IPL: 7 Wickets for 35 Runs – How KKR Threw Away the Match in 5 Overs

IPL: RCB Lose the Battle But Win the War! Secure Top Spot Despite Big Defeat to SRH






What a crazy night in Hyderabad!

Sunrisers Hyderabad smashed 255 runs but still couldn't knock Royal Challengers Bengaluru out of the top two.

Confused? Let me explain.

The Situation Before the Match

RCB needed just one thing: don't lose too badly.

Even if they lost, as long as the margin was less than 90 runs, they would still finish in the top two. SRH, on the other hand, needed to win big very big to jump ahead of RCB.

What happened next? A run-fest.

SRH Batting: Absolute Carnage

SRH batted first and went completely crazy.

Abhishek Sharma flew like a rocket. He scored 56 off just 22 balls. But here's the thing — RCB dropped him not once, not twice, but three times! And he made them pay.

  • Sixth over: Dropped.

  • Seventh over: Dropped again.

  • Eighth over: You guessed it........... dropped.



Abhishek smashed sixes for fun before finally getting out in the ninth over. By then, SRH were already close to 100 runs.

Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen Join the Party

Ishan Kishan continued his love affair against RCB. This was his fourth consecutive fifty against them! He scored 79 off 46 balls calm, collected, and brutal when needed.

Heinrich Klaasen started slowly just 5 runs off his first 9 balls. Then he faced Josh Hazlewood.

And destroyed him.



Hazlewood conceded 27 runs in a single over the most he's ever given in T20s. Klaasen hit sixes at will and crossed 600 runs for the season, becoming the first player to do so while batting at No. 4 or lower in a T20 tournament.

Nitish Reddy finished with a bang *29* off just 12 balls* as SRH posted a massive 255/4.

The Target and The Equation

Now came the twist.

SRH needed to restrict RCB to 166 or less to move into the top two.

RCB needed to score at least 166 to secure their spot.

Simple, right? Not exactly.

RCB Chase: Calculated and Calm

Venkatesh Iyer opened the innings and came out firing. He smashed 44 off just 19 balls — including three sixes in one over off left-arm wrist spinner Shivang Kumar. RCB reached 50 in just 4 overs.

Venkatesh fell in the fourth over, but the damage was done.

Virat Kohli (15) and Devdutt Padikkal (21) kept the scoreboard moving. But Sakib Hussain bowled brilliantly 1 for 31 in 4 overs and kept things tight.

Then came Rajat Patidar.

He played a captain's knock 56 off 39 balls his fourth fifty of the season. He hit crisp boundaries off Malinga, Cummins, and Harshal Patel. Fun fact: He got out to Travis Head of all people! The off-spinner (yes, Head bowls off-spin sometimes) dismissed him with a rank long-hop.

Krunal Pandya stayed unbeaten with 41 off 31 balls, and RCB finished at 200/4.

Did SRH Win?

Yes. They won by 55 runs.

But did they get what they wanted? No.

RCB needed 166 to secure top two. They crossed that mark easily. In fact, they cruised past it in the 17th over.

The Final Table

Pos Team Pts NRR Qualification
🏆1st 🔴 RCB 18 +0.982 ✅ Q1
2nd 🟡 GT 18 +0.876 ✅ Q1
3rd 🟠 SRH 18 +0.754 ⚡ Eliminator

All three teams had 18 points. But net run-rate decided the order.

RCB finished No. 1 yes, the team that lost by 55 runs finished on top of the table!

SRH stayed third despite scoring 255.

Key Moments of the Match

Key Moment Impact
⚡ Abhishek Sharma dropped three times He scored 56 off 22 balls and took the game away from RCB
🎯 Klaasen's 27-run over off Hazlewood Most expensive over of Hazlewood's T20 career completely changed the momentum
🚀 Venkatesh Iyer's 44 off 19 balls Gave RCB the perfect start and calmed their nerves in the big chase
✅ RCB crossed 166 in the 17th over Sealed their top-two spot the moment they knew they were safe
🔄 Travis Head dismissed Rajat Patidar The part-time off-spinner's golden moment got the RCB captain with a rank long-hop

What's Next?

  • RCB head to Dharamsala for Qualifier 1 on May 26. They will face Gujarat Titans. Winner goes straight to the final.

  • SRH travel to Mullanpur for the Eliminator on May 27. They will face the team that finishes fourth.

Final Thought

SRH played like champions. They smashed 255 runs. They won by 55 runs.

But sometimes, winning isn't enough.

RCB lost the battle but won the war. They go to Qualifier 1. SRH go to the Eliminator.

That's IPL for you. Never boring. Never predictable.