Image: Phil Salt and Virat Kohli powered RCB to a 9-wicket win over RR / © Hindustan Times
The IPL 2025 is reaching its halfway stage, and here on Super Sunday in the match between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, fans witnessed a dominant chase led by Phil Salt and Virat Kohli that sealed a convincing 9-wicket win for RCB in Jaipur. With both sides looking to strengthen their position on the points table, it was the visitors who stole the show, chasing down 174 with ease in just 17.3 overs, thanks to some high-class ball-striking and composed batting.
Earlier in the evening, Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the toss and opted to field first at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. Rajasthan Royals got off to a steady start with Yashasvi Jaiswal looking in sublime touch. He shouldered the batting responsibility after skipper Sanju Samson fell early in the 7th over, stumped for 15 off Krunal Pandya, with the team score at 49.
Jaiswal anchored the innings, mixing timing with power as he brought up his half-century in 35 balls. He found good support in Riyan Parag, who played a cameo of 30 from 22 balls, adding 56 runs with Jaiswal for the second wicket. The Royals needed acceleration after Parag departed, caught by Kohli off Yash Dayal. Jaiswal continued to push the scoring but eventually fell for 75 off 47 balls, an innings laced with 10 boundaries and 2 sixes.
His dismissal came in the 16th over via LBW to Josh Hazlewood after a failed DRS review.
In the final stages, Dhruv Jurel played a valuable hand, scoring a fluent 35* off 23 balls, including 2 sixes and 2 fours. Despite Shimron Hetmyer’s quick exit and some tight bowling at the death, RR finished at a competitive 173/4 in their 20 overs. The innings had a promising flow, with 45 runs in the powerplay and 100 up by the 13th over, but lacked a final flourish.
Among the RCB bowlers, Krunal Pandya was the most economical, conceding just 29 in his 4 overs and picking up the key wicket of Samson. Hazlewood and Yash Dayal took one wicket each, while Suyash Sharma went wicketless but was on the expensive side, giving away 39 runs in his 4 overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled economically and also picked up a wicket, while Liam Livingstone contributed with a tidy over.
In reply, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s run chase was a masterclass in intent and execution. The opening pair of Phil Salt and Virat Kohli took the attack to the RR bowlers from the outset. Salt, especially, was brutal in the powerplay, racing to his half-century in just 28 balls. He dismantled Jofra Archer’s leg-side ploy with sixes and boundaries, setting the tone early.
Salt’s 65 off 33 balls included 5 fours and 6 towering sixes, and he was finally dismissed in the 9th over, caught by Jaiswal off Kumar Kartikeya. But by then, RCB had already crossed 90 and were well ahead of the asking rate. At the other end, Kohli played a classic inning, anchoring the chase with aggressive running and timely boundaries.
He reached his fifty in 39 balls and remained unbeaten on 62 off 45 balls, hitting 4 fours and 2 sixes. Devdutt Padikkal, who came in as the impact substitute for Suyash Sharma, chipped in with a breezy 40, not out of 28 balls. He struck 5 fours and 1 six and shared an unbroken 83-run stand with Kohli for the second wicket to guide RCB home.
The Rajasthan Royals bowlers had no answer to the relentless assault. Jofra Archer conceded 36 in his 4 overs, while Theekshana, Sandeep Sharma, and Tushar Deshpande all went over 10 runs an over. Kartikeya was the only bowler to find success, finishing with 1/25 in his 3 overs. The Royals tried mixing up their options by bringing in Kartikeya as the impact player for Nitish Rana during RCB’s innings, but the move came too late.
The fielding too lacked sharpness as RCB surged towards the target with 15 balls to spare. Phil Salt was rightly named the Player of the Match for his explosive innings at the top, which broke the back of the chase. His 93.49 MVP points also made him Cricinfo’s Most Valuable Player of the match.
The result means RCB now joins the top four with 8 points from 6 matches, climbing to 3rd on the table with a healthy net run rate of +0.672. Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, find themselves slipping further, having now lost 4 out of their 6 games with a negative NRR of -0.838. Yashasvi Jaiswal’s fine innings were one of the few bright spots for them on a forgettable evening.
As the IPL 2025 enters a crucial phase, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s emphatic win sends a strong message to the other contenders, especially with the Salt-Kohli duo hitting top form. Meanwhile, the Rajasthan Royals have some regrouping to do before their next fixture if they are to keep their playoff hopes alive.
In a match where Royal Challengers Bengaluru is playing, the TCNI’s Magic Moment of the Game often revolves around the name of Virat Kohli, who has been brilliant once again. On a bright evening in Jaipur, Kohli reached a monumental milestone, his 100th T20 fifty, and did so in signature style. He danced down the track to a flighted delivery and launched it straight over the bowler’s head for a glorious six. With this confident stroke, Kohli not only celebrated a personal landmark but also played a defining role in RCB’s commanding 9-wicket win over the Rajasthan Royals.
Chasing a target of 174, Kohli remained unbeaten on 62 off 45 balls, striking 4 boundaries and 2 sixes at a strike rate of 137.77. His calculated approach, combined with Phil Salt’s explosive 65 off 33, ensured that RCB cruised home with 15 balls to spare. It wasn’t just another fifty; it was a knock that demonstrated experience, class, and match awareness. Kohli’s innings stitched the chase together and kept the tempo steady throughout as the fans celebrated his innings.
Talking about the player who changed the game completely for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their favour was the innings of Phil Salt, who made the run chase so easy that it looked more like a practice match than a high-stakes IPL clash. Chasing a competitive total of 174 set by Rajasthan Royals, Salt exploded right from the beginning, scoring a blistering 65 off just 33 balls. His knock was laced with 5 fours and 6 towering sixes, striking at a phenomenal rate of 196.96. Salt’s aggressive start took the pressure off the rest of the batting lineup and put RCB in total control of the chase within the powerplay itself, reaching 65/0 in just 6 overs.
By the time he was dismissed in the 9th over, the score was already 92, with more than half the target achieved and plenty of overs in hand. His opening stand with Virat Kohli laid the perfect platform for a comfortable 9-wicket win with 15 balls remaining. For his match-defining knock that completely dismantled Rajasthan’s bowling attack and set the tone for a commanding victory, Phil Salt was not only named Player of the Match but also earned the TCNI’s Hero of the Day award for his outstanding performance.