His 36-ball 78, Patidar, Kohli’s fifties hand them 18-run win
Mumbai: Fifties from Rajat Patidar, Phil Salt and Virat Kohli powered Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a commanding 18-run win over Mumbai Indians in an IPL match here on Sunday.
Asked to bat, RCB piled up a daunting 240 for four, riding on Salt’s 78, Kohli’s 50 and skipper Patidar’s brisk 53. Tim David provided the late flourish with an unbeaten 34 off 16 balls.
Salt and Kohli set the tone with a 120-run opening stand, taking the attack to the MI bowlers in the powerplay. While Salt dominated with aggressive strokeplay, Kohli played the anchor before reaching his half-century. Patidar then accelerated the innings with a 20-ball 53, including a flurry of sixes, as RCB maintained momentum through the middle overs.
In reply, Mumbai Indians managed 222 for five. Impact substitute Sherfane Rutherford’s unbeaten 71 off 31 balls, featuring nine sixes, reduced the margin, while skipper Hardik Pandya made 40.
However, MI never truly threatened after a modest powerplay and the loss of Rohit Sharma, who retired hurt with a hamstring injury. Krunal Pandya was the pick of the bowlers for RCB, returning economical figures, while timely strikes kept MI in check.
