Follow UsIn Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have been captained by two of the greatest T20 cricketers in history in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Yet tonight in Lucknow, Jitesh Sharma, officially leading the side despite Rajat Patidar’s presence, might have played the greatest ever knock by an RCB captain, as the wicket-keeper batter smashed an extraordinary 85* off 33 balls to power RCB to a top two finish, the first instance of them finishing in the top two in nine years.
Chasing 228, the game seemed to have slipped out of RCB’s hands when Virat Kohli perished in the 12th over, as the side slipped to 123/4. At that point, RCB still needed 105 more off 8.4 overs.
From this point onwards, Jitesh launched one of the most extraordinary onslaughts in the tournament’s history, smoking 8 fours and 6 sixes as RCB finished the chase with 8 balls to spare. Jitesh finished with a strike rate of 257.58, the second-best for a captain in IPL history (min 75 runs scored).
267.64 - Kieron Pollard vs PBKS at Wankhede, 2019
257.58 - Jitesh Sharma vs LSG in Lucknow, 2025
242.85 - Adam Gilchrist vs DC in Centurion, 2009
Thanks to Jitesh’s onslaught, RCB have finished second and will take on Punjab Kings in Qualifier 1 in Mullanpur on May 29 (Thursday).
RCB, like Punjab, are eyeing to win their first ever IPL title. They last made the final in 2016, where they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.