Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) bounced back in style on Thursday night, ending their three-match home losing streak with a thrilling 11-run win over Rajasthan Royals at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Half-centuries from Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal powered RCB to a strong total of 205, while the bowling unit, led by Krunal Pandya and Josh Hazlewood, held off Rajasthan’s chase with a tight finish in the last two overs.

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With their fifth loss in a row, Rajasthan now stands at eighth place in the points table, having secured only two wins out of the nine matches they have played in the IPL 2025 season.

Following RCB’s victory over Rajasthan at their home ground, the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, the team’s veteran all-rounder Krunal Pandya spoke about two “small things” he felt played a crucial role in the team’s success.

Speaking in the dressing room after the match, Krunal also credited Phil Salt’s measured knock of 26 off 23 balls, which included four boundaries. The innings came at a strike rate of just over 113, showcasing a more restrained version of Salt. It didn’t go to waste, as he stitched a 61-run stand with Virat Kohli in just 6.4 overs.

“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 in 6 overs—though we’re used to watching Salty (Salt) score at a strike rate of 180-200—to stitch that partnership in that phase, those 24 (26) runs, for me watching, were so crucial to lay that platform. Then obviously what Virat and Dev (Devdutt Padikkal) did was what we spoke about, but again, for me, those small things matter a lot,” said Krunal.

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With three wins in a row, RCB now stands at third place in the points table, with six wins and three losses, giving them a total of 12 points.