Krunal Pandya powers Bengaluru to top of IPL

NEW DELHI (AP) — Krunal Pandya hit 73 not out off 47 balls as Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Delhi Capitals by six wickets on Sunday and moved to the top of the Indian Premier League.

Star batter Virat Kohli scored 51 runs off 47 deliveries as Bengaluru cruised to its seventh win in 10 games.

Pandya and Kohli’s 119-run partnership off 83 balls for the fourth wicket helped Bengaluru finish with 165-4 in 18.3 overs in reply to Delhi’s 162-8.

Delhi suffered its third defeat in five matches – along with a washout – and slipped to fourth in the points table.

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Mumbai beats Lucknow

In the other IPL game Sunday, Suryakumar Yadav and Ryan Rickelton scored half-centuries as Mumbai Indians beat Lucknow SuperGiants by 54 runs, lifting their side to third.

Rickelton scored 58 off 32 while Yadav made 54 off 28 as Mumbai notched up 215-7 in 20 overs.

In reply, Lucknow was bowled out for 161 in 20 overs with star pacer Jasprit Bumrah picking up 4-22 in four overs as the five-time champions registered their fifth consecutive win of the season.

Lucknow stayed sixth after its fifth loss in 10 games, while Mumbai’s rise also pushed down Punjab Kings – 11 points from nine games – to fifth.

Pandya and Kohli to the rescue

Chasing 163, Bengaluru was pegged back early as Delhi skipper Axar Patel struck twice in the third over.

In-form Phil Salt missed out owing to fever and Jacob Bethell (12) opened the innings with Kohli, putting on 20 off 14 balls, before he was caught off Patel.

The left-arm spinner also bowled impact substitute Devdutt Padikkal for a two-ball duck, and then Karun Nair ran out Rajat Patidar (6) with a direct hit.

It left Bengaluru struggling at 26-3 in four overs before Kohli and Pandya came together to put on their century stand.

Kohli dropped anchor at one end, while Pandya attacked after he settled in, hitting four sixes and five fours.

Pandya scored his maiden half-century for Bengaluru off 38 balls, while Kohli’s sixth of the season took him atop the highest runs’ tally with 443 runs in 10 games.

Kohli departed in the 18th over. Tim David scored a five-ball 19 not out to take his side home with nine balls to spare.

Earlier, Lokesh Rahul top-scored for Delhi with 41 off 39 balls after the Capitals were 69-2 in nine overs.

Delhi failed to accelerate after Abhishek Porel’s initial 28 off 11 balls. Tristan Stubbs later scored 34 off 18 balls to help cross 150, but Delhi finished with an under-par score.

Pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3-33) and Josh Hazlewood (2-36) stood out for Bengaluru once again, sharing five wickets in eight overs.

Yadav, Bumrah star for Mumbai

Mumbai was put into bat and lost Rohit Sharma for 12 after he added 33 runs with Rickelton for the first wicket.

South African Rickelton hit six fours and four sixes in his second half-century of the season – he reached 50 off 25 balls.

Rickelton added 55 off 35 balls with Will Jacks for the second wicket, which provided Mumbai a platform to go past 200.

Yadav took over the innings after Rickelton’s departure as he hit four sixes and as many fours in his third half-century of the season.

He added 28 off 17 balls with Jacks, who was bowled off Prince Yadav in the 12th over.

Yadav reached 50 off 27 balls, adding useful partnerships with middle-order batters along the way.

Key contributions came from Naman Dhir, who hit 25 not out off 11 balls with two sixes, and Corbin Bosch (20 off 10 balls).

Bosch made his first appearance of the season for the Indians, after his pre-season switch from the Pakistan Super League. He accepted Mumbai’s offer to replace compatriot Lizaad Williams for the current IPL season, negating his contract with Peshawar Zalmi for PSL 2025.

He was subsequently banned by the PSL for one year.

Chasing a hefty total, Lucknow lost in-form batsman Aiden Markram early. Mitchell Marsh (34) and Nicholas Pooran (27) added 42 off 21 balls, before a double blow from Jacks in the seventh over.

He first had Pooran caught for 27 off 15 balls, and then Rishabh Pant holed out two balls later with the skipper making only four runs leaving Lucknow down to 64-3 after 6.3 overs.

Marsh and Ayush Badoni added 46 off 29 balls for the fourth wicket, taking Lucknow past 100. The turning point came when Trent Boult dismissed Marsh in the 12th over.

Bumrah then came into play and went through the Lucknow order, picking up another three wickets. Two of those came in the 16th over when David Miller was caught for 24 and then Abdul Samad three balls later for two.

Badoni top scored with 35 off 22 balls, hitting two sixes, but it wasn’t enough to avoid Lucknow’s fifth loss of the season.

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