.jpg "New Tariffs Could Target Forced Labor. Is It a Fix?")
Virat Kohli reserved special praise for Krunal Pandya after Royal Challengers Bengaluru pulled off a thrilling two-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in Raipur on Sunday. Despite getting dismissed for a golden duck himself, Kohli called Krunal’s fighting 73 one of the best pressure knocks he had seen in the IPL.
RCB’s chase of 167 had nearly collapsed at 39/3 before Krunal dragged the side back into the contest with a fearless innings despite battling severe cramps in the final overs. Speaking in the RCB dressing room after the match, Kohli admitted the team had struggled badly on the surface but praised Krunal for refusing to give up under pressure.
IPL, RCB vs MI: HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD
“I think it’s the best ideal knock. So far from what I’ve seen, we’ve played a lot of knocks under pressure, but I think tonight was special,” Kohli said during his dressing room speech.
“We’re struggling with bouncing balls hitting you, keeping low, bouncing up, but you never made an excuse. You just showed us how to grind, how to stay in there, find a solution, find a way.”
Kohli particularly highlighted the moment where Krunal, despite struggling physically, still found the strength to attack in the death overs.
“And even when you were cramping, those two sixes were actually the difference in the game, where you could have easily said I can’t carry on, but you found the strength to carry on for the future. We can take a lot of inspiration from that,” Kohli added.
The praise came after one of the most dramatic finishes of IPL 2026. RCB looked completely out of the chase after losing Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Rajat Patidar early in the Powerplay. This season, Bengaluru had not won a single game after losing two or more wickets inside the Powerplay.
Krunal, however, steadied the innings first alongside Jacob Bethell before gradually shifting gears as wickets kept falling around him.
HOW KRUNAL PANDYA HELPED RCB BEAT MI
Krunal’s innings was not built around reckless hitting.
Instead, it was about surviving the difficult phase first and then finding ways to keep RCB alive deep into the chase.
The all-rounder scored 73 off 46 balls, smashing four boundaries and five sixes at a strike-rate of 158.70. But the most important phase of his innings probably came once cramps started troubling him badly in the final overs.
At one point, Krunal was visibly struggling to run between wickets and repeatedly stretching between deliveries.
Yet he still managed to launch AM Ghazanfar for back-to-back sixes in the 18th over, shots that eventually became decisive in the context of the chase.
Even after Krunal’s dismissal, the game still needed late drama.
Jasprit Bumrah bowled a sensational 19th over to pull Mumbai back into the contest before Bhuvneshwar Kumar smashed a crucial six in the final over.
Eventually, Rasikh Salam Dar completed the winning second run off the final ball to seal a memorable victory for RCB.
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Player Stats | Purple Cap | Orange Cap | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
– Ends
