Mitchell Marsh ton keeps LSG alive, denies RCB top spot

Twenty runs in the last over should still feel possible in the IPL. On Wednesday night in Lucknow, it felt very possible.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru had Romario Shepherd at the crease. Krunal Pandya was there too. The defending champions needed 20 from 6 balls, with the top spot on the table within reach.

Then Rishabh Pant made the call that captains either get praised for, or answer for all night. He gave the ball to Digvesh Rathi. The leg-spinner gave away only 10. Lucknow Super Giants won by 9 runs, and their season stayed alive.

Marsh gives Lucknow a mountain

This was not a quiet win built on small margins. It began with Mitchell Marsh playing one of those IPL innings that makes bowlers look underpaid.

Marsh smashed 111 from 56 balls, with 9 fours and 9 sixes. That is not just a century. That is a full takeover.

Arshin Kulkarni made only 17 from 24 balls, but his 95-run opening stand with Marsh gave Lucknow the platform. In T20 cricket, that matters more than it looks.

Nicholas Pooran then added 38 from 23 balls. Pant finished with a violent 32 not out from 10 balls, striking at 320.

Lucknow reached 209 for 3 in 19 overs. Rain had shortened the match, and the target under the DLS method became 213.

That sounds harsh to casual viewers. But the method adjusts for overs and resources left. In simple terms, RCB had fewer overs, so the asking rate went up.

RCB’s chase starts badly

For a side chasing 213 in 19 overs, the first 2 overs were close to a nightmare.

Mohammed Shami removed Jacob Bethell for 4 in the first over. Then Prince Yadav struck a much bigger blow.

He dismissed Virat Kohli for 0 in the second over. For RCB, that was not just one wicket. It was the emotional temperature of the chase dropping suddenly.

Kohli’s early dismissal changes how RCB bat. He usually gives their chase shape, tempo, and belief. Without him, others must attack early and still protect wickets.

Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal did that job well. Their 95-run stand from 53 balls put RCB back into the match.

Patidar made 61 from 31 balls. Padikkal scored 35 from 25. For a while, the chase had rhythm again.

But the required rate was always sitting on the shoulder. In a chase above 11 runs an over, one quiet over can feel like a wicket.

Prince Yadav changes the script

Prince Yadav’s spell was the heart of Lucknow’s win. He took 3 wickets and hit RCB at the right moments.

His first wicket was Kohli. His next burst hurt RCB when they had recovered.

In the 11th over, Prince removed Padikkal. He then got Jitesh Sharma in the same over. Suddenly, RCB’s calm middle phase cracked.

That double strike mattered because T20 chases are built in small emotional blocks. A partnership tells the dugout to breathe. Two wickets tell everyone to calculate again.

Shahbaz Ahmed then did the heavy lifting in the middle overs. He removed Patidar, who had already crossed fifty and looked dangerous.

He also dismissed Tim David, who made 40 from 17 balls. That wicket may have been the moment Lucknow truly believed.

David is exactly the kind of batter who can ruin 18 overs of good work. Against him, even 35 from 18 can vanish quickly.

By the time Krunal and Shepherd came together, RCB were still alive. But they were no longer in control.

Pant’s final-over gamble pays off

The final over was the real theatre. RCB needed 20. Shepherd had the power. Krunal had the experience. Pant had to choose his bowler.

Many captains prefer pace at the death. The logic is simple. Hit the blockhole, protect one side, and force the batter to create power.

Pant went with Rathi, a spinner, against a batter who can clear straight boundaries. It was a brave move, but not a random one.

A spinner can take pace off the ball. He can force the batter to reach. He can make the big hit slightly less clean.

Rathi did exactly that. He conceded only 10 runs. Lucknow won by 9, and Pant’s decision became the story after Marsh’s century.

For RCB, the defeat hurt twice. They lost the match, and they missed the chance to go number 1.

For Lucknow, the win did not solve everything. Their playoff hopes still depend on other results and their own finish. But in the IPL, staying alive is half the battle.

This match also showed why late-season cricket can be so gripping. A century gives you a headline. A young bowler gives you a twist. A captain’s call gives you the memory.

For fans, the table now gets tighter and louder. For players, every over will carry more weight. Lucknow have not booked anything yet, but they have bought themselves one more night of belief.