With a second-place finish and a place in Qualifier 1 against the top side, Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 29, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) won their last league game of IPL 2025. Thus, Gujarat Titans (GT) placed third and will play the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Eliminator on May 30.
RCB chased a target of 228 runs against the Lucknow Super Giants in a thrilling chase, aided by excellent half-centuries from Virat Kohli and the acting captain Jitesh Sharma. This came even though Rishabh Pant’s amazing innings of 118 runs off 61 balls went to waste, marking RCB’s third appearance in Qualifier 1, having previously achieved top-two finishes in 2011 and 2016.
Though PBKS had a better net run rate, both Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and PBKS ended the league phase with 19 points each, having had one match canceled due to rain. By defeating MI just a day earlier, PBKS had ensured their top-two placement; Mumbai Indians (MI) ended up with 16 points. GT, meanwhile, finished with 18 points as a result of their losses in their last two matches against LSG and Chennai Super Kings.
RCB seemed like it would have to fight the Eliminator as Pant’s century pushed LSG to a score of 227 for 3 in Qualifier 1. But RCB could complete the third-highest IPL run after an incredible performance from Jitesh, who scored an undefeated 85 runs off only 33 deliveries. Notably, RCB became the first team to win all seven of their assigned away games.
While GT and MI are slated to face off at the same venue on Friday, RCB will have little time to get ready for their Qualifier 1 match versus PBKS in New Chandigarh on Thursday. With grand finals planned for June 3, the second Qualifier is set for June 1 in Ahmedabad.
