The final week (or so) of the league stage in the 2023 Indian Premier League once again served up some magical moments, while the four top spots were confirmed as well, with the playoffs all set to begin.
Incredibly, two of India's greatest talents in Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill struck consecutive hundreds. Gill's first was his maiden hundred in the IPL, while Kohli's second took him past Chris Gayle to become the man with the most IPL hundreds with seven.
Rashid Khan also produced a stunning induvial performance with bat and ball that ultimately ended in defeat.
IPL 2023 match-by-match mini reviews
Match 57 - Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Titans
The Mumbai fifty was brought up with a ball to go in the fifth with Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma matching each other stroke for stroke. They ended the powerplay 61-0, but next ball Rashid produced a beauty to remove Rohit for 29 off 18 as he got an edge to slip.
Rashid then got his second in the over as Kishan missed a slog sweep to go for 31 from 20. The Afghan claimed his third shortly after as Nehal Wadhera chopped on for 15 off seven to leave Mumbai 88-3 after nine. The fourth-wicket partnership ended on 65 from 42 after Vishnu Vinod skied Mohit Sharma to deep square leg for 30 off 20 as Mumbai went four down with four overs to go with 153 on the board.
Next ball, Suryakumar Yadav got to another fifty in 32 balls with a sweep for four off Rashid (4-0-30-4). Tim David was dismissed off Rashid's final ball for five after he chipped one back to the Afghanistan star, Suryakumar took 20 off the 18th as he continued his outrageous form.
Indeed, the brilliant India international brought up his maiden IPL hundred in just 49 deliveries off the final ball of the innings with an astonishing sweep shot for six off Alzarri Joseph as Mumbai sailed past 200 again to reach 218-5.
Wriddhiman Saha was adjudged lbw for just two as Akash Madhwal got an early breakthrough. Hardik Pandya struck a lovely four down the ground first ball, but two deliveries later he attempted a big hit off Jason Behrendorff but could only get a nick behind to Kishan.
Having been hit for two fours in the first two balls of his second over by Vijay Shankar, Madhwal came back to send Gill's off stump flying as the opener departed for six off nine, with Gujarat reaching 48-3 after the powerplay. Next ball, Piyush Chawla got to his highest season tally of wickets in an IPL season when he removed Shankar for 29 off 14 with a stunning googly.
Kumar Kartikeya joined Chawla in getting a wicket with his first ball as he went straight through Abhinav Manohar for two. With 119 needed from 49 and a partnership growing, Madhwal (4-0-31-3) struck again to remove David Miller lbw for 41 off 26. Next ball, Chawla got his second after Rahul Tewatia could only pick out deep square leg for 14 from 13.
Kartikeya then cleaned up Noor Ahmad for one. Rashid, meanwhile, brought up an incredible maiden IPL fifty in just 21 balls with some unbelievably clean hitting. His astonishing innings ultimately got the Titans to within 26 of the Mumbai total, having been 103-8.
He hit an incredible ten sixes in his unbeaten 79 from just 32 balls in what was a performance that seriously challenged Suryakumar for player of the match, despite being on the losing team.
Match 58 - Lucknow Super Giants vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Yudhvir Singh removed Abhishek Sharma for seven with a delightful short delivery that got a glove through to Quinton de Kock. Despite that, Sunrisers rushed to fifty in 4.4 overs, before another snorter of a short ball got another wicket as Rahul Tripathi departed for 20 off 13 with Yash Thakur picking up his first.
Anmolpreet Singh got another good start but went cheaply in the end after he chipped one straight back to Amit Mishra for 36 off 27. South African pair Aidan Markram and Heinrich Klaasen were going well with Sunrisers 115-3 after 12, but next ball Krunal Pandya (4-0-24-2) outfoxed Markram with a beauty to have him stumped for 28 off 20.
He then repeated the trick to remove Glenn Phillips with another lovely delivery. Klaasen played another great hand but perished off the last ball of the 19th as he holed out to long-on for 47 off 29. Abdul Samad ended on 37 from 25 as the Sunrisers got to 182-6.
Kyle Mayers suffered a slow start, only getting off the mark with his 11th delivery. He departed shortly after for just two from 14 after he miscued Phillips to a diving Markram at mid-on, Super Giants were way behind the rate at 30-1 after the powerplay, though de Kock was looking good.
That was until he mistimed a reverse sweep off Mayank Markande to Abhishek at point to depart for 29 from 19. With 77 needed from 33, Prerak Mankad brought up his fifty in 35 balls. Having been 21 off 20, Marcus Stoinis struck three enormous sixes to get himself to 40 off 24, with two of those maximums coming off the first two legal deliveries of the 16th bowled by Abhishek.
Next ball, though, he picked out long-off with 56 required from 27. Expert finisher Nicholas Pooran joined in with the action immediately, incredibly smoking his first three balls for huge sixes as 31 came off the over leaving LSG in the driving seat.
Another sensational innings from Pooran saw him finish on 44 from just 13 deliveries as LSG got home by seven wickets with four balls to spare; Mankad finished 64 from 45 in a fine anchor innings.
Match 59 - Delhi Capitals vs Punjab Kings
Punjab captain Shikhar Dhawan struck Ishant Sharma for a beautiful six down the ground but next ball he flicked his former international teammate to Rilee Rossouw at deep square leg for seven from five. Ishant got his second with the first ball of his next over as Liam Livingstone charged him only to find his off pole cartwheeling as he departed for four.
Jitesh Sharma was next to go for a run-a-ball five as he missed a straight one from Axar Patel. It was slow going for the Kings as they reached 66-3 at halfway. Prabhsimran Singh got to an important half-century in 42 balls, before the hundred came up on the first ball of the 14th.
Prabhsimran was then put down on 68 by Rossouw running in from deep square leg. Next ball, Sam Curran was unable to clear long-on as he departed for 20 off 24 with the partnership ended on 72.
Harpreet Brar then chipped one to extra cover for just two, before Prabhsimran brought up a contextually stunning hundred in 61 balls. His brilliant innings was ended on 103 off 65 after deflecting an attempted lap shot onto his stumps as Punjab finished 167-7.
Delhi raced to 65-0 as vintage David Warner rushed to 48 in just 21 deliveries. Two balls later after being hit for a four, Brar got the breakthrough as he went right through Phil Salt for 21 from 17. Warner's fifty was up in just 23 balls after Shahrukh Khan was just unable to get to the ball on the full to take a catch.
Next ball, Mitchell Marsh was adjudged lbw for three, before Rossouw followed shortly after for a run-a-ball five after he was unable to clear deep midwicket as Brar claimed his second. He soon got his third and the vital wicket of Warner with the DC captain out lbw for 54 off 27 following a successful review.
Rahul Chahar (4-0-16-2) then got a wicket next ball as Axar was given lbw for one and Delhi were soon 88-5 at halfway. Next ball, Brar (4-0-30-4) produced a beauty to Manish Pandey that went straight through him as he departed without scoring.
After building a partnership with Pravin Dubey, Aman Khan clothed one out to deep midwicket for 16 off 18. Nathan Ellis (4-0-26-2) then got his second in his next over as he cleaned up Dubey for 16 off 20. Delhi ultimately crumbled to 136-8 as the Kings won by 31 runs.
Match 60 - Rajasthan Royals vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
It was a typically steady first six for RCB as they got to 42-0 after the powerplay. Kohli then skied KM Asif with Yashasvi Jaiswal taking the catch inside the circle as the RCB star departed for 18 from 19. The hundred was up in 13.2 overs, before skipper Faf du Plessis brought up another fifty in 41 balls with a beefy six over midwicket.
He went shortly after, picking out Jaiswal at extra cover for 55 off 44. Bangalore were well-set on 120-2 with five to go, but next ball Adam Zampa got his first as Mahipal Lomror skied one to Dhruv Jurel, who ran in from deep midwicket to take the catch at the second attempt.
Two balls later, Zampa collected his second as Dinesh Karthik went second ball after a successful review for lbw. Glenn Maxwell continued on his merry way, though, and brought up a 30-ball fifty with a brilliant shot for six off Yuzvendra Chahal.
The Australian fell after Sandeep Sharma nailed a yorker that Maxwell missed after attempting a switch hit, departing for 54 from 33. Anuj Rawat provided some much-needed impetus, going 6,6,4 off the last three balls of the innings to finish 29 from 11 as he dragged RCB to 171-5.
Man of the moment Jaiswal went third ball without scoring after he crunched Mohammed Siraj straight to Kohli at mid-off. Jos Buttler then went second ball as he slashed Wayne Parnell straight to Siraj at point. Royals were in enormous trouble as Parnell struck again after Sanju Samson skied a length delivery for Rawat to take a solid catch with the gloves.
Joe Root's debut IPL innings looked to have ended early on just one as he was seemingly pinned lbw and given out, but his review showed the ball from Siraj was too high. Devdutt Padikkal departed after clipping Michael Bracewell to midwicket for a run-a-ball four as the Royals slipped to 20-4 in the fifth.
Root didn't survive second time around after Parnell trapped him lbw with a full slower ball for ten off 15 and Rajasthan were in tremendous bother at 28-5 after the powerplay. A rather poor delivery from Bracewell ended up taking the sixth wicket as Jurel was unable to clear midwicket and Lomror held the catch in the deep, with the Royals man gone for just one from seven.
After Shimron Hetmyer hit three sixes in a row, Ravichandran Ashwin was run out unnecessarily off the last ball of the eighth without even facing after Hetmyer turned down a second run. Hetmyer's resistance ended on 35 off 19 after he was unable to clear long-on off the bowling of Maxwell and incredibly Rajasthan had slipped to 59-8 at halfway.
Next ball, Karn Sharma bowled Zampa for two as the Australian missed an attempted reverse sweep. The innings ended two balls later after Asif launched Karn high to Kohli at long-on as the Royals collapsed to 59 all out in just ten and a half overs, leaving RCB with a comprehensive 112-run win.
Match 61 - Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Varun Chakaravarthy got the breakthrough midway through the fourth after Ruturaj Gaikwad got a thick leading edge off a slog sweep to short third man for 17 from 13. Chakaravarthy claimed his second after Ajinkya Rahane failed to clear long-off for 16 off 11.
The in-form Devon Conway then skied Shardul Thakur to deep square leg for 30 off 28, with CSK getting to 68-3 after halfway. Next ball, Sunil Narine bowled Ambati Rayudu for four, before the West Indian then beat Moeen Ali all ends up with a beauty that took the middle stump. After 40 balls without a boundary since the fifth over, Shivam Dube released the shackles with a six over extra cover, with CSK putting up 92-5 with five to go.
The hundred was up first ball of the 17th before Ravindra Jadeja hit a six next ball. Jadeja eventually departed for 20 off 24 after uppercutting Vaibhav Arora to short third man, while Dube finished on 48 from 34 to take Chennai to 144-6.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz slashed a wide delivery from |Deepak Chahar out to deep backward point as CSK made an early breakthrough at the end of the first over. Venkatesh Iyer was the next to go as again Chahar tempted a KKR batter into slashing at a wide one, with Venkatesh departing for nine from four after edging straight to Jadeja at a short third man/slip hybrid position.
Jason Roy then fell to Chahar in very similar fashion to a very similar position for 12 off 15 as Matheesha Pathirana took the catch. KKR reached 67-3 at halfway, before skipper Nitish Rana was put down at deep square leg by Pathirana on 18.
The hundred came up courtesy of a big slog sweep for six from Rinku Singh to get the equation down to 40 needed from 37. Rinku then brilliantly got to fifty in 39 balls after squeezing out a 148kph yorker to the midwicket boundary for four.
The excellent fourth-wicket partnership ended on 99 off 78 as Rinku was run out via a direct hit from Moeen for 54 from 43. Nitish then brought up his half-century in 38 balls, before slashing away a four to see his side home by four wickets with nine balls to spare as he finished 57 off 44.
Match 62 - Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Gujarat Titans
Saha went third ball as Bhuvneshwar Kumar induced an edge off an outswinger to Abhishek at second slip. Despite that, Gujarat got to fifty in four overs and were 65-1 after the powerplay. Gill soon got to an exemplary half-century in just 22 balls with a delightful cut for four off Mayank Markande's first ball, with the Titans racing to 103-1 at halfway.
Having nearly been run out three times and dropped on 43, Sai Sudharsan's luck finally ran out after he sliced one to short third man for 47 from 36. Hardik was dismissed after slashing Bhuvneshwar to backward point for eight off six, before Miller then departed for seven off five after failing to clear Markram at long-on.
Tewatia followed for a run-a-ball three shortly after, skying T Natarajan over mid-off where Marco Jansen took a stellar catch running back. Among the flurry of wickets, Gill got to his maiden t20 hundred in 56 balls, before he then perished first ball of the final over after picking out extra cover two deliveries later.
Rashid was unable to repeat his heroics from the Mumbai game as he nicked Bhuvneshwar behind first ball. Bhuvneshwar then completed the team hat-trick as he ran out Noor who had sought to get Dasun Shanaka back on strike.
The fourth wicket of the over and fifth for Bhuvneshwar (4-0-30-5) came with the penultimate ball as Shami skied him down the ground for Jansen to complete the catch at long-on. In the end, just two came off the final over as Sunrisers did well to claw some momentum back. with the Titans finishing 188-9.
Anmolpreet was put down at first slip by Tewatia second ball with a beauty of an outswinger from Shami, but he didn't get as lucky shortly after, instead getting a leading edge down to Rashid at third man for five from four.
Yash Dayal got a wicket in his first over since his forgettable evening against KKR and Rinku after he induced an outside edge from Abhishek to Saha as he went for five. Another outside edge then flew behind as Tripathi got a nick off Shami to first slip as Tewatia redeemed himself.
Shami (4-0-21-4) then got Markram with another leading edge as the captain saw Shanaka at cover pouch him as he departed for a run-a-ball ten, with Sunrisers getting to 45-4 after the powerplay. Next ball, Sanvir Singh's debut ended on seven after he sliced one down to third man as Mohit struck with his first delivery.
He got his second shortly after, with Samad pulling one straight to midwicket for four. Number three soon arrived for Mohit after Jansen skied him to long-off for three off six. Hyderabad were in a desperate state at 66-7 at halfway. Next ball, Klaasen struck a six but only after it burst through the hands of Miller at long-off.
The hundred was up in 13.2, before Klaasen's lone effort was rewarded as he brought up a 35-ball half-century. With 62 needed off 20, Sunrisers' last chance faded when Klaasen failed to clear Miller at long-on as he went for a well-played 64 from 44.
Bhuvneshwar's resistance ended on 27 off 26 after he sliced one out to deep cover where Rashid took the catch running in to give Mohit (4-0-28-4) his fourth. Sunrisers ultimately ended on 154-9 as the Titans won by 34 runs and in turn secured their spot in the playoffs.
Match 63 - Mumbai Indians vs Lucknow Super Giants
Deepak Hooda was tried in an opening slot but once again he failed, being dismissed for five off seven with a horrible shot that ballooned to mid-on. Mankad then went first ball as Behrendorff took the edge with a beauty and LSG were soon 35-2 after the powerplay.
Next ball, Chawla removed de Kock for 16 off 15 with a lovely googly that took the outside edge for Kishan to complete another catch. Lucknow were 68-3 at halfway and soon 108-3 with five to go, with Krunal and Stoinis building well. Krunal retired hurt on 49 off 41, before Stoinis reached fifty in 36 balls with a brilliant six down the ground.
Stoinis then took 24 from the 18th bowled by Chris Jordan, before ending the LSG innings with a six over long-off as he finished with a sensational 89 off 53 to get Lucknow up to 177-3.
A strong opening partnership ended on 90 after Rohit holed out to long-on for 37 off 25, with Mumbai soon 92-1 at halfway. Next ball, Kishan got to a 34-ball half-century, before he holed out to deep midwicket for 59 off 39.
With 63 needed in six overs, Suryakumar was knocked over for just seven off nine by Yash as he dragged on an attempted lap shot. With 47 needed off the last four, Wadhera picked out deep square leg for 16 from 20 as his struggle ended.
Yash picked up his second after Vinod pulled him out to deep square leg, leaving Mumbai needing 33 off 14. With 22 needed off nine, Naveen ul-Haq bowled a shoulder-high full toss which slipped through to the boundary for four to leave it at 17 needed off nine with David on strike for a free hit.
He missed the free hit but he did not miss the last ball of the over as he struck it down the ground for six to leave Mumbai needing 11 off the last. An incredible final over from Mohsin Khan saw just five come off it as Lucknow won by seven runs, with David finishing 31 from 19.
Match 64 - Punjab Kings vs Delhi Capitals
The match had a slow start, with Delhi at just 10-0 after 2.4 overs. The fifty runs mark was reached after 4.4 overs, though, with the score at 61-0 after the powerplay. Warner had a lucky escape when Chahar dropped him on 39 after he hit a shot towards point, with Delhi getting to 93-0 at the halfway mark.
Unfortunately for Warner, his luck ran out as he was deceived by a slower delivery from Curran (4-0-36-2) and ended up slicing the ball towards mid-on where Shikhar took an incredible flying catch, with Warner dismissed for 46 off 31 balls. Prithvi Shaw, on the other hand, reached his fifty in just 36 balls, amidst Rossouw dominating the scoring.
However, Shaw couldn't capitalise on his good start and got out for 54 off 38 balls, caught at deep square leg. Rossouw, in the meantime, achieved his maiden IPL fifty in just 25 balls. The fifty partnership between Rossouw and Salt came in just 26 balls as the two began to increase the tempo of the innings.
The final over from Brar proved costly for Punjab as it went for 23 runs, despite Arshdeep and Rabada having overs left. The Capitals finished their innings at 213-2, with Rossouw scoring a brilliant 82 off 37 balls and Salt contributing 26 off 14 balls.
Punjab had a disastrous start to their chase, with Khaleel (3-0-20-1) bowling a maiden in the first over. Ishant got an early breakthrough when Shikhar nicked the ball to the first slip and was caught out on the very first ball he faced. The score stood at 47-1 after the powerplay and in the next over, Prabhsimran was dismissed as he mistimed a shot and was caught at wide long-on, scoring 22 off 19 balls.
Livingstone had a stroke of luck when Nortje dropped him at deep midwicket when he was on three.Atharva Taide then had a close call when Yash Dhull dropped him at long-on while he was on 35, missing out on an opportunity to get Kuldeep a wicket at the second time of asking. At the halfway mark, Punjab stood at 75-2.
A mix-up between the batsmen saw Atharva survive, but Livingstone almost got run out on the same ball. However, the throw missed the stumps, saving Livingstone once again. The hundred-run mark was achieved in the 12th over when Livingstone hit Axar for four over short third man.Atharva then reached his fifty in just 38 balls, putting up a good fight for the Kings.
However, he retired out on 55 off 42 balls, with Punjab needing 86 runs from the remaining five overs. Jitesh couldn't make an impact and got out on the third ball he faced without scoring, leaving Punjab in a perilous position despite Livingstone's increasingly good performance.
Livingstone reached his fifty in 30 balls by toeing a wide delivery from Khaleel for four, which turned out to be a no-ball. He took advantage of the free hit and struck it for six, leaving Punjab with 68 runs required from 23 balls. Shahrukh's innings came to an end on six when he holed out to long-on.
Three sixes were hit in the 18th over, reducing the target to 38 runs from the last two overs. Curran started the penultimate over with a boundary over extra cover, but Nortje uprooted his leg stump on the fifth ball, dismissing him for 11 runs off five balls. Brar was run out on the first ball in an attempt to get Livingstone back on strike.
The England international was unable to get to his hundred after he could only find long-off with the final ball to depart for a brilliant 94 off 48 as Punjab ended 198-8, with Delhi winning by 15 runs.
Match 65 - Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Abhishek cut one straight to Lomror at point for 11 off 14, before Bracewell got his second two balls later as Tripathi miscued a sweep shot to short fine leg for 15 from 1. Sunrisers were 49-2 after the powerplay and got to 81-2 at halfway.
It was another great half-century for Klaasen, this time in just 24 balls. His compatriot Markram then missed a reverse sweep off Shahbaz Ahmed and was bowled for 18 off 20. The fifty partnership for the fourth wicket was quickly brought up in just 22 balls.
Klaasen then got to a stunning hundred in 49 balls with an enormous six down the ground, before his innings ended with a great dipping slower ball yorker from Harshal Patel that crept under the bat as he departed for a brilliant 104 from 51.
Just four came from the first five balls of the last over before Siraj (4-0-17-1) got Phillips with the final delivery for five out to deep square leg. Harry Brook ended on 27 from 19 as Sunrisers amassed 186-5.
Phillips dropped du Plessis on eight, before an electric fifty came up in 4.2 overs, with RCB reaching 64-0 after the powerplay. Du Plessis seemingly fell for 41 off 25 after a sensational low catch at deep midwicket by Mayank Dagar, but Nitish Reddy was adjudged to have bowled a second bouncer of the over and instead a no-ball and free hit was called as du Plessis survived.
The hundred was up off the first ball of the 12th, which in turn brought up a third consecutive half-century for du Plessis in 34 balls. Kohli soon followed suit with a 35-ball fifty, before accelerating to reach his sixth IPL hundred and first in four years in 62 balls with a six over midwicket.
He went next ball as Phillips held on to a catch at deep midwicket, with the score 172-1 with 15 required from 13. Du Plessis' innings then ended on 71 off 47 after he skied one to long-off, but RCB did get home by eight wickets and four balls to spare to boost their playoff hopes.
Match 66 - Punjab Kings vs Rajasthan Royals
Boult struck with yet another first over wicket after Prabhsimran chipped one back to him to take a diving return catch second ball. Atharva miscued one to midwicket for a quick 19 from 12, before Zampa had Shikhar lbw for 17 off 12 after he missed a sweep midway through the sixth.
Livingstone got one that thudded into his knee and then cleaned up next ball by Navdeep Saini for just nine off 13. Punjab were 78-4 at halfway and the hundred was brought up after 13. Jitesh went 4,6,4 off Saini but he skied the next to Donovan Ferreira at cover.
The fifty partnership between Curran and Shahrukh was up in 31 balls with a second successive six from Curran, with 28 ultimately coming off the penultimate over from Chahal; Curran was also dropped on 45 by Ferreira off the last ball, with it instead going for four.
18 then came off the final over to make it 46 from the last two as Punjab finished 187-5, with Curran ending 49 off 31 and Shahrukh 41 from 23.
Buttler was dismissed for another duck as Rabada trapped him lbw fourth ball. Padikkal outscored Jaiswal as he got to fifty in 29 balls, but next ball he chipped one straight to backward point. Rajasthan reached 86-2 at halfway, before Samson holed out to deep square leg for two off Chahar.
Jaiswal brought up fifty in 35 balls but next ball he reverse swept Ellis to backward point. Brar crucially put down Hetmyer at backward square leg on 36 with 35 needed off 22. Two balls later, Hetmyer seemed to get a nick on a sharp Curran bouncer but he reviewed immediately and no spike was indeed detected.
Riyan Parag then hit consecutive sixes off the first two balls of the 18th to get the equation down to 20 off 16, but a superb next four balls from Rabada culminated in Parag departing for 20 off 12 with a leading edge to backward point, leaving 19 required in two.
Hetmyer departed for 46 off 28 following a great low catch from Shikhar to leave nine to get in seven deliveries, before Jurel struck a six to win the game for the Royals with two balls and four wickets to spare.
Match 67 - Delhi Capitals vs Chennai Super Kings
The fifty was up in 4.4, with Chennai reaching 52-0 after the powerplay. Gaikwad got to fifty in 37 balls, with CSK sitting pretty at 87-0 at halfway. Conway then got to another fifty in 33 balls with a lovely flick for six over midwicket.
Gaikwad's stay ended at 79 off 50, having been 34 off 31, after he skied one to deep square leg with the first wicket falling on 141 midway through the 15th. Dube skied Khaleel out to wide long-on for 22 off nine to leave CSK 195-2 with two overs to go, before Conway departed for 87 off 52 after he failed to clear long-on. Jadeja ended on 20 from seven as CSK racked up 223-3.
Shaw was out early for five off seven after striking a Tushar Deshpande slower ball to mid-off where Rayudu took a great diving catch to his right. Delhi were struggling at 15-1 after four, before Salt miscued Chahar to extra cover for three from six shortly after.
Rossouw then chopped on first ball, with the Capitals scraping their way to 34-3 after the powerplay with Warner on 25. The Australian then got to another half-century in 32 balls, with Delhi 72-3 at halfway. Dhull sliced one to backward point for 13 from 15, before 23 came off the 13th from Jadeja.
Axar holed out to long-on for 15 off eight as Chahar (4-0-22-3) got his third. Aman went softly for seven off nine, chipping a wide slower ball from Pathirana (4-0-22-2) to Moeen at extra cover. The Pathirana slower ball then did for Warner as he miscued one towards long-on where Gaikwad took a good running diving catch as Delhi's sole resistance departs for 86 off 58.
Capitals ultimately subsided to 146-9 as Theekshana (4-1-23-2) claims double wicket maiden in the final over with CSK winning by 77 runs to seal their playoff qualification.
Match 68 - Kolkata Knight Riders vs Lucknow Super Giants
Karan Sharma clothed a length ball from Harshit Rana to midwicket for three off five, but Lucknow recovered to 54-1 after the powerplay. Mankad went for 26 off 20 after he skied Vaibhav to cover, before a beautiful short ball from Vaibhav removed Stoinis second ball as it clipped the glove and ballooned to slip.
Krunal then miscued a sweep out to deep square leg for nine and LSG were in a spot of bother at 73-4 at halfway. Things worsened next ball when de Kock perished after skying Chakaravarthy to Russell at deep midwicket for 28 off 27.
Ayush Badoni, who had begun to build a good partnership with Pooran, was dismissed for 25 from 21 after he tried to find the boundary one too many times off Narine, leaving LSG 147-6 with two to go. On the first ball of the penultimate over,
Pooran sliced a wide ball away over backward square leg for another six to bring up his fifty in 28 balls. He got another six away in the same area the following delivery but perished trying to go three for three as he departed for 58 off 30.
Shardul then knocked over Bishnoi for two for his second in the over, before Krishnappa Gowtham cracked ten off the last two deliveries of the innings to get Lucknow to 176-8.
The KKR fifty was up in 4.2 overs, but Gowtham got the breakthrough as Venkatesh could only steer the ball to Bishnoi at extra cover for 24 off 15. Kolkata reached 61-1 after the powerplay and were well-placed.
Nitish then got a toe edge off Bishnoi that popped up to cover as he departed for eight from ten, with KKR soon reaching 82-2 at halfway. Krunal then struck with his final ball as he went straight through Roy, who went for 45 off 28.
Gurbaz was next to go for ten off 15 as he sliced Yash up to point where Bishnoi took a juggled catch as LSG clawed back considerable momentum. The ball after being struck down the ground for six, Bishnoi uprooted Russell's off stump with 57 needed off 26 as the West Indian went for seven off nine.
Shardul then holed out off his namesake Yash to deep square leg for three off seven to leave KKR needing 44 off 14. The final ball of the 18th brought about another wicket, with Narine run out for one.
Rinku brought up a brilliant fifty in 27 balls with an enormous 110m six over deep square leg amidst threatening to pull another improbable chase, having taken 20 off the first five balls of the 19th to leave 21 needed from seven. Rinku hit 16 off the last three balls of the innings to end 67 from 33 but KKR end up just one short as LSG narrowly secured their passage to the playoffs.
Match 69 - Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunrisers made a rare wicketless start to the innings, reaching 53-0 after the powerplay. Vivrant Sharma got to his fifty in 36 balls, as he and Mayank Agarwal strode on to 93-0 at halfway. Agarwal got to his half-century in 32 deliveries, before Sunrisers' best opening stand of the tournament ended on 140 after Vivrant departed for 69 off 47 after miscuing one to deep midwicket.
A top innings from Mayank ended on 83 off 46 after he nicked one behind off Madhwal. Shortly after, Phillips flicked a Jordan full toss straight to fine leg for just one. Madhwal (4-0-37-4) then picked up his third as he cleaned up Klaasen for 18 off 13 with a brilliant quick full delivery.
He then did exactly the same to Brook next ball as the Englishman was castled first ball. Markram ensured Sunrisers finished with a flourish as he smoked a six off the final ball as SRH finish 200-5.
Kishan clothed one from Bhuvneshwar to Brook who took a diving catch running round from mid-on to dismiss him for 14 from 12. Rohit was put down on 12 by Sanvir running back from midwicket after he miscued a slower ball.
Despite that, Mumbai reached 60-1 after the powerplay with Cam Green 30 off just ten. The fifty partnership was soon brought up in 25 balls, with Green having scored 42 of them. Green got to fifty in just 20 balls with a six down the ground, before the hundred partnership was then up in 51 balls.
Rohit then reached his fifty in 31 deliveries and two balls later Sanvir dropped him again with a strongly struck shot to extra cover. A brilliant flying catch by Nitish at backward point removed Rohit for 56 from 37.
Green hit the winning runs and, in the process, got to a fantastic 47-ball hundred as Mumbai got home with eight wickets and two overs to spare, with Suryakumar 25 not out off 16.
Match 70 - Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Gujarat Titans
The final match of the league stage saw big implications for the home side, with a win needed to progress. The breakthrough came off the first ball of the seventh as Noor got the wicket of du Plessis after an edge deflected off Saha's pad and up to Tewatia at slip, with the Orange Cap holder gone for 28 off 19 to a deathly silence inside the stadium.
Rashid (4-0-24-1) once again picked up a big wicket, going straight through Maxwell for 11 from five with a lovely googly. His compatriot Noor then got his second after Lomror missed a wide down the leg-side and Saha completed the stumping.
Bangalore were 93-3 at halfway and soon after Kohli brought up another half-century in 35 balls. Bracewell skied a full toss for 26 off 16, with Shami completing a caught and bowled. Karthik then gloved a short ball from Dayal behind first ball.
Kohli, though, incredibly went to back-to-back hundreds in 60 balls, before Rawat then added 12 off the last three to finish 23 off 15 as RCB ended their innings 197-5.
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