Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) suffered a heart-wrenching defeat by just one run against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in a tightly contested match at the Eden Gardens Stadium on Sunday.
KKR, batting first, posted a formidable total of 226/6 in their allotted 20 overs, propelled by stellar performances from skipper Shreyas Iyer and opener Phil Salt. In response, RCB mounted a valiant effort to chase down the target, led by Rajat Patidar and Will Jacks, but fell agonizingly short, failing to seal the win.
Under Faf du Plessis’ leadership, RCB’s season has been marred by inconsistency, having lost seven out of their eight matches and currently languishing at the bottom of the IPL points table.
While RCB still mathematically have a chance to qualify for the playoffs with six games remaining, winning all would take them to 14 points, which was once enough to qualify as the fourth position team to the IPL Playoffs.
However, it’s essential to acknowledge the shifting dynamics of playoff qualification criteria. In the earlier years, before the inclusion of Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants, securing 14 points was often sufficient to secure a playoff berth. However, since their addition in 2022, the threshold for qualification has generally been around 16 points. Mumbai Indians also qualified as the fourth placed team with 16 points in IPL 2023.
Realistically, even if Royal Challengers Bengaluru were to win all their remaining matches and reach 14 points, the odds of them making it to the playoffs are slim, although there is still some chances and 14 points could be enough as this year’s IPL has been very competitive. As of writing this, 3 teams are on 8 points each, 2 teams on 6 points each and as many teams with 10 points each with only Rajasthan Royals with 12 points leading the league table.
