MUMBAI: Despite scoring 212 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday, Royal Challengers Bangalore lost the match in a last-ball thriller against Lucknow Super Giants.
Quickfire half-centuries by Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni’s enterprising 30 guided LSG to a one-wicket win against RCB in their IPL 2023 match.
While the heartbreaking defeat sobered the festive mood of the RCB die-hards, several social media users flooded online platforms with hilarious posts and memes.
Memes, poking fun at the expense of the Bengaluru franchise over its history of losing matches from winning positions, sparked a laugh-riot on social media.
Asked to bat first by LSG, RCB posted a massive 212/2 in their 20 overs. Virat Kohli (61 off 45 balls, 4 boundaries and four sixes) got the hosts off to a flier and was involved in a rollicking 96-run stand off just 69 balls with skipper Faf Du Plessis.
After struggling initially, the skipper exhibited stunning strokeplay and power-hitting during a swashbuckling 115-run stand with Glenn Maxwell off just 50 balls. Du Plessis scored an unbeaten 79 off 46 balls, studded with five fours and five sixes. Maxwell scored 59 off 29 balls, striking three fours and six sixes. Dinesh Karthik was unbeaten on 1 at the close of the RCB innings. Mark Wood (1/32) and Amit Mishra (1/18) were among the wickets for LSG.
Chasing 213, LSG were off to a rocky start as they were reduced to 23/3 in four overs. However, K L Rahul (18) and Marcus Stoinis were involved in a game-changing 76-run stand for the fourth wicket. Stoinis scored a quickfire 65 off 30 balls, comprising six fours and five sixes.
Nicholas Pooran upped the ante for the visitors following KL Rahul and Stoinis’s dismissal, scoring 62 off just 19 balls with four boundaries and seven hits over the fence. He formed a rollicking 84-run stand with Ayush Badoni, who scored 30 off 24 balls.
The equation came down to five runs in the final over bowled by Harshal Patel, who conceded a single off ball one and picked up a wicket off the second. A double and single were taken off balls three and four. Unadkat was dismissed off the penultimate ball, bringing down the equation to just a single off the last ball. Harshal attempted to run Ravi Bishnoi out at the non-strikers’ end, but failed. The LSG pair ran a bye off the last ball, clinching a memorable 1-wicket win. (ANI)