173/3 TO 189/10. Royal Challengers Bangalore royally bottled a seemingly gettable run chase against Pat Cummins’ spirited Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday night at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. It was a disheartening outing for the already qualified Bengaluru franchise who were tasked with a daunting total of 232 set by Hyderabad, thanks to the brilliant and unbeaten knock played by Ishan Kishan who smashed 94* in the 48 deliveries that he faced. RCB had a decent start to their run chase, with their openers Phil Salt (62 off 23) and Virat Kohli (43 off 25) playing solid knocks. RCB brought up 72 for no loss in the powerplay and it looked like the Men in Red were gunning for the second spot on the IPL points table. But it weren’t to be. RCB skipper Rajat Patidar (18) and Jitesh Sharma (24) helped the team to 173 at a loss of three wickets in the 16th over. But the Bengaluru side lost their remaining seven wickets for 60 runs as Cummins (3/28) and Eshan Malinga (2/37) led SRH’s bowling charge. Hyderabad, playing for their pride, silenced the RCB fans as the chasing side were bowled out with a delivery to spare. Calculator Memes Such is the nature of the IPL that the standing of a team can shift with every encounter they face. Their positioning can also move around based on the results of other teams on the roster. RCB have, like any other IPL franchise, relied on their fellow teams to make it to the playoffs or end up as table toppers in previous seasons. But when you are one of the most followed franchises in the popular league, you are bound to be scrutinised exponentially more, right? Also Read: Jaipur Shop Removes ‘Pak’ From Its Sweets. Mysore Shree, Anyone? The folks on the Internet just did, trolling away RCB with “calculator means” — implying that the team, despite having qualified for the next round, were at the mercy of permutation combinations in the coming days. RCB qualified for the playoffs with 2 games still to go. Finally a calculator-free season pic.twitter.com/d3gXXNqZyT — Abhyudaya Mohan (@AbhyudayaMohan) May 18, 2025 Made for each other. No matter how good they Play. “RCB & Calculator” are made for each other. :joy_cat: pic.twitter.com/agLeKjf21F — Dhillon (@sehajdhillon_) May 23, 2025 The pundits were out. Just used calculator PBKS have 2 matches left they will win 1 of them for sure – 19 points GT have 1 match left against finished CSK so they will win for sure – 20 points So rcb have to win the last match with good Net run rate & punjab have to lose 1 match with a big… pic.twitter.com/99ozOoBeY6 — GAURAV (@Gaurav_Hrithik2) May 23, 2025 It never ends, does it? Take this Calculator RCB fans and calculate how you gonna finish in top-2. pic.twitter.com/Egq2FWKKgA — TukTuk Academy (@TukTuk_Academy) May 23, 2025 RCB Still Have Hopes RCB’s 42-run defeat on Friday doesn’t mean their fate has been sealed at the third position on the IPL points table. Things can turn around for them and the Bengaluru-based franchise can still end at the second spot. Royal Challengers Bangalore have to beat Lucknow Super Giants on May 27. Then, Punjab Kings lose their upcoming encounters against Delhi Capitals (May 24) and Mumbai Indians (May 26). Additionally, Chennai Super Kings beat Gujarat Titans on May 25. In the second scenario, RCB still have to beat LSG on May 27. CSK beat GT on May 25. And Punjab lose either to DC on May 24 or MI on May 26. There’s another combination that would help RCB end on the second spot. In this scenario, RCB have to beat LSG on May 27. Second Spot Advantage Why is the second spot so lucrative, you ask? The top two teams will only have to play a single match to advance to the finals of IPL 2025. The loser of this Qualifier gets a lifeline, a second chance to have another go at the trophy, when they meet the winner of Eliminator played between the teams at third and fourth spots respectively. The loser of the Eliminator goes home this year trophyless. It’s worth noting, RCB can also finish at the third or fourth position before the qualifiers kickoff. You can check how here.