Wankhede witnessed fireworks and heartbreak as RCB finally ended a ten-year winless streak against MI at their fortress.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru put up a massive 221 for 5, thanks to blazing fifties from Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar. But the chase wasn’t short on thrill. Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma nearly pulled off the impossible with a brutal 89-run stand in just 34 balls.
RCB were off to a flyer. Kohli smashed a 29-ball fifty, his fastest in the IPL since 2018. Padikkal and Patidar joined the assault, while Jitesh Sharma’s quick hits in the end lifted RCB to 221.
Mumbai, in reply, stumbled early. Rickelton and Suryakumar failed to fire. Hazlewood and Suyash Sharma choked MI’s top order, reducing their chances to just 2.25% by the 12th over.
Then came the twist. Hardik went into beast mode, blasting 42 off 15 balls. Tilak supported with a gritty 56. They turned the game on its head, bringing the target down to 19 off the final over.
That’s when Krunal Pandya stepped in. Bowling the last over against his own brother, he held his nerve. With 18 to defend, Krunal took 2 wickets and sealed RCB’s 12-run win. His 4 for 45 were his best IPL figures ever.
It was drama, emotion, and redemption rolled into one match. While RCB ended their Wankhede jinx, MI were left wondering how they let it slip.
