Royal Challengers Bengaluru kept the chase alive through pure drama as Krunal Pandya produced a fighting knock full of twists in the 18th over.
Allah Ghazanfar came back into the attack with the match hanging in the balance. Krunal nearly gifted a wicket early when a mistimed shot ballooned into the deep. It looked like a simple chance, but chaos followed -- a misjudgment near the rope, a fumble, and RCB somehow survived a bizarre passage of play that left MI frustrated.
Krunal then made MI pay in brutal fashion, smashing back-to-back sixes despite carrying discomfort, turning the over on its head. But the drama wasn't over.
Tilak Varma finally made amends for the earlier confusion, judging the high ball perfectly and taking a sharp catch after adjusting his position brilliantly -- ending Krunal's brilliant innings on 73 off 46 balls.
A fighting effort came to an end, but not before Krunal dragged RCB deep into the contest.
After 18 overs, RCB stood at 149 for 7, needing 18 runs from 12 balls -- a tense finish set up perfectly.
