Kolkata: Exceptional bowling and fielding triggered Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s first batting collapse of the season before Gujarat Titans made heavy weather of a relatively easy target. Rahul Tewatia’s 17-ball 27, however, helped Titans overcome a middle-order wobble to secure two points with a four-wicket win at Ahmedabad on Thursday.
Set only 156 to win, Titans were cruising at 92/2 in the eighth over before losing three wickets in 18 balls. The initial momentum was set up by Shubman Gill, who scored 43 off 18 balls, laced with seven boundary hits.
Between being cut into half and squared up twice by Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s prodigious swing, Gill went forward and lofted him over extra-cover for a gorgeous six. First ball of the second over, he went down the track and flayed Josh Hazlewood over point for a four to show he wasn’t afraid of taking on his Test lengths.
Next ball, he made space while skipping down the track and lofted him over extra cover for four. Most denting, however, was the 85m six he launched, hitting Hazlewood through the line over long-on to give Titans a decisive start. After punching four square of the wicket, Gill then flicked a pedestrian delivery down leg over deep backward square-leg for a six, carving 24 runs from that over.
That momentum was punctured when Kohli caught Gill at extra cover. But with Jos Buttler seamlessly taking charge of the assault, Titans’ run rate never suffered. Kumar, however, hit back by castling Buttler’s stumps around his legs before Shahrukh Khan and Washington Sundar were dismissed in the 11th over, leaving Titans in a bit of a soup. Had RCB scored more, the game surely would have gone to the wire.
And it was going that way too after Virat Kohli came out in typically aggressive fashion, taking the attack to Kagiso Rabada with five boundaries in a single over. At 59/2 in the powerplay, RCB looked set for a big haul. But Rabada’s response turned the game. Persisted with by his captain, he banged one in short and cramped Kohli, who miscued to Rashid Khan at mid-wicket. Kohli’s 28 off 13 had set the tone, but his dismissal triggered a collapse.
From 59/2, RCB slipped to 132/8, losing six wickets in the middle overs—the second-worst middle-phase collapse this season. Rashid was central to the slide, striking twice in a tight spell. He first removed Tim David, brilliantly caught by Jason Holder, whose fielding proved game-changing. Holder then backed it up with another sharp catch to dismiss Rajat Patidar earlier, showcasing exceptional anticipation.
Rashid’s bigger blow came when he dismissed Devdutt Padikkal. Batting fluently for his 40, Padikkal was running out of partners when he was undone by a quicker delivery that ricocheted onto the stumps.
That wicket effectively broke RCB’s resistance as Gujarat Titans’ bowlers started consolidating this advantage. Arshad Khan held his nerve through the middle and death overs, while Mohammed Siraj and Holder maintained pressure. Rabada’s comeback spell stood out, especially after his expensive start.
RCB’s gamble to bring in Venkatesh Iyer as an Impact Player didn’t pay off, leaving them slightly light on bowling resources later. Their innings ended tamely, with just 23 runs coming in the last five overs. A late, lower-order 29-run stand between Iyer and Kumar provided some resistance, lasting five overs—the longest 9th or 10th wicket partnership in RCB’s IPL history—but it only delayed the inevitable.