Follow UsRoyal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) succumbed to a 42-run defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Lucknow in pursuit of 232. They were well on course to register a historic victory, but they collapsed from 173/3 in 15.3 overs to 189 all out in 19.5 overs.
Overall, they lost their last seven wickets for 16 runs in 26 deliveries to hand SRH their fifth win of the season.
The defeat is a huge blow for RCB as their top two chances are now in jeopardy. However, they can still achieve it in the following circumstances:
Scenario 1: If CSK beat GT
RCB will seal Top Two if they beat LSG
Scenario 2: If GT beat CSK and PBKS lose both their games
RCB will seal Top Two if they beat LSG
Scenario 3: If GT beat CSK and PBKS win one of their two games
RCB will need to beat LSG by a heavy margin in order to seal Top Two
RCB will not finish top two if GT beat CSK and PBKS win both their remaining games.
All the top four teams still remain in contention to finish top two. It is vital for the teams to finish in the top two as it would give them two cracks of making the final. The teams that finish in the top two will clash in Qualifier 1. The loser of that match will take on the winner of the Eliminator in Qualifier 2.
RCB, who had a net run-rate of 0.48 before today, now see their NRR slip to 0.26 after this loss against SRH. They remain third on the Indian Premier League (IPL) points table with 17 points from 13 games. Their final league game will be against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 27 (Tuesday).