Lucknow, May 24 : Royal Challengers Bengaluru will be ruing the missed opportunity to go top of the Indian Premier League 2025 table as Sunrisers Hyderabad handed a crushing 42-run defeat to the playoffs-bound franchise in Match 65 at the Ekana Cricket Stadium here on Friday.

With this loss, RCB’s run rate has taken a heavy hit and pushed them down to third place in the table with Punjab Kings moving past due to their superior run rate. Gujarat Titans is still at the top of the table with 18 points and Mumbai Indians in fourth with 16.

Asked to bat first by RCB's stand-in skipper Jitesh Sharma, Sunrisers Hyderabad rode on Ishan Kishan’s unbeaten 94 to reach a massive total of 231/6 in 20 overs.

Openers Abhishek Sharma (34) and Travis Head (17) gave the Sunrisers a flying start with their heavy hitting and reached the 50-run mark in just 15 deliveries. Just when it seemed the two were on for a big score, RCB scalped both batters in a matter of three deliveries. Abhishek flicked Lungi Ngidi's full-length delivery straight to Phil Salt. Just two deliveries later, it was Bhuvneshwar who claimed the important wicket of Head.

After targeting Suyash Sharma, Heinrich Klassen (24) fell to the bowler while attempting to clear the fielder at the long-on boundary but was caught by Shepherd.

Kishan kept up the momentum by hammering a short delivery by Krunal Pandya for six before Aniket Verma (26) joined in the fun with two maximums and a four off Suyash for a 19-run 11th over. The duo similarly dealt with Pandya by getting a six each off his opening three balls. Aniket’s time at the crease came to an end when a leading edge saw the ball balloon towards backward point for a simple catch by Bhuvneshwar.

Kishan, on the other hand, had no intentions of letting the fall of wickets at the other end halt the flow of runs and raised his half-century in 28 balls. Nitesh Kumar Reddy’s (4) lean run of form continued as the all-rounder was undone by Shepherd.

With Kishan firing from the other end, Abhinav Manohar (12) struggled to get going and it was once again Shepherd who got the vital breakthrough for RCB.

Kishan ended the inning just short of the century landmark and took SRH to 231/6 in 20 overs with a four and a six in Yash Dayal’s final over. He ended with 94 not out off 48 balls, a knock laced with seven boundaries and five sixes.

In response, Virat Kohli (43) took the fight to the SRH bowlers. He began the proceedings with a late cut off Pat Cummins, before punching Jaydev Unadkat through wide mid-off with authority in the next over. A pull shot towards deep mid-wicket, which just evaded Nitesh Kumar Reddy, off Cummins, saw the veteran take charge of the opening overs, while Phil Salt (62) struggled to get going, contrasting their regular dynamic.