April 25, 2025: After Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) secured a thrilling 11-run victory over Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, veteran all-rounder Krunal Pandya reflected on two key factors that he believed played a crucial role in the team’s victory. RCB’s win broke their three-match home losing streak and saw them defend a challenging total of 206, with Rajasthan Royals faltering in the final overs.
Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal had set up the win with their fifties, while Josh Hazlewood and Yash Dayal held their nerve during the final two overs, defending the 18 remaining runs. However, Krunal pointed out that the crucial contributions came from players like Phil Salt and Jacob Bethell, whose smaller yet vital efforts made a significant difference in the match’s outcome.
Speaking in the dressing room in a video shared by RCB’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle, Krunal credited Phil Salt for his composed knock of 26 off 23 balls during the powerplay. Salt’s knock, which included four boundaries, wasn’t flashy but helped build a crucial 61-run stand with Kohli, setting a solid foundation for the team.
“Sometimes what happens is that you always highlight the performance which is quite evident and visible, but what I felt is that in the powerplay, to get 56 runs from 6 overs, though we always are used to watching Salty (Salt) scoring at a strike rate of 180-200, but again to stitch that partnership in that phase, those 26 runs were crucial to lay the platform,” Krunal explained.
Krunal also praised England all-rounder Jacob Bethell for his key fielding effort during a pivotal moment in the match. In the ninth over, as RR was progressing towards the target, Bethell made a stunning diving stop to save two runs, which he felt was an invaluable contribution at that stage of the game.
“Jacob again coming out and fielding and diving, saving two runs…that was a critical moment,” Krunal added.
The team’s batting coach and mentor, Dinesh Karthik, also lauded Salt for his performance. He noted that Salt had adapted his usual aggressive approach to suit the conditions at M Chinnaswamy, highlighting his maturity and awareness of what was needed on the day.
“Salt was very happy with the way he played today. He knows his role, he knows that certain shots cannot be played in this venue at the start, so he adapted himself beautifully,” said Karthik. “It is one thing knowing to play a lot of shots, one thing adapting as to what is required on that pitch on that given day. He followed it through beautifully.”
RCB’s win over RR not only helped them break their home losing streak but also provided a much-needed boost to their campaign, with several players stepping up in key moments throughout the match.