2 hours ago
18
Hardik Pandya won the toss for Mumbai Indians as they opted to field first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Wankhede Stadium in Match No. 20 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. However, it was the visiting side that reigned supreme at the end, winning the contest by 18 runs in a contest that turned out to be a one-sided encounter.
The game started with Philip Salt (78 off 36) and Virat Kohli (50 off 38) going all guns blazing against Hardik & Co., lacing a 120-run partnership for the opening wicket. Skipper Rajat Patidar then joined the party for a blistering knock of 53 runs, coming off just 20 balls. Tim David added the perfect finishing touch with his 34 off 16. Hardik was the pick of the bowlers, finishing his four overs with a wicket and 39 runs.
As the second innings began, Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma looked all set to provide MI with a thunderous start. They somewhat tried to do so, but Rohit was retired hurt in the process, pulling his hamstring in the last over of the powerplay. On the first ball of the eighth over, Rickelton too made his way back after adding 37 runs from his blade. One followed another as Tilak Varma threw his wicket for 1 (3).
There was an effort to bring the innings back on track from Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik, but the duo failed to capitalise, as RCB bowled tight enough. Sherfane Rutherford's arrival in the middle felt like a little too late for the Mumbai-based franchise, as he thrashed RCB bowlers to all corners of the ground, smashing an unbeaten 71 off 31 balls, a knock that was studded with only one four but nine huge sixes.
While Mumbai's efforts in the middle seemed undercut, there was no shortage of memes and funny reactions by fans on social media from the thrilling encounter, as RCB registered their third win of the season.
.png)
English (US) ·