Should RCB win vs. SRH? Qualification priority 1 in 255 chase spilled fans

Royal Challengers Bengaluru may have secured a bigger prize from Hyderabad on Friday night, but the way they approached their 256-run chase against Sunrisers Hyderabad has now opened up a whole other debate among fans online.

After losing by 55 runs at the Rajiv Gandhi International StadiumStill, RCB managed to finish in the top two of IPL 2026 and cement their place in Qualifier 1 thanks to Net Run Rate. From a tournament perspective, this is huge as finishing in the top two spots gives teams two opportunities to reach the IPL final.

SRH vs RCB, IPL 2026: SCORECARD | MAIN DATA

But while the qualifying maths worked out perfectly for RCB, many fans were left frustrated as they watched the defending champions seem to shift their focus from winning the match to merely protecting their qualification script midway through the chase.

And social networks immediately split into two sides.

One section questioned why RCB seemed to back away from the chase after a flying start, especially on a batting line where SRH themselves comfortably passed 250. The other side argued that once Virat Kohli was dismissed and there was a risk of a batting collapse, protecting Qualifier 1 became a smarter cricketing decision.

HOW RCB CLOSE TO 255 CHASE VS SRH

Venkatesh Iyer came out aggressively and smashed 44 off just 19 balls while Virat Kohli looked positive initially. RCB managed a 75-run powerplay despite losing two wickets and SRH were forced to think defensively for a brief period.

But after the power play, the pace changed sharply.

Kohli departed for 15 and suddenly the run slowed down completely. Chasing 256, RCB surprisingly made it all the way to the 13th over to even reach the 120-run mark, and from then on the innings became more and more focused on securing qualification rather than actually threatening SRH’s total.

This slowdown has become the biggest talking point online.

Rajat Patidar and Krunal Pandya added 84 runs off 57 balls together, not a bad partnership at all. But in the context of such a gigantic chase, it never really put pressure on SRH to score.

Patidar completed another half-century to finish with 53 off 37 balls, but it was one of those knocks that the RCB skipper himself probably wouldn’t look back on too fondly despite the milestone. A strike rate of 143.24 in the 250-plus chase was unusually subdued for someone who built his entire season on fearless intent and momentum-changing batting.

The delayed arrival of hitters like Tim David and Jitesh Sharma only added fuel to the online debate.

Many RCB supporters defended this approach by pointing to the bigger picture. Their argument was simple: RCB started the chase in earnest, but once Kohli stepped out, the batting line-up was in danger of collapsing completely under the scoreboard pressure.

And with Qualifier 1 on the line, taking unnecessary risks might not be worth it.

The thinking from this side of the fans was that it may have seemed timid or defensive, but it was a smarter decision rather than an emotional one.

Especially since finishing in the top two offers a huge playoff advantage.

One defeat in Qualifier 1 still leaves a second path to the finals via Qualifier 2 against the winner of the Eliminator. Had RCB collapsed badly in the chase and slipped below SRH on Net Run Rate, they would have lost that safety cushion altogether.

WHY DID FANS DISLIKE RCB’S APPROACH?

Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan was one of those who questioned some of the tactical calls during the chase, particularly around the batting order decisions.

“Jitesh Sharma should have come in to bat….RCB finished the league stage on top despite injury problems from last year’s trophy winning combination,” Pathan wrote on X.

The late arrival of big hitters like Jitesh Sharma and Tim David has also become a major point of discussion among fans. Chasing 256 runs, many felt that RCB should have fully committed to the attack rather than balancing aggression with qualifying calculations.

But RCB captain Rajat Patidar’s post-match comments made it clear what the overall rating of the team was.

“The top priority was to be on top, but I think there were a lot of runs in the first innings. I think 255 is a good score on that wicket. And I think, as I mentioned earlier, their five bowlers did the slow bouncers and yorkers quite well,” Patidar said after the match.

Ironically, SRH themselves understand the importance of finishing in the top two perhaps better than anyone else.

Ishan Kishan, who played a stunning innings of 79 off 44 balls and walked away with the man of the match award, admitted after the match that securing a top two finish was always the main goal for the teams this season.

“From day one, even though I was leading the team, we had in mind that we want to finish in the top two because it gives the team an opportunity to easily reach the finals,” Kishan said.

RCB may not have won the game in Hyderabad.

But in their minds, they probably left with the belief that they had secured something far more valuable.

– The end

Issued by:

Debodinna Chakraborty

Published on:

23 May 2026 0:55 AM IST

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HOW RCB CLOSE TO 255 ​​CHASE VS SRH

WHY DID FANS DISLIKE RCB’S APPROACH?

HOW RCB CLOSE TO 255 CHASE VS SRH