Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh struck half-centuries, while left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar took three wickets as Punjab Kings outclassed Rajasthan Royals by 10 runs.
Rajasthan choked in successive chases against Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants -- they needed nine from the final over in both matches and fell short on both occasions.
England secured a 26-run victory over India in the third T20I in Rajkot on Tuesday to stay alive in the five-match series.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will aim to turn their fortunes around at home when they face a struggling Rajasthan Royals on Thursday in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
'Definitely we could have done better. It is not about luck. We have made some mistakes. We should come back with a better mindset in the next season,'
India wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson said that he had a lot of failures in his life and the century against the Proteas meant a lot to him.
'There are 3-4 people who wasted 10 years of my son's vital career...captains like Dhoniji, Viratji, Rohitji and coach Dravidji.'
The spotlight was firmly on the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai as captains from all ten IPL franchises gathered for the official pre-season meet ahead of IPL 2025 on Thursday.
The Royals' pace coach threw his full support behind a resurgent Jofra Archer, praised the squad's fighting spirit, and made it clear - wearing the RR badge still means playing with pride, passion, and purpose.
While the SRH batters turned the game into a six-hitting spectacle, it was a little figure in the stands who quietly stole hearts --Heinrich Klaasen's two-year-old daughter Laya.
On Thursday, opener Suryavanshi was out for a duck, while young Jaiswal too could not make an impact, scoring just 13 runs as RR were all out for 117 at their home ground, chasing Mumbai Indians' 217/2.
Sanju was excluded from Kerala's squad after he informed the Kerala Cricket Association of his unavailability for the preparatory camp before the tournament.
Phil Salt's explosive 33-ball 65 laid the foundation and Virat Kohli's 100th T20 fifty provided the finishing touch as RCB chased down what looked like a big target without much ado.
K L Rahul is likely to be rested for the white-ball series against England, starting in Kolkata on January 22.
'Right now, the vibe is fantastic, and everyone is enjoying it.'
India batter Tilak Varma on Friday achieved a historic feat during the fourth and final match against South Africa in Johannesburg.
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'Found a ponnada in the appropriate India colours to honour him with!'
Trying to make maximum utilisation of my current form: Sanju Samson
The common theme in their opening game defeats was how the seemingly powerful batting and bowling units of KKR and RR failed to fire.
Sanju Samson fractures index finger, out of action for five to six weeks
273 runs to his name, he has surged to the second position in the Orange Cap race and also became the first Indian to cross the 200-run mark in IPL 2025.
Following RR's six run win at the Barsapara cricket stadium, a video surfaced online showing Parag tossing a phone back to security personnel after posing for a photo with them.
The Royals batting looks decent but there is the issue of consistency and lack of depth that could be telling as the tournament wears on.
Sanju Samson became the first Indian to hit two consecutive hundreds in T20 Internationals to power the visitors to a thumping 60-run victory against South Africa.
Chennai Super Kings might feel more 'at home' against an equally clueless Rajasthan Royals on a slow turner expected to be on offer in their next IPL game in Guwahati.
IMAGES from the IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Sunday
Rajasthan Royals face a tough challenge against a marauding Punjab Kings batting lineup, led by in-form Shreyas Iyer.
Riding high on their new-found confidence, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will be hoping to finally get it right at home and keep their play-off hopes alive when they take on a struggling Rajasthan Royals in their IPL match in Kolkata on Sunday.
SRH's Abhinav Manohar made up for his batting failure with a brilliant catch at point.
Finishing with 2/34 on a batting-friendly pitch, Harshal Patel played a key role in stifling Royals' momentum in the middle overs.
Sanju Samson was to play the T20 World Cup final.
Then, Skipper Rohit Sharma changed his mind.
In typical Rohit style, he then spent 10 minutes explaining to Sanju why he was being excluded from the playing eleven.
Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson says he is still not over Jos Buttler leaving the team and wishes the IPL would change its rule of releasing players every three years.
Sai Sudharsan's classy fifty combined with a collective bowling effort powered Gujarat Titans to a commanding 58-run win over Rajasthan Royals.
Sanju Samson influenced former IPL champions Rajasthan Royals' decision to opt for the maximum six retentions, head coach Rahul Dravid said on Monday.
Samson could lose out as he decided to skip the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
The left-hander clobbered eight sixes and five fours in his scintillating 79 off 34 balls as India chased down a modest 133-run target in 12.5 overs.
Sanju Samson, who will be leading Rajasthan Royals for a fifth successive year, credits Rahul Dravid's leadership as a major influence on his own approach.
Sanju Samson will feel hard done by after being left out and so will Mohammed Siraj.
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