Royal Challengers Bengaluru upstaged Rishabh Pant’s century and stormed into the Indian Premier League's qualifier 1 with a monumental six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday.
Bengaluru, needing a victory to avoid playing an eliminator against Mumbai Indians, cruised to 230-4 and became the first team in IPL history to win all its away games.
Pant smashed unbeaten 118 off 61 balls with eight sixes and 11 fours in his first big knock of the season that carried Lucknow to a strong 227-3.
Bengaluru will take on table-topper Punjab Kings on Thursday. Gujarat Titans slipped to No. 3 and will meet Mumbai in the eliminator on Friday.
The loser of qualifier 1 gets another chance to have a crack at next Tuesday’s final in Ahmedabad when it plays the winner of eliminator on Sunday.
Lucknow finished seventh.
Sharma’s blitz stuns Lucknow
Stand-in captain Jitesh Sharma’s blistering unbeaten 85 off just 33 balls that featured six sixes and eight fours propelled Bengaluru to chase down the tall target with eight balls to spare after Virat Kohli’s 54 off 30 balls had provided a brisk start.
Kohli kickstarted the chase with four successive boundaries against Will O’Rourke in the second over after Phil Salt (30) had started the over with a crisp cover driven boundary against the New Zealand fast bowler.
Despite Salt getting caught in the covers in the sixth over, Bengaluru finished the power play at a strong 66-1 with Kohli striking at better than run-a-ball.
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Pant turned back to O’Rourke soon after the power play and the fast bowler claimed the wickets of Rajat Patidar and Liam Livingstone off successive balls which brought Lucknow back into the game.
Kohli raised raised his half-century off 27 balls with his 10th boundary when he hit Akash Singh through extra cover but left Bengaluru at 123-4 in the 12th over when he sliced a catch to long-off.
But Mayank Agarwal (41 not out) and Sharma didn’t hold back with their aggressive batting and bludgeoned 107-run stand off 45 balls to cruise their team home with eight balls to spare.
Agarwal smashed Akash Singh for three consecutive boundaries within the first five balls he faced while Sharma smashed six sixes and eight fours in his blazing unbeaten knock.
O’Rourke ended up with most expensive bowling figures by a Lucknow bowler in the IPL when he finished with 2-74, conceding nine boundaries and four sixes.
Pant finally scores big
Pant’s long struggle with the bat this season finally ended when the left-hander smashed a century after Bengaluru’s stand-in captain Sharma had won the toss and elected to field.
Pant, batting at No. 3, was at his best after Nuwan Thushara had clean bowled Matthew Breetzke (14) in the third over.
Pant was quick out of his blocks and raised his half-century off 29 balls. Mitchell Marsh (67) brought up his sixth 50-plus score this season off 31 balls as he put on a strong 152-run stand off 78 balls with Pant.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1-46) broke the threatening partnership in the 16th over when Marsh was caught behind but not before the Australian had smashed the fast bowler for two successive sixes.
Pant reached his much-awaited century off 54 balls with a boundary off Kumar in the 18th over and celebrated it with a front-flip as Lucknow breached the 200-run mark.
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Fast bowlers Yash Dayal (0-44) and Romario Shepherd (1-51) leaked further 26 runs in the final two overs with Shepherd getting the consolation wicket of Nicholas Pooran in the last over.