Our 6th match of IPL 2019 was an immensely important one. The boys played exceptionally well and produced some remarkable performances to secure our 3rd win of the season.
Captain Iyer decided to bowl first after winning the toss. The bowlers did a fantastic job and restricted RCB to less than 150. Morris gave us the first breakthrough in the 2nd over. Parthiv slashed at a short delivery but could not time it. The ball looped high and Lamichhane completed a fine catch at third man.
Now, RCB's two main batsmen - Kohli and ABD - were at the crease. Rabada did the trick. His slower delivery in the 6th over foxed ABD. The RCB batsman could not time it and Ingram took a brilliant catch running back at long-on. At the end of 6 overs, the Bangalore-based franchise was at 40/2.
Stoinis and Kohli tried to steady the ship for RCB and kept rotating the strike. Just when it seemed like Stoinis would break loose, Axar Patel got him out in the 11th over. The all-rounder also reached the landmark of taking 100 T20 wickets with this dismissal.
Moeen Ali came out to the middle and started smashing it to all sides of the park. Lamichhane bowled a wonderful googly to get rid of him in the 15th over. Ali came down the track but was done by Sandeep's googly. It was an easy stumping for Rishabh Pant in the end. Lamichhane also reached the milestone of getting to 50 T20 wickets.
However, the highlight of the match was when Rabada came on to bowl the 18th over. Our speedster got 3 wickets in one over. Kohli on the first ball, Nath on the 3rd, and Negi on the last ball. Kagiso's magnificent bowling turned things around and put the plug on the runs. His fantastic display with the ball also earned him the Man of the Match award.
Morris got his 2nd wicket in the 19th over in the form of Mohammed Siraj and eventually, RCB finished with 149/8 in their quota of 20 overs.
It was over to our batsmen to chase 150 runs and they did it with ease. We did not get to the best of starts as Dhawan was back in the hut without troubling the scoreline. Saini took a smart catch at point off Southee's bowling.
However, Shaw and Shreyas Iyer batted brilliantly. They kept rotating the strike and also played their shots. Prithvi upped the ante by smashing Southee for 4 consecutive fours in the third over. Their partnership of 68 runs was crucial in the run chase. Shaw departed after playing a good hand of 28 from 22 deliveries.
Colin Ingram came out to the middle and played his part as well. He scored a handy 22 off 21 and assisted Iyer in bringing us closer to the total. Ali got Ingram out LBW in the 14th over. We required 27 runs from the last 5 overs with Iyer and Pant at the crease.
There was a momentary scare as we lost two quick wickets in the 18th over. Iyer was back in the hut after playing a fantastic knock of 67 from 50 deliveries while Morris got out without troubling the scoreline. We required just 5 runs from the last 2 overs. Pant attempted to finish it off in style but was caught at mid-off in the 19th over. He scored 18 runs from 14 deliveries.
Axar Patel hit the winning runs for us.
We got the much-needed two points. The win helped us climb back to 5th position on the IPL 2019 table. It will also give a huge boost of confidence to the boys. We will now take on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on 12th April.
Here’s what Captain Shreyas had to say after the important win:
"I bank a lot on my cut-shots, and I need to wait for those balls to play them. I also wanted to keep getting the singles by manoeuvring the ball around. I am extremely happy with the way Rabada bowled in his final two overs. Big satisfaction when you win a game. The atmosphere in the dressing room and hotel is really good."
The Man of the Match, Kagiso Rabada, reflected in the post-match ceremony:
"I'm glad as my lines worked for me today. And it does not work perfectly all the time, but you need to keep trying and get the ball to hit decent areas. As a player, I believe I have a responsibility at the top and at the death."
Our 6th match of IPL 2019 was an immensely important one. The boys played exceptionally well and produced some remarkable performances to secure our 3rd win of the season.
Captain Iyer decided to bowl first after winning the toss. The bowlers did a fantastic job and restricted RCB to less than 150. Morris gave us the first breakthrough in the 2nd over. Parthiv slashed at a short delivery but could not time it. The ball looped high and Lamichhane completed a fine catch at third man.
Now, RCB's two main batsmen - Kohli and ABD - were at the crease. Rabada did the trick. His slower delivery in the 6th over foxed ABD. The RCB batsman could not time it and Ingram took a brilliant catch running back at long-on. At the end of 6 overs, the Bangalore-based franchise was at 40/2.
Stoinis and Kohli tried to steady the ship for RCB and kept rotating the strike. Just when it seemed like Stoinis would break loose, Axar Patel got him out in the 11th over. The all-rounder also reached the landmark of taking 100 T20 wickets with this dismissal.
Moeen Ali came out to the middle and started smashing it to all sides of the park. Lamichhane bowled a wonderful googly to get rid of him in the 15th over. Ali came down the track but was done by Sandeep's googly. It was an easy stumping for Rishabh Pant in the end. Lamichhane also reached the milestone of getting to 50 T20 wickets.
However, the highlight of the match was when Rabada came on to bowl the 18th over. Our speedster got 3 wickets in one over. Kohli on the first ball, Nath on the 3rd, and Negi on the last ball. Kagiso's magnificent bowling turned things around and put the plug on the runs. His fantastic display with the ball also earned him the Man of the Match award.
Morris got his 2nd wicket in the 19th over in the form of Mohammed Siraj and eventually, RCB finished with 149/8 in their quota of 20 overs.
It was over to our batsmen to chase 150 runs and they did it with ease. We did not get to the best of starts as Dhawan was back in the hut without troubling the scoreline. Saini took a smart catch at point off Southee's bowling.
However, Shaw and Shreyas Iyer batted brilliantly. They kept rotating the strike and also played their shots. Prithvi upped the ante by smashing Southee for 4 consecutive fours in the third over. Their partnership of 68 runs was crucial in the run chase. Shaw departed after playing a good hand of 28 from 22 deliveries.
Colin Ingram came out to the middle and played his part as well. He scored a handy 22 off 21 and assisted Iyer in bringing us closer to the total. Ali got Ingram out LBW in the 14th over. We required 27 runs from the last 5 overs with Iyer and Pant at the crease.
There was a momentary scare as we lost two quick wickets in the 18th over. Iyer was back in the hut after playing a fantastic knock of 67 from 50 deliveries while Morris got out without troubling the scoreline. We required just 5 runs from the last 2 overs. Pant attempted to finish it off in style but was caught at mid-off in the 19th over. He scored 18 runs from 14 deliveries.
Axar Patel hit the winning runs for us.
We got the much-needed two points. The win helped us climb back to 5th position on the IPL 2019 table. It will also give a huge boost of confidence to the boys. We will now take on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on 12th April.
Here’s what Captain Shreyas had to say after the important win:
"I bank a lot on my cut-shots, and I need to wait for those balls to play them. I also wanted to keep getting the singles by manoeuvring the ball around. I am extremely happy with the way Rabada bowled in his final two overs. Big satisfaction when you win a game. The atmosphere in the dressing room and hotel is really good."
The Man of the Match, Kagiso Rabada, reflected in the post-match ceremony:
"I'm glad as my lines worked for me today. And it does not work perfectly all the time, but you need to keep trying and get the ball to hit decent areas. As a player, I believe I have a responsibility at the top and at the death."
