark. Kohli single-handedly tried his best to bail the team out of trouble but just did not find an able partner at the other end. The highest partnership of 21 runs tells the dismal saga of RCB batting line-up. The visitors were gasping at 48/5 in the 10th over and there was no time when RCB showed any signs of revival. Kohli only reduced the margin of defeat with a gritty knock.

Earlier, the RCB bowlers dominated the proceedings with left-arm spinner Pawan Negi returning with figures of 1/18 from his four overs. Skipper Steve Smith topscored with 32-ball-45 that included five boundaries and a six, while Manoj Tiwary (44*) and opener Rahul Tripathi (37) also made important contributions. — PTI