It is the final of the IPL 2016. Two most deserving teams - Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad - are set to clash in a mouthwatering contest at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. While this is the first IPL Final for SRH, RCB have lost two finals before. Can RCB be third time lucky or SRH will take the title in their first attempt?
LIVE SCORE | RCB vs SRH | IPL 2016 FINAL | CHINNASWAMY STADIUM
Royal Challengers Bangalore innings
Sunrisers Hyderabad beat RCB by 8 runs to win their maiden IPL title.
19.6 overs: FOUR
19.5 overs: 1 run.
19.4 overs: 1 run.
19.3 overs: OUT! Chris Jordan run out 3 (4b 0x4 0x6).
19.2 overs: 2 runs.
19.1 overs: 1 run.
Bhuvneshwar to bowl the last over.
19 overs: A SIX off the last ball by Sachin Baby got RCB 12 runs from the penultimate over. RCB 191/6 (18 runs required from 6 balls).
18.1 overs: OUT! Binny wanted to two runs but couldn't reach his crease despite putting desperate dive in the end. Stuart Binny run out 9 (7b 0x4 1x6).
18 overs: Excellent over by Bhuvi. He has been terrific this season. Sachin Baby hit a FOUR on the last ball to get 7 runs from it but RCB needed bigger over. RCB 179/5 (30 runs required from 12 balls).
17 overs: Successful over by Mustafizur. He got Watson's wicket in it. Binny hit a SIX in the over though. RCB 172/5 (37 runs required from 18 balls).
16.3 overs: OUT! Mustafizur is the best bowler in death over. And he proved it once again. Removed Watson with slower ball. Shane Watson c Henriques b Mustafizur Rahman 11 (9b 0x4 1x6).
16 overs: That was an excellent over by Cutting. Just 4 runs and a wicket for him to end his spell. RCB 162/4 (47 runs required from 24 balls).
15.3 overs: OUT! Slower one on good length, Rahul looked to go for a big shot but it wasn't that short and the ball went on to crash into his stumps. Wicket for Ben Cutting. KL Rahul b Cutting 11 (9b 1x4 0x6).
15 overs: It was going to be a brilliant over but a Watson miss-hit went for SIX unluckily for Henriques. 9 runs from the over. RCB 158/3 (51 runs required from 30 balls).
14 overs: Successful over by Bipul. Just 8 runs in lieu of ABD's wicket. RCB 149/3 (60 runs required from 36 balls).
13.5 overs: OUT! Did AB de Villiers choke there? It was a big occasion and RCB needed him to guide them through. But he disappointed them. Bipul got the big wicket. AB de Villiers c Henriques b Bipul Sharma 5 (6b 0x4 0x6).
13 overs: Successful over by Sran. It was expensive but he got Kohli's wicket. 12 runs off it. RCB 141/2 (68 runs required from 42 balls).
12.5 overs: OUT! Sran bowled out Virat Kohli. Big wicket for Sunrisers. Kohli stepped out and looked hit another over over cover but the ball zipped back and took the inside edge before crashing into his stumps. Virat Kohli b Sran 54 (35b 5x4 2x6).
12.2 overs: FIFTY up for Virat Kohli in 32 balls.
12 overs: Fine over by Bipul to start his spell. 9 runs from the over. Kohli hit him for a FOUR. RCB 129/1 (80 runs required from 48 balls).
11 overs: Successful over. Cutting provided the much-needed wicket to Sunrisers. 8 runs off the over. It is an opportunity for Sunrisers to regain their position in the match. RCB 120/1 (89 runs required from 54 balls).
10.3 overs: OUT! Finally Gayle is dismissed. Cutting got the wicket. Big relief for Sunrisers. Chris Gayle c Bipul Sharma b Cutting 76 (38b 4x4 8x6).
1o.2 overs: DROPPED! Mustafizur dropped Kohli at short third man. It was tough chance. Shortish cutter outside off, Kohli slashed an outside edge.
10 overs: Virat and Gayle switched the role for this over. Virat hit Mustafizur for a FOUR and a SIX. 12 runs from the over. RCB 112/0 (97 runs required from 60 balls).
9 overs: Gayle is in an ominous form today. You bowl full, short or whatever, he is going to smash it. Two SIXES and a FOUR by Gayle of Henriques' over. A FOUR for Virat too. 21 runs from it. RCB 100/0 (109 runs required from 11 overs). Chirs Gayle 74 (34b 4x4 8x6), Virat Kohli 20 (20b 2x4 0x6), Moises Henriques 2-0-31-0, Ben Cutting2-0-23-0.
8 overs: Another big over for RCB. Gayle smashed a SIX over long-off. 10 runs off the over. RCB 79/0 (130 runs required from 12 overs).
7 overs: Another SIX by Gayle in the over. 9 runs from Henriques' first over. RCB 69/0 (140 runs required from 13 overs).
6.1 overs: FIFTY up for Chris Gayle in just 25 balls. Hit a SIX to complete his second half-century of the season.
Moises Henriques in the attack.
6 overs: Mustafizur immediately applied the breaks on the scoring rate. Excellent over. Just 4 runs from the over. RCB 59/0 (150 runs required from 14 overs).
Mustafizur Rahman in the attack.
5 overs: Another big over for RCB. Gayle is doing most of the scoring at the moment. Hit Cutting for a SIX and a FOUR. 13 runs from it. RCB 55/0 (154 runs required from 15 overs).
Ben Cutting in the attack.
4 overs: Good battle between Gayle and Sran. Gayle won it though, hitting two SIXES and a FOUR. 16 runs from the over. RCB 42/0 (167 runs required from 16 overs).
3 overs: Another good over by Bhuvi. Gayle got a FOUR off an inside edge. 8 runs from the over. RCB 26/0 (183 runs required from 17 overs).
2 overs: Sran has bowled an expensive over. Gayle hit him for a SIX to collect 13 runs from it. Is this going to be Gayle's day? RCB 18/0 (191 runs required from 18 overs).
1 over: Good over by Bhuvi to start their defence. Virat was lucky that the edge didn't go to the wicketkeeper or the third-slip fielder and got him a FOUR. Just 5 runs off it. RCB 5/0 (204 runs required from 19 overs).
Virat and Gayle walked in quietly. Warner had a meeting with his players before entering the ground. It's going to be a cracking contest. Bhuvneshwar has the ball, Gayle to face the first ball.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have set a huge target for RCB, who have the best batting line-up of this IPL season. Can Virat Kohli and Co. chase this target? We will see in a while....
Sunrisers Hyderabad innings
20 overs: Ben Cutting hit Shane Watson for 24 runs in the last over of their innings. Cutting hit three massive SIXES, one of them went out of the stadium. Sunrisers Hyderabad 208/7.
19 overs: Very expensive over by Jordan. 16 runs off it. Bipul, whom he dismissed on the next ball, hit him for a FOUR and then Cutting hit another. Sunrisers Hyderabad 184/7.
18.4 overs: OUT! Third wicket for Jordan. Short on the body, Bipul was late in the pull and he skied the ball. Bipul Sharma c Chahal b Jordan 5 (3b 1x4 0x6).
18 overs: Another expensive over by Watson. Cutting hit him for a SIX and a FOUR in the over to collect 12 runs. Sunrisers Hyderabad 168/6.
17.1 overs: OUT! Massive confusion between Cutting and Ojha. Watson picked up the ball in his follow through and fired a direct hit. Naman Ojha run out 7 (4b 1x4 0x6).
17 overs: Successful over by Jordan. He removed the dangerous Yuvraj. 9 runs off the over with Naman Ojha hitting good FOUR. Sunrisers Hyderabad 156/5.
16.1 overs: OUT! Big blow to Sunrisers. Jordan dismissed Yuvraj. Bowled fast, full and outside off-stump. Yuvi looked to go over mid-off fielder but his bat rotated and a simple catch for Watson at cover. Yuvraj Singh c Watson b Jordan 38 (23b 4x4 2x6).
16 overs: Another successful over by Aravind. Yuvraj hit a FOUR off the first ball but Aravind hit back by dismissing Hooda. 7 runs off it. Deepak Hooda c Kohli b Aravind 3 (6b 0x4 0x6).
15.6 overs: OUT! Aravind provided another wicket. Hooda looked to clear the boundary but found Virat at the long-on boundary. Deepak Hooda c Kohli b Aravind 3 (6b 0x4 0x6).
15 overs: Not effect off Warner's departure on Yuvraj. He hit Chahal for a massive SIX and a cracking FOUR in the over to collect 13 runs. Sunrisers Hyderabad 140/3.
14 overs: Successful over by Aravind. Warner hit him for a FOUR before Aravind got his wicket. Just 7 runs from it. Sunrisers Hyderabad 127/3.
13.3 overs: OUT! Biggest wicket for RCB. Aravind has got David Warner. It was a length ball outside off and Warner wanted to slash it over cover but the ball took the top edge and went straight to short third man fielder. David Warner c Iqbal Abdulla b Aravind 69.
13 overs: Chahal bowled an excellent over. Just 4 runs off it. He was bowling against two explosive left-handers. Sunrisers Hyderabad 120/2.
12 overs: Classic Yuvraj on display there. Two sublime flicks got him a FOUR and SIX on consecutive balls. Expensive over by Jordan. 13 runs off it. Sunrisers Hyderabad 116/2.
11 overs: It was good over by Watson. He troubled Yuvi with his short balls but conceded a FOUR -- a cracking cover drive -- off the last ball. 6 runs from the over. Sunrisers Hyderabad 103/2.
After being brutalised by Dhawan and Warner in the first over, Watson is back in the attack.
10 overs: Successful over for RCB. 9 runs off it as Warner hit two FOURs off the first two balls but Jordan hit back by removing Henriques. Sunrisers Hyderabad 97/2.
Yuvraj Singh came in next. He is playing in his first IPL Final.
9.5 overs: OUT! Jordan struck in his first over. Got the wicket of Henriques. If you can't get Warner, dismiss others. Moises Henriques c Chahal b Jordan 4 (5b 0x4 0x6).
England pacer Chris Jordan into attack.
9 overs: Anther big over for Sunrisers. Warner is leading from the front. Hit two FOURS off Chahal to collect 13 runs from the over. Sunrisers Hyderabad 88/1.
8.6 overs: DROPPED! There was an edge but KL Rahul couldn't hold on to it. Warner gets a life and it would prove to be very expensive for RCB.
8.5 overs: 50 up for Warner in just 24 balls.
8 overs: Warner is playing safe today by simply hitting SIXES! No need to keep the ball inside the field. That's risky. 10 runs off the over. Warner hit him for a SIX over long-off on the third ball. Sunrisers Hyderabad 75/1.
Left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla into attack now.
7 overs: Successful over by Chahal. Just 6 runs and he provided the breakthrough by dismissing Dhawan. Sunrisers Hyderabad 65/1.
6.4 overs: OUT! Chahal has worked his magic. Dhawan looked to sweep the ball over square-leg but he couldn't reach near the ball and played it with one hand. Jordan took an easy catch at the boundary. Shikhar Dhawan c Jordan b Chahal 28 (25b 3x4 1x6).
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal into attack now.
6 overs: Another good over for Sunrisers to end the Powerplay. 13 runs from Gayle's over. Dhawan hit a FOUR before Warner hit the last ball for a SIX. Sunrisers Hyderabad 59/0.
David Warner completed his 800 runs in this IPL season.
5 overs: That was an excellent over for Sunrisers. Warner and Dhawan hit a SIX each off Watson before Warner got a FOUR too. 19 runs from the over. Sunrisers Hyderabad 46/0.
Shane Watson into attack.
4 overs: Another good over by Gayle. He was hit for a FOUR by Shikhar but he allowed just 2 more runs in the over. 6 runs off it. Sunrisers Hyderabad 27/0.
3 overs: Good over for Sunrisers. Aravind troubled Shikhar initially but then he took a single to bring Warner on strike. Warner slapped two cracking FOURS on the last two balls. 9 runs from it. Sunrisers Hyderabad 21/0.
2 overs: Excellent over by Gayle. He could have dismiss Shikhar but couldn't take the return catch on the 5th ball. He dived to his left but couldn't grab it. 5 runs off the over. Sunrisers Hyderabad 12/0.
Chris Gayle into attack for the second over.
1 over: Shikhar Dhawan hit a FOUR off the last ball to collect 7 runs from the over. Sunrisers Hyderabad 7/0.
Sreenath Aravind has the ball. Warner will face the first ball. Let's go.
The RCB players have walked in for the last time this season. Huge roar welcomed them. David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan walked upto the pitch quietly, probably focusing on the task at hand. Hoping for a cracking match.
PLAYING XIs
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, KL Rahul, Shane Watson, Sachin Baby, Stuart Binny, Iqbal Abdulla, Chris Jordan, Sreenath Aravind, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner, Shikhar Dhawan, Moises Henriques, Yuvraj Singh, Deepak Hooda, Ben Cutting, Naman Ojha, Bipul Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Barinder Sran, Mustafizur Rahman.
CHANGES
RCB are going with the same team that won them the Qualifier 1 against Gujarat Lions.
Sunrisers have brought back Mustafizur Rahman. Trent Boult is out. That's the only change for them.
TOSS: Sunrisers Hyderabad won the toss and opted to BAT first.
7:25 PM: 5 minutes to go for the toss.
This is what the Pitch for the IPL final looks like:
It's cloudy for in Bangalore and showers have been forecast for tonight as well. Here are 5 scenarios if rain plays a spoil sport.
The latest a five-over shootout can start is 12.26 AM with a scheduled finish of 1.20 AM.
We are 2 hours away from the match.
Do you know what Virat Kohli has promised his fans. Read here.
STATS
- Virat Kohli is just 81 runs away from becoming the first batsman to score 1000 runs in an IPL season.
- Out of 8 innings at the Chinnaswamy Stadium this season, Virat Kohli has crossed 50-run mark 6 times -- scoring 3 centuries and 3 half-centuries. He also made a duck.
- David Warner has scored 468 runs while chasing in this IPL -- most by a batsman while chasing in any IPL season.
SQUADS
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli (C), Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Shane Watson, KL Rahul, Sachin Baby, Varun Aaron, Abu Nechim, Sreenath Aravind, Stuart Binny, Yuzvendra Chahal, Travis Head, Iqbal Abdullah, Kedar Jadhav, Chris Jordan, David Wiese, Akshay Karnewar, Sarfaraz Khan, Vikramjeet Malik, Mandeep Singh, Parveez Rasool, Harshal Patel, Kane Richardson, Tabraiz Shamshi, Vikas Tokas, Praveen Dubey.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: David Warner (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Moises Henriques, Eoin Morgan, Deepak Hooda, Naman Ojha, Karn Sharma, Mustafizur Rahman, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Barinder Sran, Trent Boult, Ben Cutting, Kane Williamson, Ashish Reddy, Ricky Bhui, Bipul Sharma, Siddarth Kaul, Abhimanyu Mithun, Vijay Shankar, T Suman, Aditya Tare.
PREVIEW
Bengaluru: Virat Kohli's inspirational leadership for Royal Challengers Bangalore will be up against the brute force with which David Warner has steered Sunrisers Hyderabad when the two teams, eyeing their maiden IPL title, square off in a high-intensity summit clash here on Sunday.
RCB, however, will have a slight advantage over Sunrisers as they have the experience of playing in an IPL final twice in the past -- 2009 and 2011, but on both occasions, they had finished runners-up.
Sunrisers' best finish was a play-off berth which they managed in their debut season in 2013.
RCB witnessed a topsy-turvy campaign initially and were in a real spot of bother at one stage. They needed to win their last four games to make it to the play-offs and the Bangalore outfit didn't just achieve that but also recorded their first straight win to get a shot at the final for a third time.
The momentum with them, RCB would be determined to make the opportunity count by winning the coveted T20 tournament, having missed the chance twice in the past.
RCB struck form just at the right time and and dished out five clinical performances to beat the Lions (by 144 runs), Kolkata Knight Riders (by 9 wickets), Kings XI Punjab (by 82 runs D/L method), Delhi Daredevils (by 6 wickets) and Gujarat (by 4 wickets) again in the Qualifier 1 to seal their place in the title clash.
Kohli and AB de Villiers have been the cynosure of all eyes for RCB with their batsmanship.
Kohli has also been an impressive captain and infused confidence in the team after a disappointing start. At a time when qualifying for the play-offs looked a distant dream for RCB, Kohli made it possible with his glorious batting and leadership qualities.
Without doubt, Kohli seems to be enjoying the best form of his career so far and is the highest run-getter in the tournament, amassing 919 runs from 15 games, which includes six fifties and four centuries with 113 being his highest score.
De Villiers, on the other hand, is the third highest scorer in the league with 682 runs under his belt with, including one century and six half-centuries.
In fact, in the Qualifier 1 at the Chinnaswamy stadium here, RCB, while chasing 159 for the win, were struggling at 29 for five at one stage with Kohli witnessing a rare failure this season.
But then stepped in De Villiers and the South African steered RCB through with a classic unbeaten 79. He put on match-winning 91 runs for the seventh wicket with Iqbal Abdullah (33) to take his side into the final.
Besides Kohli and De Villiers, the big-hitting Chris Gayle would also be eyeing a big knock on Sunday after indicating his return to form in the last few games.
Credit for RCB's turnaround should also go to the team's not-so-experienced bowling attack, which was under fire for major part of the tournament.
RCB's turnaround in bowling was made possible by leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who is the second highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 20 scalps from 12 games.
The late entry of Chris Jordon also helped RCB in containing their rivals in the death overs.
Australian Shane Watson too has served the team well with the ball, picking up 20 wickets from 15 games so far this season.
Sunday's match would give RCB an opportunity to avenge their 15-run loss to Sunrisers in the last clash between the two teams.
Just like RCB, Sunrisers too would be banking on their skipper Warner, who led from the front to ensure a maiden IPL final berth for the Hyderabad outfit.
Sunrisers will be coming into the final on the back of two high-profile wins -- first against two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders by 22 runs in the Eliminator and then against Lions in the Qualifier 2.
Warner has been in explosive form for Sunrisers. He is leading by example and has so far amassed 779 runs from 16 games with eight fifties, next only to Kohli in the run-getters' list in IPL 9. The match-winning 93 not out against Lions in the Qualifier 2 last night is Warner's highest score.
Warner produced a majestic 93 to single-handedly lead Sunrisers Hyderabad into the IPL final by securing a four-wicket win over Lions.
Chasing a tricky 163, Sunrisers overhauled the target with four balls to spare as Warner anchored the chase with his responsible 58-ball knock, embellished with 11 four and three sixes.
Besides Warner, Sunrisers also have the likes of Shikhar Dhawan (473 runs), the experienced Yuvraj Singh, Moises Henriques, Deepak Hooda, Naman Ojha and big-hitting all-rounder Ben Cutting in the batting department.
But it is Sunrisers bowling which has struck gold for the team this season.
In fact, it won't be wrong to say that tomorrow's match will be a contest between RCB's batting and Sunrisers bowling unit.
Sunrisers will be relying heavily on its pacers, who played a stellar role in defeating RCB here in the league stage, to deliver the goods on Sunday.
Seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar seemed to have found his mojo back and is leading the wicket-takers' chart with 23 wickets from 16 games, while Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman (16 wickets from 15 matches), has also lived up to his skipper's expectations whenever he has been handed the ball.
And Sunrisers would be hopeful that Rahman turns up fit for Sunday's game after sitting out of last night's match owing to a hamstring niggle.
The duo along with Barinder Sran has not let Sunrsiers feel the absence of veteran Ashish Nehra, who left midway to undergo a knee surgery.