The IPL 2025 season has reached its tail end, and Sunrisers Hyderabad proved to be the proverbial banana peel for Royal Challengers Bengaluru. On Friday, cricket fans in Lucknow witnessed a high-scoring encounter as SRH batted first and scored 231 on the board. Ishan Kishan, who has been in bad form so far, scored a 48-ball 94 not out to put the RCB bowlers under the sword.
Phil Salt got the chase off to a good start with a 32-ball 62 as Virat Kohli scored a quickfire 43, which came off just 25 balls. Once the openers were dismissed, RCB’s batting seemed jittery, but Jitesh Sharma and Rajat Patidar came together to put the chase back on track. Once Patidar was out, RCB’s batting fell off the rails, and they lost the game by 42 runs.
Here are the 3 reasons why RCB lost to SRH
3- Tim David’s injury
Australian batter Tim David was injured while fielding during SRH’s batting innings. The 29-year-old has been giving RCB the muscle in the backend of the innings. David’s injury meant that he couldn’t run, which more or less ended RCB’s chances of winning the game. The Australian has been able to build his innings with quick running between the wickets and then using his power game to hit sixes and fours. Batting on foot, David wasn’t the same batter that he was earlier in the season.
2- Josh Hazlewood’s absence
One fact that every RCB fan will agree with his the fact that Josh Hazlewood has single-handedly been able to take his side to the top half of the table. The 34-year-old is set to rejoin RCB for the playoff matches, but the bowling on Friday was shocking. Yash Dayal bowled just three wicketless overs and was hit for 36 runs. Every bowler was hit for over 10 runs per over. Krunal Pandya was the only bowler who came away with marginally better figures, with 1/38 from four overs.
1- Over-dependence on the Salt and Kohli duo
Phil Salt will be playing one more game before heading back home to play the series against the West Indies. The right-handed batter scored yet another fifty and showed what a great asset he has been so far. Virat Kohli, too, has been at his best in the current season of IPL. Toim Seifert has been drafted in as the replacement for Jacob Bethell and will be expected to open the batting. The middle-order failed to do well after Salt was dismissed and lost their last seven wickets for just 16 runs. The failing middle-order was one of the biggest reasons why RCB lost to SRH.
Disclaimer: This Exclusive News is based on the author’s understanding, analysis, and instinct. As you review this information, consider the points mentioned and form your own conclusions.
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