Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) convincing 47-run win over Delhi Capitals on Sunday not only kept them alive in the race to playoffs but also set a new record for most consecutive victories by a team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history.
Led by Rajat Patidar's 32-ball 52 and useful contributions by Will Jacks (29 off 41 balls), Cameron Green (32 off 24) and Virat Kohli (27 off 13), RCB put up a competitive 187 for 9 on the board after being asked to bat first by Delhi Capitals, who were led by Axar Patel in the absence of Rishabh Pant, out with a one-match suspension.
In chase, Delhi folded up for 140 in 19.1 overs despite skipper Axar's fighting 39-ball 57. Yash Dayal starred with the ball for RCB, taking 3 for 20, while New Zealander Lockie Ferguson took 2 for 23.
This was RCB's fifth consecutive win, making them the first team to do so since the start of the IPL in 2008.
Here's the list of their five back to back wins in IPL 2024:
vs Delhi Capitals - won by 47 runs, May 12
vs Punjab Kings - won by 60 runs, May 9
vs Gujarat Titans - won by 4 wickets, May 4
vs Gujarat Titans - won by 9 wickets, April 28
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad - won by 35 runs, April 25
Before this winning run, RCB had lost 7 of their 8 matches. But this turnaround in form has pushed the Bengaluru team up to No. 5 on the points table with 6 wins in 13 matches.
They have just one match left to play, which will be against the defending champions, Chennai Super Kings, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on May 18.
Chennai are currently third on the table with 14 points, which is two more than RCB. While RCB's playoff chances depend on the results in other matches as well, their last game against CSK may turn into a direct shootout for a place in the playoffs.
