Royal Challengers Bengaluru Mentor Dinesh Karthik said lost momentum after rain arrived in the second half of the IPL 2025 game against Delhi Capitals at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Delhi Capitals were in a tough spot while chasing 164 runs with the required run rate of 10.5 with six overs left. However, they quickened the run chase and completed the target with 13 balls left in their innings.
KL Rahul made an unbeaten 93 runs off 53 deliveries and Tristan Stubbs’ 38 runs off 23 deliveries made an unbeaten 111 partnership helped the Capitals win by six wickets in Bengaluru.
Batting first, RCB got off to a splendid start scoring 53 runs in the first three overs before their batting collapse. But a 37-run cameo from Tim David took them past the 160-run mark.
Speaking on the pitch conditions, Dinesh Karthik said, “It definitely wasn’t an easy pitch for batting. It’s been challenging in both games we’ve played here. In the first game, there was dew in the second innings, so it became easier to bat.”
“Today, not so much dew, but the pitch was still tough. Then, unfortunately for us, a bit of rain came and changed things. You could see the difference, the shots they played weren’t possible in the first innings.”
Karthik said that if RCB has dismissed one of Stubbs and Rahul, they could have made more inroads into the deep DC batting lineup.
“Last time we played on this pitch, it was a bit sticky. If you saw the first four overs of our innings up to the 13th over, we were very much in the game with the bat. We had a wobble but still managed to get to a decent score.”
“And they were struggling — 50 for 4 — so we believed that one more wicket, either KL or Tristan Stubbs, both high-quality international players, and we were back in the game,” Karthik added.
RCB have won all their three away matches thus far, but are yet to open their account at home. Royal Challengers Bengaluru will be playing their next match against Rajasthan Royals on April 13 at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
