Raipur (Chhattisgarh) [India], May 11 (ANI): Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Virat Kohli hailed teammate Krunal Pandya's 73-run knock against the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match on Sunday. Kohli called the innings Krunal's 'best IPL knock.'

Krunal played a match-winning knock of 73 off 46 balls that helped RCB defeat MI by two wickets in a last-ball thriller. With RCB finding themselves at 39/3 in 5.1 overs in their chase of 167, Krunal Pandya stitched a crucial 55-run stand with Jacob Bethell (27) and a 37-run stand with Jitesh Sharma (18) to bring RCB closer to their target before he was eventually dismissed in the 18th over after hitting two sixes off Allah Ghazanfar's bowling. Krunal's innings was particularly impressive as he battled cramps but still held firm and delivered when it mattered.

After Krunal's wicket, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (7* off 2 balls) and Rasikh Salam Dar (3* off 2 balls) guided the hosts home on the last ball of RCB's innings.

In a video uploaded by RCB on X, Virat Kohli praised Krunal for what he called his best IPL innings so far, highlighting how he performed under pressure despite difficult pitch conditions and physical discomfort. Kohli also pointed out that the two sixes at the end were crucial in the context of the match, noting that Krunal's resilience and commitment to the team were highly inspiring.

'I think it's your best IPL knock so far from what I've seen. You've played a lot of knocks under pressure, but I think tonight was special. You were struggling with bouncing balls hitting you, keeping low, and 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. 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 team, so we can take a lot of inspiration from that,' Kohli says in the video.

During their chase, RCB lost Kohli (0) for a second successive golden duck and eventually sank to 39/3, with MI's Deepak Chahar (2/33) dictating the game.

Kohli admitted RCB did not get off to a strong start with the bat, but praised the team's middle-order efforts for turning things around. He highlighted key contributions from Rajat Patidar, Krunal, and Tim David in the previous game, and noted that Jacob Bethell and Krunal built an important partnership in the match against MI. Kohli said these collective efforts were crucial in helping the team chase down the target.

'With the bat, we didn't get off to the best start, we know that. But like the last game, we've had two games where we haven't had the best starts. But in the last game, Rajat (Rajat Patidar) stepped up, along with KP (Krunal Pandya), contributing. TD (Tim David) made an impact in the last game. This game around again, Beth (Jacob Bethell) stuck in, got us an important partnership with KP. So that contribution was crucial for us to chase the score down,' he said.

Coming to the match, RCB won the toss and opted to bowl first. The decision seemed to pay off when MI sank to 28/3 within the powerplay courtesy of a Bhuvneshwar masterclass. However, Naman Dhir (47 in 32 balls, with five fours and two sixes) and Tilak Varma (57 in 42, with three fours and two sixes) built the innings with an 82-run stand, taking MI to 166/7 in 20 overs.

Bhuvneshwar (4/23) was the pick of the bowlers for RCB, with Josh Hazlewood (1/33) and Romario Shepherd (1/18 in three overs) also chipping in useful overs with the ball.

In their chase, despite the early struggles, Krunal built a 55-run stand with Bethell and another useful 38-run stand with Jitesh, reaching a brilliant counter-attacking fifty.

However, Corbin Bosch (4/26) and Allah Ghazanfar (1/33) pulled off things with crucial wickets, removing Krunal as well, reducing RCB to 149/7 in 18 overs.

Romario Shepherd (4 in 11 balls) struggled against Jasprit Bumrah (0/20), leaving RCB with 12 to get in the final over. A flurry of extras from Raj Angad Bawa and a six from Bhuvneshwar helped ease the pressure despite Romario's dismissal, and RCB secured a last-ball win, with Rasikh Salam Dar (3*) hitting the winning runs.

With seven wins and four losses, RCB is at the top of the points table, with 14 points. MI is at the ninth spot with three wins and eight losses, eliminated from the playoff race along with Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). (ANI)