In a thrilling match at the Ekana Stadium on Tuesday, the acting captain Jitesh Sharma scored an incredible unbeaten 85 runs, and Virat Kohli a reliable 54, as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) staged the third-largest successful run chase in the history of the IPL.
RCB overcame Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by six wickets in IPL 2025 Match 70.
Jitesh entered when RCB looked to be in trouble at 123/4, with Kohli back in the pavilion. With superb power-hitting ability, Sharma scored his first IPL half-century to take RCB to 230/4 off 18.4 overs, clinching a thrilling victory that pushed them to the second position on the points table with 19 points. The win presents a Qualifier 1 clash against Punjab Kings, while Gujarat Titans will take on Mumbai Indians in the Eliminator.
The pursuit was tough after LSG skipper Rishabh Pant hammered a dazzling unbeaten 118, marking a comeback, to help LSG come up with a strong score of 227/3 in their 20 overs.
But Jitesh Sharma's breathtaking performance overshadowed Pant's exploits. Sharma was unbeaten on 85 off mere 33 balls, studded with eight fours and six sixes. At the other end, Mayank Agarwal scored an unbeaten 41 off 23 balls, while LSG's Pant became just the second batsman, after KL Rahul, to record a century and yet remain on the losing side.
RCB's run chase got underway in a blaze with Phil Salt and Virat Kohli setting up a sharp 61-run opening stand. Salt, in special, caught everybody's attention by scoring 30 off 19 deliveries, with six boundaries but no six. Salt got out caught at cover off Impact Substitute Akash Singh after surviving narrowly.
Rajat Patidar, brought in as an Impact Substitute, lasted only 7 balls, scoring 14 before falling to Will O’Rourke. O’Rourke followed this by dismissing Liam Livingstone for a first-ball duck, leaving RCB struggling at 90/3.
Kohli was in majestic touch, sprinting to his half-century in 27 balls with 10 fours. This was his eighth fifty of the season and sixth in chase situations. Kohli also surpassed the 9,000-run mark in IPL history. However, just when he was poised for a century, he went for a gentle dismissal, caught by Ayush Badoni off Avesh Khan at 123/4.
Here, with 90 runs needed from seven overs, it looked like RCB was going to fall apart. But then Jitesh Sharma turned the match on its head. He scored his half-century off 22 balls, mounting an attacking barrage that put RCB back in the contest and eventually took them over the line.
With 28 runs required off 18 balls, Sharma capitalized, thrashing 21 runs off six deliveries from Will O'Rourke, including two fours and two consecutive sixes, turning the game decisively in RCB's direction.
He wrapped up the victory with a six off Ayush Badoni. The 107-run stand between Sharma and Agarwal wrote a historic chase for RCB.
Earlier, LSG had been invited to bat and lost debutant Matthew Breetzke cheaply for 14 runs, bowled by Nuwan Thushara's exemplary delivery.
However, skipper Rishabh Pant showed a brilliant comeback with form, together with Mitchell Marsh, stringing together a 142-run second-wicket stand.
Pant was in high gear early on, thumping Yash Dayal with some boundaries and sixes as LSG reached 55/1 in the powerplay.
The wicket-keeper batsman continued to play with authority, playing sixes and fours against Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Suyash Sharma, reaching his half-century in 29 balls.
Marsh was also solid, bringing up 600 runs for the season with a 31-ball fifty, as the duo took LSG over 150 runs.
RCB captain Sharma brought in Bhuvneshwar Kumar to attempt to put a stop to the flow, but Marsh welcomed him with successive sixes before finally edging behind for 67 off 37 balls, including four fours and five sixes.
Pant continued his momentum to reach his second IPL century in seven years, reaching an unbeaten 118 off 61 balls with 11 boundaries and eight sixes, dominating throughout.
Nicholas Pooran contributed 13 off 10 balls at the end, but the total LSG had posted gave RCB the platform they needed to stage the pulsating chase they executed so masterfully.
Final Scores:
Lucknow Super Giants 226/3 (Rishabh Pant 118*, Mitchell Marsh 67; Nuwan Thushara 1-26, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 1-44)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru 230/4 (Virat Kohli 54, Jitesh Sharma 85*, Mayank Agarwal 41*; Will O'Rourke 2-74)
RCB won by six wickets.
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