New Delhi: Punjab Kings comfortably chased down a target of 96, securing a 5-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru with 11 deliveries remaining in a rain-curtailed 14-over encounter.

RCB's batting unit collapsed early, posting just 95/9, with only Tim David standing out thanks to a fiery 50 off 26 balls. The rest of the lineup struggled, falling to the pace duo of Arshdeep Singh and Marco Jansen, who took two wickets apiece. In the middle overs, Yuzvendra Chahal applied pressure with a tight spell, finishing with impressive figures of 2 for 11.

Punjab Kings' explosive openers, Priyansh Arya - the emerging star of this IPL season - and Prabhsimran Singh, struggled to settle on a surface offering significant bounce for the fast bowlers.

Arya, known for his clean hitting through the line on flat decks, found the extra bounce tricky to handle and ended up miscuing a swipe off Josh Hazlewood (3/14), sending the ball high into the air and into the hands of Tim David.

Prabhsimran was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, but the bigger setback for Punjab came when their in-form skipper Shreyas Iyer was sent back early. Attempting a cut off Hazlewood, Iyer played at a ball that was too close to his body and managed only a faint edge through to wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma.

Josh Inglis also fell soon after, and at 53 for four, Punjab appeared to be in trouble. However, Nehal Wadhera brought stability to the innings. The left-hander remained unbeaten on 33 off 19 balls, launching two sixes off leg-spinner Suyash Sharma and easing the mounting pressure on his side.

With Wadhera holding firm, Punjab managed to get across the finish line and climbed to 10 points, moving into second place on the standings, just behind table-toppers Delhi Capitals.

Earlier, Shreyas Iyer's decision to field first paid dividends, as his bowlers kept RCB to a below-par total.

The Kings struck thrice during the powerplay. Phil Salt was dismissed in the opening over while attempting a big shot off Arshdeep Singh (2/23), with Josh Inglis taking a sharp catch behind the stumps.

Virat Kohli couldn't stay at the crease for long either, as Marco Jansen sprinted back about 20 metres to complete a stunning catch off another Arshdeep delivery. RCB slumped to 26 for three in the powerplay, with Liam Livingstone failing to make an impact.

Yuzvendra Chahal (2/11), on his return to the M.

Chinnaswamy Stadium-once his home ground-made it a memorable outing by picking up the wicket of Jitesh Sharma. Amongst the collapse, captain Rajat Patidar struck some stylish strokes, the highlight being a majestic flick over mid-wicket for six off Bartlett.