Bhuvneshwar Kumar had already organized a proper fast bowler’s night in Raipur. Four wickets, destruction in the powerplay, clever knuckleball, a yorker in the death overs and another step towards the purple cap. And then somehow he also played the shot of the match.

IPLRCB vs MI: highlighted | Achievement:

Krunal Pandya did not hit five sixes while batting despite cramps. No late fight from Mumbai Indians. Even on the last ball there was no scuffle Game sealed for Royal Challengers Bangalore. In the last over of chasing the target, Bhuvneshwar Kumar hit a six over cover which completely turned the game.

And somehow, that one swing of the bat seemed bigger than the four wickets taken earlier in the night. Because without that six RCB might have been losing.

By then the game had turned into complete chaos. RCB were chasing 167 runs and looked largely in control thanks to Krunal Pandya’s fighting knock of 73 runs in 46 balls. But once the all-rounder fell after battling cramps for almost half his innings, Mumbai got one last chance.

Then came Jasprit Bumrah’s ridiculous 19th over. MI completely drained the pressure on RCB, forcing Raj Bawa to defend 15 runs in the final over. With wickets falling regularly and tension all around, Mumbai suddenly looked like the favorites again.

But refused to behave normally in the last over.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar moves from destroyer to finisher

Three wides. A no-ball. One wicket. Pure panic. There was everything but peace in that last over.

Even after the dismissal of Romario Shepherd in an attempt to push the pace, RCB somehow held on as Mumbai could not shut the door completely. Then came Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Now, this is a man whose job for most of his IPL life has been to wreck batting line-ups and not chase runs with sixes. His previous IPL six before this? Back in 2016.

Yes. 2016.

The same season in which he won the Purple Cap and helped Sunrisers Hyderabad win the title. And yet there he was at Raipur, when RCB were floundering, carelessly cutting Raj Bawa over cover for six, it was all part of the plan.

Just a neat cricket shot under ridiculous pressure. The dugout immediately exploded as everyone knew how huge that moment was. Mumbai lost control of the over right there.

That one shot completely changed the mood of the chase.

Kunal’s tight fight sets the stage for madness

The irony of the end was that Krunal Pandya had already done almost everything needed to win the game. RCB had a very bad start while chasing the target. Virat Kohli was out on zero for the second consecutive time. Devdutt Padikkal came soon after. Then Rajat Patidar also left.

At 39/3, Mumbai are right back into the contest. After this, Krunal went against his former franchise and gradually dragged RCB back to the target through his stubbornness.

He rebuilt carefully first before launching a clever attack on spin. But the real drama started when he started having body cramps in the final overs. At one time it seemed as if his legs had given up.

And then somehow, he managed to hit AM Ghazanfar for two consecutive sixes in the 18th over. His innings of 73 runs in 46 balls already looked like a match-winner.

But after his dismissal, it seemed that things were going to go waste for this all-rounder.

This is what made Bhuvneshwar’s six even bigger.

A fast bowler who had already taken four wickets somehow also hit the most important shot of the match. Only IPL can script this kind of nonsense properly sometimes.

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