IPL 2025 Qualifier 1: Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt shine as RCB enter fourth IPL final with dominant 8-wicket win over Punjab Kings

Bowlers were on fire as Royal Challengers Bengaluru took down Punjab Kings by 8 wickets in Qualifier 1 of IPL 2025 held in Mullanpur. With this win, RCB secured their spot in the final for the fourth time in their history. Choosing to bowl first, the team managed to dismiss PBKS for a mere 101 runs in just 14.1 overs. 

RCB's bowlers really made skipper Rajat Patidar's decision pay off, with Marcus Stoinis being the top scorer for PBKS at just 26 runs. Young leg-spinner Suyash Sharma shone brightly for RCB, taking 3 wickets for just 17 runs, while pacers Josh Hazlewood (3/21), Yash Dayal (2/26), and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1/17) also played crucial roles. In the modest chase, Phil Salt made it look easy, scoring 56 off just 27 balls to secure a comfortable victory for RCB.

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The match kicked off with RCB's captain, Rajat Patidar, winning the toss and deciding to bowl first. RCB got off to a solid start when Yash Dayal made an impact in the opening over, taking out opener Priyansh Arya for just 7 runs. In the following over, Bhuvneshwar Kumar joined the action, dismissing Prabhsimran Singh for 18. Things took a turn for the worse for PBKS when skipper Shreyas Iyer fell to Josh Hazlewood in the fourth over, and soon after, Josh Inglis also fell victim to the Aussie bowler in the sixth over. Dayal was back at it again, claiming Nehal Wadhera in the seventh over, while Suyash Sharma made his mark by taking down Shashank Singh for 3 and Musheer Khan for a duck in the ninth over. Hazlewood continued his impressive performance, picking up his third wicket in the 15th over by sending Azmatullah Omarzai back to the pavilion for 18, leaving PBKS reeling at just 101 runs in 14.1 overs.

When it came time to chase down 102 runs, RCB made it look easy, reaching 106/2 in just 10 overs, thanks to Phil Salt's stellar unbeaten innings of 56 runs off 27 balls. On the other side, Kyle Jamieson and Musheer Khan managed to take a wicket each for PBKS.

RCB, which faced a tough loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2016 final by just eight runs, also made it to the finals in 2009 and 2011, where they were defeated by Deccan Chargers and Chennai Super Kings, respectively.

As they headed into the Playoffs, the team was riding high on a confidence-boosting victory against Lucknow Super Giants in their last league match. They pulled off their highest successful run-chase in a thrilling finish, with stand-in captain Jitesh Sharma shining brightly, scoring an unforgettable unbeaten 85.

Also read| 'They treat Yuzvendra Chahal and bus driver same way': PBKS star's big team revelation ahead of RCB clash