Chandigarh, May 29 -- Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar won the toss and opted to bowl against Punjab Kings in the Qualifier 1 of the 18th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Mullanpur on Thursday.

Punjab and Bengaluru will step into the stadium with eyes fixated on victory. The winner of the high-stakes fixture will directly qualify for the final, while the losing side will get a second shot on Sunday in Qualifier 2.

Bengaluru scripted a record-chase heist in the final group stage game against Lucknow Super Giants to finish second in the standings and set a date with Punjab in the Qualifier 1. However, it has been 40 days since Bengaluru last played a fixture in Mullanpur, and they savoured defeat in their last...