Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings kept their hopes of making it to the playoffs as they thumped the Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals, respectively, in what turned out to be complete lop-sided encounters.
As a result, the Royal Challengers have not only consolidated their place at the fourth spot in the points table but have also bettered their net run-rate - minus 0.115.
Bangalore have claimed 14 points after 12 games, but they still need to ensure that they win both their remaining fixtures to be on the safer side as far as the qualification for the playoffs is concerned.
Coming back to the game, the green jersey finally brought some good luck to the Bengaluru franchise as they claimed their first victory in Green Jersey after six years.
Skipper Faf du Plessis stepped up to the occasion and smashed an unbeaten 73 off 50 deliveries. He was ably helped by Rajat Patidar, who once again showcased his full range, to hammer a 38-ball 48.
Glenn Maxwell struggled for a significant part of his 24-ball 33 but Dinesh Karthik's (30* off 8) epic final over onslaught ensured that RCB finished at 192/3.
The Sunrisers got off to a horrendous start as both Kane Williamson and Abhishek Sharma failed to trouble the scorers.
Rahul Tripathi played a lone hand of 58 (37), but it was never going to be enough, and it didn't. Wanindu Hasaranga proved to be the wrecker-in-chief as he finished with figures of 5/18 in his four overs. Josh Hazlewood was once at his imperious best, conceding just 17 in four overs besides claiming a couple.
As a result, RCB knocked over SRH for 125 to register a 67-run win.
Hyderabad, meanwhile, have now suffered four defeats on the bounce, and their net run rate has also taken a heavy beating (from +0.325 to -0.031).
With just 10 points after 11 games, SRH doesn't have any other option but to win all their remaining games while also ensuring they better their NRR. However, it still might not be enough as they would also need a few results to go their way.
After today's game, RCB's chances of making it to the playoffs have gone up to 69%, while SRH's chances have fallen to 9% (As per IPL Playoffs Predictor).
CSK keep their hope alive by a bare thread after a thumping win against DC
Meanwhile, Delhi Capitals were dealt with a body blow on Sunday (May 8) night as they lost to CSK and ended up messing up their NRR thanks to a 91-run mauling from Dhoni's men.
CSK's win was set up by the opening pair of Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad. The duo added 110 runs in 10.5 overs, with Conway being the aggressor.
The Kiwi eventually finished at a 49-ball 87, while Gaikwad made 41 off 33. This and lusty blows from Shivam Dube and MS Dhoni guided the defending champions t0 208/6.
Then, an inspired spell from Moeen Ali (3/13 in 4) and brilliant bowling from the likes of Simarjeet Singh, Mukesh Choudhary and Maheesh Theekshana ensured that DC could only manage 117.
As a result, CSK have kept their chances of making it to the playoffs alive by a bare thread. Their NRR has moved into the positive, and they have also leapfrogged KKR to claim the 8th spot in the table.
While CSK's chances of qualifying are 1%, the corresponding figure for DC is 18%.
Delhi still have three games to show, and if they win all of them, they can still reach 16 points. However, they desperately need to beat Rajasthan in the next game. RR are currently on 14 points, but they still have three games to go.
Meanwhile, CSK, as MS Dhoni said in the post-match presser, need to focus on what's in their hand, and that is to ensure they win their remaining games comprehensively.