Punjab Kings record 6th win and give other IPL raise hopes of other teams

Punjab Kings defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore decisively by over 50 runs. This not only gave Punjab Kings hopes of qualifying for the last 4, they also ensured that other teams like Delhi Capitals, SRH can nurse some hopes for the last 4. A win for RCB would have ensured that they remained in the hunt and shut out hopes for the other teams. Alas, that was not the case as they succumbed to a shock defeat against Punjab Kings. Punjab, for their part pulled up a dream start by scoring over 60 runs in the power play. They did lose Dhawan during power play, however Bairstow continued scoring good runs which ultimately helped them score over 200 runs. From the way Punjab started, it seemed they may run up a score of over 220 runs. That was not the case finally, however that was still enough to defeat RCB who seemed to be on a losing spree. 

When RCB started, once again Kohli got out cheaply. Although Maxwell tried to revive their fortunes, it was still too much and when he got out, that was the end. Du Plessis too got out cheaply, which didn't help them much. However, once again it was the RCB's bowling that failed them as Hazelwood went for over 60 runs in his 4 overs. This was indeed too much and contributed to the score of Punjab Kings. Overall, it was a good comeback for Punjab Kings who still need to win their remaining matches and hope other teams play badly. For RCB, apart from winning next match, they need to win by a huge margin to move their NRR to positive territory. That is a huge ask and let's see if they can manage.

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For full details:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/indian-premier-league-2022-1298423/royal-challengers-bangalore-vs-punjab-kings-60th-match-1304106/match-report