Sport by itself is unpredictable, the fickle T20 format even more so. But Royal Challengers Bengaluru and their legion of fans are perfectly entitled to believe they are tantalisingly close to clambering back to the top of the Indian Premier League table and all but securing their place in the Playoffs with plenty to spare, unlike last year. 

Twelve months back, one of the more popular franchises left it very late, having to string together six straight victories to sneak into the second stage. This year, they have been practically unstoppable, especially away from home, though they did finally manage to break their M Chinnaswamy Stadium duck last week, after three successive defeats.