RR vs RCB Match Summary:

Royal Challengers Bangalore 157/8
Rajasthan Royals 161/3  (18.1/20 ov, T:158)
Royals won by 7 wickets (with 11 balls remaining)

Player of the Match: Jos Buttler (106* off 60)

In the Clash of Royals today, we had a clear winner. Rajasthan ruled the game like anything and showed their prowess. There is no denying, and I’m sure that people will agree that even though Rajasthan has their captain in Sanju Samson, their King is Jos Buttler, who just can’t stop himself from scoring runs. The Challengers didn’t put enough challenge for Rajasthan as they put up the target of only 158 for them to win which RR achieved in 18 overs and won the match by 7 wickets. Here in this article, we have discussed RR vs RCB Match Summary in detail. 

From early on in the innings, we could see Rajasthan openers come out with an intent to finish the game as soon as possible. The timed hurry could be seen in Jaiswal’s shot for first couple of overs and Jos enjoyed it from the other end. As soon as he hit a couple of fours after playing enough balls, there was no stopping his big-hitting. Jaiswal was dismissed for 21 and was replaced by Sanju Samson who gave Jos the lead where he blasted and showed his intention of hitting a century. Chasing a smaller score, it may have looked like he may not achieve the feat but we can never predict what is possible for Jos the Boss. The batters on the other end may have kept changing but that didn’t change the pace of RR’s innings. Buttler finished his century (106* off 60) much before reaching the target in the 18th over and finished the game with a six in the next ball. 

The RCB looked like a different team than what we saw of them against Lucknow in Eliminator 1. The batters just couldn’t click and bowlers failed miserably. It felt like they were bowling on some different pitch than Rajasthan’s bowlers who were successful in pulling off one of the best bowling performances of the season. They even had very bad field placements for the lines their bowlers bowled as batters from the other team could easily find gaps and hit more boundaries. 

It won’t be unfair to say that RCB again failed to perform at a bigger level like earlier and that is something they need to work on as a franchise. As for Rajasthan is concerned, Kudos to their all-around game and good luck for the finals!

The losing captain Faf looked disappointed as he spoke about the team’s exit but appreciated the team’s effort in the journey to the semis, as he said, “When we walked off the field we felt we were a bit short. It was pretty challenging with the new ball, it moved around a bit. But we got through the first six without much damage. It felt like Test cricket in that first session. More bounce really. Still, we felt 180 was par. I am really proud otherwise. It has been a great season for RCB. My first season to see how special the crowds have been for us. Harshal, DK< all the guys who are picked for India deserve it. I stand proud of the team even though we were not at our best tonight and against a very strong Rajasthan Royals side. There is some really nice young talent in our squad, and you have a three-year plan. That’s what you look to maximize. You can see how good Rajat has been after he came in. Our fans have been the most obvious thing. You go to any game anywhere and you have RCB-RCB chanted. The guys were emotional when we heard the RCB chants even when playing Mumbai. So well done to our fans and thank you very much.”

The winning Captain Sanju Samson talked about his journey of following Rajasthan as the first winner to being the captain who will lead the team in the finals, he said, “It was really tough but we used to bouncing back in the IPL. It is a long tournament where you go up and down. The wicket, bowling first, was a bit sticky and helped the fast bowlers. The bounce was good, which made it easier to hit the spinners. But our fast bowlers bowled really well. We needed to close very well with DK and Maxwell there. Yes, definitely the toss made it much easier for us. The toss plays a huge part. The pitch plays completely different in the second innings. We are very fortunate to have Jos. Touch wood, one more match to go. I was playing an Under-16 final somewhere in Kerala when I saw Shane Warne and Sohail Tanvir win it for Rajasthan Royals in 2008.”

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Jos Buttler