Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) registered their first win in this season of Indian Premier League (IPL) over Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) by 8 wickets in Mohali on Saturday, April 13.
Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and chose to field first. Put into bat, Punjab openers Chris Gayle and KL Rahul added 60 runs in the powerplay. Apart from Gayle, other batsmen were not able to reach the 20-run mark. Gayle, on the other hand, scored 99* off 64, including 10 boundaries and 5 sixes and put up 173 on board.
Chasing 174, Bangalore captain Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers scored 67 and 59* respectively. Their 85-run partnership and Marcus Stoinis’ quickfire 28 off 16 helped them to claim their first win of the season.
Punjab came to bat after losing the toss. They were hoping for a flying start while they struggled to score in the first two overs. However, Gayle was the one who started hitting first. He hit Umesh Yadav for a boundary and a maximum in the consecutive deliveries and later KL Rahul took on Yadav for two back-to-back boundaries. They put up 60 runs in the powerplay.
KL Rahul couldn’t do much as he was dismissed for 18 in the 7th over which included two boundaries and a six. In-form Mayank Agarwal also failed to impress and was dismissed for 15. However, Gayle reached his fifty in the 9th over. Another in-form batsman Sarfaraz Khan also got out for 15 off 13.
Gayle, somehow, failed to maintain the same strike rate during the middle-overs (7-15). He managed to score just 18 runs off 23 balls. This cost Punjab’s batting as well because the other batsmen were not able to contribute much.
Gayle was lucky enough to not get dismissed in the very first over when he was trapped before the stump by Umesh Yadav. But umpire didn’t raise his finger and Virat Kohli also didn’t take any review. Gayle anchored the innings till the end and scored an unbeaten 99 which helped them to put up 173 on board after 20 overs.
Chasing the total, Bangalore opener Parthiv Patel started with a boundary off Sam Curran. Then Kohli took on Shami for two consecutive boundaries in the second over. There back to back boundaries showed that they were there to win the game. However, Parthiv Patel got out in the 4th over for 19 off 9 but that didn’t slow down their scoring.
His dismissal brought AB de Villiers in the crease; who showcased his talent from the very first over he faced. They put up 63 runs in the first six overs. However, they both rotated the strike beautifully and hit big shots whenever needed. They scored 98 runs in 11 overs and Kohli reached his half-century off 37 deliveries.
Kohli was dismissed for 67 off 53, including 8 boundaries. On the other hand, de Villiers was there, stood strong and anchored the innings till the end. Bangalore needed 38 runs in the last three overs when some big hittings from AB de Villiers and Marcus Stoinis took the team over the line.
The equation was 38 needed off 18 deliveries and the two set batsmen, AB de Villiers, and Marcus Stoinis were in the middle. Andrew Tye came to bowl the 18th over where he was hit by Stoinis for a boundary in the very first ball. Stoinis hit another boundary in the next ball through backward point. The fourth delivery went for a maximum over extra cover and Tye conceded 18 runs in the over.
Shami started the next over quite well but a boundary in the fourth ball by Stoinis and a maximum by de Villiers in the final ball of the over ease the pressure. When they were needed only 6 runs in the final over, Ashwin handed over the ball to Sarfaraz Khan; who haven’t bowled before and that was his first over in the IPL history.
However, he failed to restrict the runs as Stoinis hit a boundary in the very first ball, took two runs in the next ball and Bangalore registered their first victory of the season with four balls to spare. Had the bowlers able to restrict them in the death overs, the result might have been different.
Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers has signed for Middlesex to play in the upcoming Twenty20 Blast.
AB de Villiers will play his first English county cricket which will start from July. However, he has signed up for the first seven group matches but he will be available for the latter stages also.
The Twenty20 tournament is scheduled to start on 18 July where Middlesex will face Essex at Lord’s. It is expected that de Villiers might play in the opening match. The 35-year old retired from international cricket in May 2018. Since then, he has been taking part in T20 leagues all around the world, including the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), the Mzansi Super League, and the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Middlesex head coach Stuart Law has expressed his excitement about de Villiers’ arrival to the club. This will surely strengthen their batting line up. Moreover, his inclusion will help the youngsters as well.
“I look forward to working with AB this season and can’t wait to watch one of my favourite modern day batsman up close and personal,” Law further added.
AB de Villiers too expressed that he has always wanted to play county cricket and playing at Lord’s is always special.
One of the greatest batsmen of all time, AB de Villiers has played 272 T20 matches and amassed over 7000 runs at a strike rate of 148.85. He has played more than 400 International matches and has more than 20,000 runs in his name.
He has been in a great form in the ongoing PSL and recently concluded BPL. He scored a 40-ball 45* and a 29-ball 52* in his last two matches for Lahore Qalandars in the PSL. He smashed a quickfire 50-ball hundred in the BPL, earlier this year.
However, the South African batsman is the second renowned player to sign for the club after Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman; who will join the squad for the upcoming campaign.
Shanthakumaran Sreesanth is in news again. This former Indian bowler is a participant in the latest edition of much controversial show Bigg Boss and is being anything but loved by the other contestants.
Sreesanth had already enough reasons to be disliked by the fans for his past and now he is adding some more to that. People from various fields come to the show to regain popularity or to change the image and here Sreesanth is becoming famous for all the negative reasons. One of his roommates termed him as enemy whereas he is being criticized for showing the least sportsman spirit in the house.
Sreesanth was banned by BCCI in 2013 for spot-fixing during IPL. Post that, he tried to make a comeback through the entertainment industry. Apart from few films, he was also seen in Jhalak Dikhla Ja before Bigg Boss.
Although Bigg Boss 12 has not been very effective for Sreesanth as of now, there was a time when this former cricketer used to win matches for India and was loved by the fans. Few of his iconic performances are still remembered by them.
When Rahul Dravid led Indian team finally won a test match on the South African soil in 2006, Sreesanth became the man of the match with his massive contribution. The match drew huge media attention not just for the ill record of the Indian team, but also for Sourav Ganguly who was making a comeback after a gap of 10 months.
Indian team scored 249 in the first innings which included Ganguly’s 51 and made his comeback worth remembering for fans. The score wasn’t enough to defend the South African side consisting of Smith, Amla, Kallis, and AB de Villers but the Indian side bowled in a splendid way to restrict them for just 84 runs. Sreesanth took 5 for 40 with Zaheer and Kumble each taking 2 wickets. India came to bat again and with Laxman’s 73 put a score of 236 with South Africa already trailing behind by 165 runs. In the second innings, Anil Kumble led the show with Sreesanth and each of them took 3 wickets. South Africa was all out for 278 and India won that historic match by 123 runs.
Sreesanth played his first test in 2006 in Nagpur against England and took 4 wickets in debut match. The performance in South Africa test showed his consistency and temperament. The aggressive bowler showed calm whenever he was on the crease, unlike his off-field image. He had an interaction with Allan Donald before the South Africa tour which helped him to deliver that magical spell. He played 27 test matches and 53 ODIs with 37.59 and 33.44 averages respectively.
It won’t be an exaggeration to say that he was here to stay but he lost it all for himself. We can certainly hope for his sanity in the show so that he doesn’t make it worse for his fans.
IPL 2018: SRH giving away points?
Sunrisers Hyderabad is on the lead on the scoreboard for IPL by giving out great performances throughout the series. However, it looks as though they are now slacking and have lost the last three matches consecutively, not only disappointing fans but also affecting their stand and net run rate. Although they haven’t fallen from their position yet, their weakness is becoming an advantage for other team members.
The subsequent loss started with their match with CSK. This was a highly anticipated match because the two teams on the top of the points table were going to have a face off. The match started off well for SRH however at a mere 18 runs and nearly just 3 overs into the game, Alex Hales was out by just making 2 runs. Deepak Chahar was one of the best bowlers of the match and in four overs, SRH was able to score only 16 runs and he managed to take a wicket. They were able to score a mere 29 runs in 6 overs. They were so slow that was only able to make 62 runs in 10 overs, which was very upsetting to look at. SRH and made 179 runs in total. They could have done much better, especially during such a match. CSK, on the other hand, took the pitch by storm by their wondrous batting and Ambati Rayudu managed a 100 not out!. Shane Watson and Ryaudu opened with a glorious 3 sixes by Watson. However, the sixes and fours did not stop with Ryaudu hitting 7 sixes and 7 fours in total. Manish Pandey dropped MS Dhoni’s ball and encouraged CSK even further. Siddharth Kaul and Shakib Al Hasan gave away 40 and 41 runs respectively. Their poor bowling resulted in the CSK win in 19 overs with a run rate of 9.47.
RCB was suffering by being at the bottom of the points table and it was crucial for them to win the match against SRH, in order to secure a place for themselves and stay in the running. RCB’s reputation was shoddy this time, probably, making SRH overconfident. It is well-known fact that RCB’s batting lineup is categorized as one of the strongest and this time, they indeed proved themselves. Although Kohli and Parthiv Patel were out without making any significant differences to the scoreboard, AB de Villiers and Moeen Ali certainly did make a great score! a grand total of 107 runs over 57 balls. However, with Rashid Khan onboard, they did not manage to get too far. Nevertheless, apart from the 19-year-old, it appeared as though no other bowler was up to the mark and Basil Thampi was highly disappointing by letting slip 70 runs in 4 overs. Shakib Al Hasan wasn’t up to the mark at all either. On the other hand, the RCB bowlers were doing a relatively better job than SRH and pulled the team through. Dhawan was out at 18 by Yuzvendra Chahal. Alex Hales was ousted by De Villiers by his breathtaking catch. When SRH was about the turn of the tables, Williamson was ousted by Mohammed Siraj. Tim Southee successfully curbed their win in the final overs.
The third match that SRH consecutively lost was against KKR. This was a must-win if SRH wants to keep up its reputation. SRH started off good, however, it soon began slacking by the 8th over, one of the most promising batsman till then, Shreevats Goswami was out and leaving SRH at 79-1. Not a loss they cannot recover from. However, Russell who caught Goswami caught Williamson too. Although his bowling was not exceptional, it appears as though his fielding most certainly was. Dhawan who was going great until now gets out just three overs after Williamson by an LBW. This is where the fall of risers begins to happen. 15 overs down and a score of 140 was not what we were expecting, it’s slightly disappointing. Eventually, almost every over after this, one player gets out and the team is all out by the 20th over. When KKR starts batting it’s a spree of fours until the 3rd over when Sunil Narine is caught out. However, no other damage is caused to the batting until later in the 13th over when the second wicket falls, giving them enough time to Chris Lynn and Robin Uthappa to balance the scores. Sandeep Sharma‘s bowling is disappointing as he gives away 30 runs in 2 overs. Although SRH does take down 5 of the opposing team’s men, their good play compared to SRH’s slacking game makes them win the match.
Thus, it can be said that SRH were out of form for these three matches and it did cost them. Their Net run rate would drop and although they haven’t fallen off the top, it has affected the fans’ nerves and is proof of their weaknesses which might be aimed at again if they do not cover it up. All the best SRH!
IPL 2018 | Match 53 | RR vs RCB: Rajasthan Royals defeat the Royal Challengers Bangalore to kick them out of the tournament yesterday at Jaipur.
RR is now still in contention for the playoffs, placed fourth. Their net run rate, however, still remains low at -0.250, allowing them to be easily surpassed by Mumbai Indians if they win today.
RCB, on the other hand, see themselves out of the tournament with their loss placing them in the sixth position with no more matches left to allow them to make a comeback. This came as a definite shocker with RCB having the more potential of winning yesterday.
RR won the toss and opted to bat. Rahul Tripathi (80) and Jofra Archer (0) opened the innings for the team. RR lost Archer for free to Umesh Yadav in the first over itself. A good auspicious start for RCB, but apparently not as great with the next wicket being taken only in the fourteenth over. Tripathi remained undefeated to complete the innings at 80. Captain Ajinkya Rahane (33) came in to replace Archer and partnered with Tripathi to smack Yadav for three boundaries in the fourth over, taking revenge for the early wicket. By the end of power-play, the duo had 45 runs in their pocket. Rahul Tripathi reached his third IPL fifty in just 38 balls Their partnership pushed the score to 100 for 1 by the fourteenth over, when Umesh Yadav came in again to take out Rahane and Sanju Samson (0) one after the other.
Sanju Samson’s golden duck left everyone reeling – yesterday was not his day to make it back to form. Heinrich Klaasen’s cameo over five overs added 32 runs to the scoreboard. He went down with a bang as he infuriated Siraj with twelve runs in the nineteenth over only to be dismissed right after. Krishnappa Gowtham (14) went out on the final ball, ending the innings with a score of 164 for five.
Jofra Archer’s debut as opener did not go as planned, he will probably not be seen doing it again in their next match (if there is one).
Umesh Yadav is arguably the best bowler in RCB as he finished with a figure of 3/25. He gives away a few runs but he does remove the crucial players off the field when the team needs him to. He is second to the Purple cap Andrew Tye as he lagged behind by four wickets. Yuzvendra Chahal did not take any wickets but the leg-spinner only conceded 26 runs in his four overs.
With a target of 165 to chase, RCB decided to continue with its same line-up and opened with Virat Kohli (4) and Parthiv Patel (33). Kohli was seen off the field by Karnataka boy, Krishnappa Gowtham in the third over – the first massive blow to the team. AB de Villiers came in to replace him and secured his sixth half-century this IPL season in 32 balls. Shreyas Gopal then started his hunt with Parthiv Patel being his first wicket in the ninth over. He immediately dismissed Patel’s replacement, Moeen Ali (1), in the very same over. Mandeep Singh (3) came on to the field only to end up being Gopal’s third wicket of the evening. Even Colin de Grandhomme (2) couldn’t save his team as Ish Sodhi took him out in the twelfth over. But all through these wickets, they still had De Villiers but he was not spared by the Gopal storm as he became his fourth and final wicket for the night. After this major blow, it was all downhill for RCB with Mohammed Siraj’s (14) wicket sealing their fate at 134-all out in 19.2 overs.
Harsh Bhogle expressed his sentiments regarding RCB’s loss just as all their fans must have felt.
Oh, #RCB, you are changing things on the points table, but not in a manner we thought you would.
RCB played well in phases and every time they got a momentum going, Shreyas Gopal hit them with a wicket. AB de Villiers delivered as usual but with no major support from any of his teammates, he was unable to single-handedly serve them this victory. RCB’s biggest flaw has been the inability of the middle-order batsmen to sustain the fall of the top order but hopefully, the team will come back next season with a new and improved batting line-up.
RR will keep their fingers crossed as they hope the results of today’s remaining matches do not push them out of the top four and they make it into the playoffs.