KL Rahul handed Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) yet another home defeat as Delhi Capitals

It was the kind of game that teased RCB fans with hope before yanking it away — a familiar heartbreak at the Chinnaswamy. RCB were off to a dream start with the bat — the powerplay yielded 55 runs, du Plessis and Kohli looking fluent. But once the spinners came on, the innings fell into a rut. Kuldeep and Axar choked the middle overs, and what once looked like a 180-plus track suddenly seemed sluggish and tricky. The middle-order collapse meant RCB could only post 158 — a total that always felt 15-20 runs short. But just as the match seemed to be drifting DC’s way, RCB clawed back. Two quick wickets, including Phil Salt and Mitchell Marsh, reignited the crowd. The momentum shifted. The chants grew louder. The fielders buzzed. Enter KL Rahul. The Bengaluru boy played with the kind of poise that made the run chase look far simpler than it was. While others faltered, he found gaps, rotated strike, and unleashed the occasional boundary with minimal fuss. A silencer knock in his home city, calmly pushing DC across the line with an unbeaten 72 off 48. With this, DC extended their perfect run — four games, four wins — and RCB now sit on just two points from six matches, winless at home and under increasing pressure. It was classic KL Rahul — calm, calculated, and then suddenly, absolutely clinical. RCB's innings felt like a tale of two extremes: a turbo-charged start, a dramatic slump in the middle, and then a late burst that slightly salvaged what could've been a much worse score. But 163 was always going to be chaseable unless the bowlers produced something magical — and for a moment, it seemed like they might. Three wickets in the powerplay, the crowd alive, DC teetering at 67 for 4 — the pressure was on. But Rahul and Stubbs just flipped the script. Rahul’s transformation was remarkable: from 29 off 29 to 93* off 53 — 64 runs in his last 24 balls. That’s not just acceleration; that’s domination. And he did it without ever really looking like he was forcing it. Once he got his eye in, he picked the bowlers apart with that effortless timing we’ve seen glimpses of so often but not always in crunch situations. And Stubbs? That reverse sweep off Krunal was pure cheek, but effective. His 43* off 23 was the perfect foil to Rahul’s assault, and their 111-run stand not only sealed the win but made it look easy by the end. It’s a massive concern now for RCB — second home loss, middle-order wobbles, and a bowling unit that can’t quite hold up under pressure. On the other hand, DC look settled, confident, and increasingly lethal. KL Rahul really owned that stage, didn't he? That 18th over from Yash Dayal was like the exclamation point on a masterclass. Two sixes and a four — pure command. And that bat slam? That wasn’t just celebration; that was a statement: this is my turf. That kind of acceleration — from run-a-ball to warp speed — is what separates the good from the elite. Striking at 100 for the first 29 balls and then ripping 64 off the next 24 at 266.67 is almost absurd. Not many can flip a switch like that so smoothly. And to do it in Bengaluru, his hometown, against a team that desperately needed a win at home — yeah, this one’s going in the highlight reels. DC’s horror start made the finish even more dramatic. Losing Faf and Fraser-McGurk in the same over had alarm bells ringing, and then Porel falling early meant it looked like RCB had the game right where they wanted it. But nope. From 58 for 4 to chasing 164 with 13 balls to spare is wild — a total chokehold by Rahul and Stubbs on a game that felt like it was slipping away from DC. RCB’s got some soul-searching to do now. Their batting strategy still feels fragile, and their bowlers just couldn’t handle the pressure when the heat got turned up.