• Source:JND

Sunrisers Hyderabad continued their attacking style of cricket and crushed Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 55 runs on Friday. But despite the heavy defeat, RCB still finished at the top of the Indian Premier League points table after the league stage.

SRH put up a huge total of 255/4 after another explosive batting performance. Abhishek Sharma gave them a flying start with a quick 56 off just 22 balls, while Ishan Kishan played a superb knock of 79 from 44 deliveries. Heinrich Klaasen added more damage with a powerful 51 off 24 balls.

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RCB never really looked close to chasing the target, but they had another goal in mind. They only needed 166 runs to secure a top-two finish in the table, which would give them two chances to reach the final. They comfortably got there and ended their innings on 200/4.

How RCB finish on top despite the defeat?

With the result, RCB finished on top of the standings with a net run rate of +0.783. Gujarat Titans ended second with +0.695, while SRH stayed third with +0.524. All three teams finished with 18 points.

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RCB's batting

RCB got a decent start from Venkatesh Iyer, who scored 44 off 19 balls, but big names like Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal could not stay long at the crease.

Once the chase became difficult, skipper Rajat Patidar and Krunal Pandya focused on taking the team past the required mark. Patidar scored 56 off 39 balls, while Krunal remained unbeaten on 41. Their 84-run partnership helped RCB comfortably seal a top-two finish.

Patidar’s six off Pat Cummins confirmed RCB’s place in the top two, and later the team also secured the number one spot.

For SRH, Eshan Malinga once again impressed with the ball, picking up two wickets for 33 runs. Young pacer Sakib Hussain also bowled well during the middle overs.

SRH's batting

Earlier, SRH batters dominated from the beginning. Abhishek attacked Bhuvneshwar Kumar early and raced to another quick half-century. Kishan kept the scoreboard moving with smart strokeplay and found boundaries regularly.

Klaasen then took charge and completely changed the momentum of the game. He attacked Josh Hazlewood, smashing 27 runs in one over as SRH crossed the 250-run mark with ease.

In the final overs, Nitish Kumar Reddy added quick runs with an unbeaten 29 off just 12 balls. Overall, SRH batters hit 20 fours and 16 sixes in a dominant display.


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