On a lively wicket at the iconic Chinnaswamy Stadium, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won the toss and elected to field. Few sights in cricket are more electrifying than witnessing RCB in action at this venue.
Opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan set the tone by dispatching the very first ball to the boundary, signaling his aggressive intent. Jonny Bairstow followed suit, greeting Mohmeed Siraj with two consecutive fours on his fourth and fifth deliveries. However, the excitement soon turned into a roar of emotion as Bairstow skied one to Virat Kohli off Siraj’s bowling. Punjab Kings had a modest start in the powerplay, accumulating 40 runs for the loss of one wicket in the first six overs. Glenn Maxwell made crucial breakthroughs, dismissing Parbhsimran Singh (25 off 17). Liam Livingstone (17 off 13) was caught by Anuj Rawat on a delivery by Alzari Joseph.. Shikhar Dhawan’s (45 off 37) departure, caught by Kohli off Maxwell, further boosted RCB. Anuj Rawat’s acrobatic catch off Yash Dayal saw the end of Sam Curran (23 off 17), followed by Mohammed Siraj sending Jitesh Sharma (27 off 20) back to the pavilion. The Punjab Kings accelerated in the death overs, with Shashank Singh’s late flourish helping them reach a total of 176 runs in their allotted 20 overs.
RCB’s response was swift as Virat Kohli launched an assault, hitting three consecutive boundaries off Sam Curran in the opening over. However, Faf Du Plessis (3 off 7) fell early to Kagiso Rabada, and Cameron Green (3 off 5) failed to make an impact.
Kohli continued his onslaught, notching up his 92nd IPL fifty off just 31 balls. Rajat Patidar (18 off 18) departed, followed by Glenn Maxwell (3 off 5) falling to Harpreet Brar’s deceptive spin. Brar’s impressive figures of 2 for 13 in his four overs kept the pressure on RCB. Kohli’s aggressive innings came to an end at 77 off 45 balls when he mistimed a delivery from Harshal Patel. Anuj Rawat (11 off 14) fell soon after the strategic timeout, but Mahipal Lomror (17 off 8) and Dinesh Karthik (28* off 10) turned the tide in RCB’s favor. The duo carried on from where Kohli left off, guiding RCB to victory by four wickets in style.
With momentum on their side, RCB will face their arch-rivals, Kolkata Knight Riders, on Friday, March 29, 2024. Meanwhile, Punjab Kings will regroup to take on the Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday, March 30, 2024.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye.
