STAND-IN SKIPPER Jitesh Sharma scored an unbeaten 85 and Virat Kohli hit 54 as Royal Challengers Bengaluru entered qualifier 1 of the IPL playoffs with a six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday.
Bengaluru chased 228 to finish second in the 10-team table in the final league match of the season. They will now face table-toppers Punjab Kings on Thursday.
The result moved Gujarat Titans to third spot. They will play Mumbai Indians in the eliminator on Friday.
The winner of qualifier 1 will advance to the final on June 3. The loser will play the winner of the eliminator in qualifier 2 to decide the second finalist in Ahmedabad.
Lucknow captain Rishabh Pant remained unbeaten on 118 off 61 balls as his team posted 227-3, but Bengaluru reached the target with eight balls left.
Kohli’s 30-ball knock laid the platform for Bengaluru before stand-in skipper Jitesh and Mayank Agarwal, who hit 41, put together an unbeaten 107-run stand to seal the win. Lucknow were already out of the playoffs.
"I will not be able to express my thoughts, I can't believe I played that knock," said player of the match Jitesh. "When Virat bhai (brother) was out, I was just thinking of taking it deep."
Kohli, 36, who announced his Test retirement earlier this month, crossed 9,000 runs for Bengaluru — the most by a batsman for one team in men's T20 cricket. Rohit Sharma is next with 6,060 runs for Mumbai.
Pant’s effort falls short
Kohli and opening partner Phil Salt added 61 runs, with Salt making 30. Lucknow hit back with New Zealand quick Will O'Rourke taking two wickets in two balls.
O'Rourke dismissed regular skipper and impact substitute Rajat Patidar for 14 and trapped Liam Livingstone leg before for a golden duck.
Jitesh turned the chase around with his first IPL fifty. He hit eight fours and six sixes, including the winning six, in his 33-ball knock.
Earlier, Pant, who had struggled for runs after being signed by Lucknow for a record $3.21 million, ended the season with his best score.
But Pant said, "Eventually you've got to play 40 overs of good cricket. Twenty overs aren't going to save you."
Wicketkeeper-batsman Pant reached his 100 in 54 balls and celebrated with a somersault. He had made only 151 runs from 12 previous innings at an average of 13.72.
Pant shared a 152-run second-wicket stand with Mitchell Marsh, who scored 67 off 37 balls, after promoting himself to number three.
Pant hit 11 fours and eight sixes in his 61-ball innings, surpassing his previous best of 63 this season. But Bengaluru and Kohli had the final say as they aim for their first IPL title.
(With inputs from agencies)
