Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lost their last league game to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), but they ensured that the margin of defeat was not too heavy, securing a top-two finish. SRH won the game, but due to net run rate, they remained third in the points table. Dharamshala will host RCB and Gujarat Titans (GT) for Qualifier 1.
The race for the top two is now over. However, the battle for the fourth spot will be decided in the final game. Following their latest win, Rajasthan Royals (RR) are the frontrunners to qualify. However, if they lose, the other contenders will remain in the hunt. Three games, four teams, and one spot remaining. The final two days promise to be action-packed, with growing uncertainty over who will seal the last qualification spot. Here, we look at the scenarios for each team.
RR: It is RR’s spot to lose. As the only team among the four capable of reaching the 16-point mark, they simply need to beat the Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday afternoon. The victory margin will not matter in this case — even a one-run or one-wicket win will be enough to take them through. However, if they lose, they will not only have to hope that the Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lose their respective matches, but it will also come down to net run rate at 14 points to determine whether RR qualify or not.
PBKS: The Shreyas Iyer-led side play their final league game against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in what is a must-win encounter. A defeat in Lucknow would end their campaign, while a win would keep their hopes alive. PBKS will be rooting for MI to beat RR and for Delhi Capitals (DC) to beat KKR. Even if KKR win, qualification could still come down to net run rate, as both teams would finish on 15 points. For PBKS, the ideal scenario is that KKR do not win their final game by a large margin.
KKR: A remarkable turnaround in the second half of the season has been the story for KKR. After losing six of their first seven matches, they have fought back to give themselves a genuine chance of qualifying, which is a commendable achievement. However, the difficult part is that winning alone may not be enough. By the time they play, KKR will already know whether qualification remains possible, as the result of the RR-MI clash will have been decided. An MI victory over RR will make the qualification equation much clearer for KKR.
DC: The Capitals are all but out of contention this season. There is virtually no chance of them improving their net run rate sufficiently to qualify on 14 points, even if the other results go in their favour. However, they could still do PBKS a favour by beating KKR in Kolkata.
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