South African David Miller struck two sixes and a four off consecutive deliveries in the final over from Romario Shepherd to muscle Delhi Capitals to a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL on Saturday.
After Bengaluru were restricted to 175-8 on a sluggish surface at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, swing exponent Bhuvneshwar Kumar rocked Delhi with the wickets of Pathum Nissanka, impact substitute Karun Nair and Sameer Rizvi inside the first three overs of their chase.
Half-centurions KL Rahul, 57 off 34 balls, and Tristan Stubbs rebuilt the innings with a 69-run stand for the fourth wicket, but once the former fell to Krunal Pandya, Bengaluru came storming back into the contest.
2⃣0⃣2⃣5⃣ - 𝟵𝟯*(𝟱𝟯)
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 18, 2026
2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣6️⃣ - 𝟱𝟳(𝟯𝟰)
Another special from 𝗞𝗟𝗥 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗟𝗥 🤌💙
RELIVE his knock today ▶️ https://t.co/OeZ3Cfuk3N#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #RCBvDC | @DelhiCapitals | @klrahul pic.twitter.com/wTTCSr4HPi
Delhi needed 42 off 25 deliveries when Miller walked out to the middle to join his compatriot Stubbs after skipper Axar Patel was forced to retire hurt on 26.
Bengaluru stayed in control until Shepherd was summoned to the bowling crease for the first time in the match to defend 15 runs.
Miller swung him over mid-wicket and drove him over cover for towering sixes before bringing up victory with a flicked four over mid-wicket to complement Stubbs, who held the chase together with calmness while finishing unbeaten on 60.
𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 🫡
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 18, 2026
David Miller stands up tall and hits them big to take @DelhiCapitals to a thrilling victory 💥👏
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/vfJ6SccA9T#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #RCBvDC | @DavidMillerSA12 pic.twitter.com/I6FXLeOhXU
"When I walked out, Stubbo (Stubbs) said to me to keep the intensity really hard and that helped," Miller said.
"It's always good finishing off games with Stubbo and he just said, 'thank you so much, you saved me there'. For him being there was massive for us."
Bengaluru's first defeat at home in four matches this season helped Delhi arrest a two-match losing streak as Bhuvneshwar's new-ball exploits went in vain.
Bengaluru opener Phil Salt bossed the early exchanges in the afternoon after Axar put the home side in, dominating an opening stand of 52 with Virat Kohli.
With the pitch at its best for batting when the ball was new and hard, Salt unleashed a series of audacious strokes to bring up his half-century in a mere 30 deliveries.
5️⃣0️⃣ reasons to absolutely love this knock 👏
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 18, 2026
Phil Salt keeps #RCB going with a 30-ball half-century
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/vfJ6SccA9T#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #RCBvDC | @RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/sBCyiRtuNC
Despite losing Devdutt Padikkal, Bengaluru seemed headed for a big total at 99 for two at the halfway mark when they were stymied by Delhi's spinners.
Left-arm orthodox spinner Axar took two for 18 from three overs while left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav chipped in with two for 32 from four as the Bengaluru innings was robbed of momentum.
Wickets fell in quick succession, aiding Delhi in tightening the screws and conceding only 29 runs in the last five overs, which was decisive in the context of the match.
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BENGALURU: Virat Kohli, Philip Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (captain), Jitesh Sharma (wkt), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Josh Hazlewood
Impact subs: Rasikh Salam Dar, Venkatesh Iyer, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal
DELHI CAPITALS: Pathum Nissanka, KL Rahul (wkt), Sameer Rizvi, Axar Patel (captain), David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Auqib Nabi Dar, Lungi Ngidi, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan, Mukesh Kumar
Impact subs: Vipraj Nigam, Ashutosh Sharma, Karun Nair, Dushmantha Chameera, Nitish Rana