Calcutta: Royal Challengers Bangalore are placed fifth at the midway stage in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), but captain Anil Kumble feels they still have a formidable chance of making it to the semi-finals.

After three consecutive victories, the Vijay Mallya-owned side suffered a setback Thursday when defending champions Rajasthan Royals beat them by seven wickets.

Kumble, who took over the captaincy after Kevin Pietersen’s departure, feels the defeat won’t be a big setback to their momentum.

“We have won three out of the last four games. We still have five matches. The next game is against Mumbai Indians and we have done well against them. We would take that kind of confidence. You can’t think that we have lost the momentum after this game... I don’t think so,” Kumble was quoted as saying by the official IPL website.

“I think every game is a different game, new game. We will have to adapt to the conditions and try and force a win. If we win that, we will be again part of the top five. I think, till the last few games we are still in the race. So we would like to look at it in that sense and approach every game as a final,” he added.

On Robin Uthappa’s on-and-off performance in the tournament, he said: “That’s cricket. If things went according to the script, then you would win every game. That’s the beauty of cricket and that’s the way it is.”

Kumble also hinted that South African pacer Dale Steyn will join the team soon after recovering from his broken thumb injury.

“He is likely to come soon. That is something the physio and the management will be able to give you a clear picture about. But hopefully I think he will be part of the team pretty soon,” the Royal Challengers’ captain said.