Dinesh Karthik and Swapnil Singh came to the rescue of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their IPL 2024 match against Gujarat Titans on Saturday. Chasing an under-par 148 after GT were bowled out for 147, RCB were at 92/0 in 5.5 overs as Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli put on a show in the Powerplay. However, RCB suffered a mid-innings slump, losing six wickets in the space of 25 runs with Joshua Little and Noor Ahmad sharing five.
As RCB's grip seemed to be slipping, unbeaten cameos from Karthik (21) and Swapnil (15) secured their third straight win of the season, and two on the rebound against GT after last weekend's success in Ahmedabad.
There was a celebratory mood in Bengaluru after the match as star batsman and former RCB captain Kohli recalibrated the Orange Cap of CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Kohli, who hit a quick 42 on Saturday, now has 542 runs in 11 matches with Gaikwad (509) in action for CSK against Punjab Kings on Sunday.
Karthik handed the orange cap back to Kohli after the match, and the latter made a respectful gesture to the former, bowing to the former before both shared a hug.
A video of the same has now gone viral on social media.
Consistency is king, and King Kohli proves it once again, be it in health, fitness or on-field performance!
The king is the orange cap holder again.#ViratKohli #RCBvGT #Playfat pic.twitter.com/ACY9uhsXVA
— Duroflex (@Duroflex_world) May 4, 2024
Coming back to the match, the departure of Du Plessis (64) caused a collapse as Gujarat hit back with wickets of Joshua Little and Noor Ahmad, leaving the opposition in trouble at 117-6 when Kohli was dismissed.
Will Jacks, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green all died cheaply before Karthik and Swapnil ensured there was no more drama as they sent the team home at 35 unbeaten.
Earlier, Gujarat went three down for 19 inside six overs before big hitter Shahrukh Khan, who top-scored with 37, stood strong in a 61-run stand with David Miller, who hit 30 off 20 balls.
The win allowed RCB to climb out of the bottom of the table. With three games to go, they are currently seventh in the points table.
Left-handed Rahul Tewatia hit a 21-ball 35 and set up another key stand with Rashid Khan to add respectability to the total.
(With AFP inputs)
Topics mentioned in this article