"If any team is looking the most comfortable among the top 4, it's RCB" - Aakash Chopra on Royal Challengers Bengaluru after IPL 2025 win vs DC

Former India player Aakash Chopra has opined that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are best placed among all teams in the IPL 2025 playoff qualification race. He pointed out that the Bengaluru-based franchise will face underperforming teams in all four of their remaining games.

RCB beat the Delhi Capitals (DC) by six wickets in Match 46 of IPL 2025 in Delhi on Sunday, April 27. The win took them to 14 points from 10 games and helped them displace the Gujarat Titans (GT) from the top of the points table.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener noted that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru continued their all-win away record in IPL 2025 and are sitting pretty in the playoff qualification race.

"They have defeated Delhi in Delhi. They accepted the challenge and have repaid the loan with interest. They have won a sixth consecutive game away from home. It is the second-longest successful away story in IPL history. RCB have reached the No. 1 position. They will fight for the top two, but RCB will definitely be through this time," Chopra said (0:01).

"It's important to see against whom they are playing their remaining games - Chennai Super Kings, who are sitting at No. 10, LSG, who are struggling at the moment, it's the same story for Hyderabad, and then there is KKR. Even if they lose two, there won't be any upheaval on the table. If any team is looking the most comfortable among the top four, it's RCB," he added.

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru will next face the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Bengaluru on May 3. Their final three league phase games will be against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Lucknow on May 9, the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Bengaluru on May 13, and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on May 17.

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"It seemed like they were trying to come into fourth gear but couldn't" - Aakash Chopra on DC's batting in IPL 2025 loss vs RCB

KL Rahul (41 off 39) top-scored for DC in their IPL 2025 clasg against RCB. [P/C: Getty]

Reflecting on the Delhi Capitals' batting in Sunday's game, Aakash Chopra noted that all their batters, barring Abishek Porel (28 off 11) and Tristan Stubbs (34 off 18), struggled to force the pace.

"If you see from Delhi's perspective, the batting was extremely ordinary. It seemed like they were trying to come into fourth gear but couldn't. Abishek Porel played well, but apart from him, everyone was seen struggling. You reached 162 because of Tristan Stubbs' excellent batting in the end, which was a good 15-20 runs short," he said (2:30) in the same video.

The cricketer-turned-commentator praised Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Krunal Pandya for bowling impressive spells for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

"If we talk about bowling, Josh Hazlewood now has the Purple Cap on his head, and he is unstoppable. He picks up wickets and bowls short balls against Indian batters and traps them. Krunal Pandya did his job. Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up three wickets. An impeccable performance by Team Bengaluru," Chopra observed.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3/33 in four overs) was RCB's most successful bowler in their IPL 2025 away game against DC. While Josh Hazlewood registered figures of 2/36 in four overs, Krunal Pandya picked up a wicket and conceded 28 runs in his four-over spell before scoring an unbeaten 73 off 47 deliveries in the chase.