The Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Mumbai Indians (RCB vs MI) match at New Raipur on May 10 was a low-scoring but eventful encounter. From Krunal Pandya’s brilliant batting to Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s timely maximum, a collective effort helped RCB win the match.
After the match, in the dressing room, Virat Kohli threw light on the important moments of the match. Kohli specifically mentioned the exceptional performance shown by Krunal Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar to secure two more points for the team.
Exciting match of RCB vs MI in IPL 2026
The pitch of New Raipur was not a paradise for batting. The batsmen had to work hard to score one run each. In both the phases of the match, mostly the bowlers controlled the match. The target was only 167 runs, but RCB had to drag the match till the last ball, which was proof of the challenging conditions.
When stalwarts like Virat Kohli, captain Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, Tim David and Romario Shepherd failed to do anything special with the bat, it was Krunal Pandya who proved to be the most important player for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Pandya’s inning of 73 runs in 46 balls took the team closer to the finish line. Despite a calf muscle problem, he played an important role in the innings.
Krunal Pandya, this is your best IPL innings so far – Virat Kohli
As soon as Krunal Pandya was out, Mumbai Indians picked up the pace and made the match more competitive. In the final over, having scored 15 runs in 6 balls, Bhuvneshwar Kumar scored 6 runs on time and made the win possible for RCB. Kumar was adjudged Player of the Match for taking 4 wickets with the ball and scoring an impressive 7 unbeaten runs in 2 balls. Without Kumar’s 6 runs from the blade, the outcome of the match could have been different.
“KP, this is your best IPL innings so far. You are battling the bouncing balls, you know, staying down, bouncing up. But you never made any excuses. You showed us how to fight, how to be there, find a solution, find a way,” Virat Kohli said in his speech in the dressing room.
“And even when you were in cramps, those two sixes were really the difference in the game, where you could have easily said I can’t carry on. But, you know, you got the strength to carry on for the team. So, we can take a lot of inspiration from him. I think it was amazing. It was a match-winning innings for us. The way he was in cramps, but still batting, hitting sixes,” he added.
Virat Kohli teased Bhuvneshwar Kumar ‘David’
But for Virat Kohli, the moment Bhuvneshwar Kumar hit a six off Raj Bajwa in the last over was the best. The interesting thing is that Virat changed the name of Bhuvneshwar Kumar to Bhuvneshwar David.
Virat Kohli said, “I think the most important moment in the game was Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s 6,” after which all the RCB players gave a huge applause.
Virat Kohli again took charge of the dressing room.
While everyone recognizes the performances that helped us cross the line, KP’s innings and Bhuvi’s skills with bat and ball brought the spotlight. Check out these great moments after last night’s win. #playbold #நமம்RCB #IPL2026 #RCBvMI pic.twitter.com/StePG5uXCb
– Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) 11 May 2026
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