In another must-win encounter, it was a battle between the Delhi Daredevils and the Royal Challengers Bangalore for the final playoff spot. RCB made a comeback into this tournament with a hat-trick of wins, and a win over here would mean a jump to the second position thanks to a positive NRR. DD needed this win equally, as RCB won the toss and chose to field first.

Delhi had a decent start as RCB did well on a track that was on the slower side. They got the wickets of Rishabh Pant and Karun Nair, who were the chief architects of Delhi’s victory against Hyderabad, in the power play. Quinton De Kock showed some determination in the middle as RCB kept chipping wickets from the other end. Yuzvendra Chahal and Chris Gayle were the chief wreckers of DD’s innings as they shared 5 wickets between themselves. De Kock too got out after scoring a patient 60 off 52 balls. It was a cameo from Chris Morris 27(18) which helped DD reach a modest total of 138.

DD came in strong looking to make a game out of the runs they had put on board. They snared up Chris Gayle and De Villiers within the third over. It was once again Virat Kohli and KL Rahul who maintained their calm and took RCB forward with a partnership of 66 from 45 balls. KL Rahul has made some valuable contributions throughout the tournament. He did it once again for RCB, in a crucial match. DD got the wicket of KL Rahul 38(23) around the halfway mark, but Shane Watson continued with the baton. Captain Kohli stayed till the very end to hit the winning runs and take RCB into playoffs. Kohli has been phenomenal throughout this IPL, and there was no exception in this match as he anchored the innings with 54 off 45 balls.