Holder the hero as Titans edge RCB in thriller

AHMEDABAD, India (CMC):

Jason Holder was everywhere. In the field, with the ball, and then with the bat. When the Gujarat Titans needed someone to steady a wobbly chase against the defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the West Indian all-rounder delivered a performance that defied all attempt to contain him.

Holder’s involvement in five dismissals, two wickets and three catches, one of them shrouded in controversy, helped bowl RCB out for 155.

Then, after Gujarat’s top order threatened to unravel, his nerveless 12 off 10 balls and a six off his first delivery helped steer the Titans to a four-wicket victory with 25 balls to spare at the Narendra Modi Stadium.

Asked to bat first, RCB flew out of the blocks. Virat Kohli pumped Kagiso Rabada for four successive fours in the second over, smashing even the South African’s trademark hard length delivery over mid-off.

In the next over, Kohli charged Mohammed Siraj and lofted him over mid-on for another boundary.

But Rabada had the last laugh. In the fourth over, Kohli (28 off 13 balls) charged again. Rabada hit the deck harder, drew a top edge to midwicket.

Siraj had earlier removed Jacob Bethell for five, restricting RCB to 59 for two.

Devdutt Padikkal (40 off 24) and Rajat Patidar forged a 44-run stand before Holder struck. In the eighth over, Patidar hoisted one to deep square leg.

Holder slid, juggled, and clung on. Slow-motion replays suggested the ball may have grazed the turf more than once. The TV umpire Abhijit Bhattacharya ruled it out, deeming Holder in control.

Holder wasn’t finished. He had Jitesh Sharma nicking off in the ninth over, then took sharp catches to dismiss Tim David (9) and Krunal Pandya (4), both at midwicket. His second wicket came when West Indian compatriot Romario Shepherd was caught.

Padikkal kept RCB afloat, manufacturing room to swing, before Rashid Khan (2 for 19) had him chopping on with a slider.

At 126 for seven, RCB deployed Impact Player Venkatesh Iyer, sacrificing specialist bowler Rasikh Dar. Venkatesh copped a blow on his unprotected elbow but added 29 with Bhuvneshwar Kumar to drag RCB to 155.

Chasing 156, Shubman Gill launched a one-man assault. Josh Hazlewood was smashed for three fours and two sixes in a 24-run over.

Gill raced to 43 off 18 balls, his highest IPL powerplay score, before slapping Bhuvneshwar to cover, where Kohli grabbed a screamer with both hands.

Jos Buttler (39 off 19) took over, attacking Hazlewood and wristspinner Suyash Sharma, before Bhuvneshwar (3 for 28) knocked back his leg stump in the eighth over. The same bowler removed Sai Sudharsan soon after.

RCB curiously kept left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya out of the attack entirely, perhaps wary of left-handers Washington Sundar and Rahul Tewatia lurking. Instead, Shepherd became their fourth bowler after the Impact Player swap. He responded by removing Shahrukh Khan and Washington in the 11th over.

Tension crept in. Holder walked out, faced his first ball from Shepherd, and hooked it for six. The game swung again. He fell in the 14th over, but by then the Titans needed just 15 off 37 balls.

Tewatia (27 not out off 17) and Rashid (2 not out) finished the job with 25 balls to spare, handing RCB their third defeat of IPL 2026.