Yet again Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has proved that they are one of the most well balanced team in this year’s Indian Premier League. They have players who complement each other well and compensates for the loss. When Bangalore set in pursuit of a challenging target of 182 against Deccan Chargers (C) in the 50th match of the tournament, eyes were set on Chris Gayle to give them a good start. He failed but then there were other players who came in made up for that to help RCB pull off a stunning victory by five wickets.

Here are some of the hits and flops of the match:

Hits and flop of Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Hits:

Tillakaratne Dilshan: Dilshan was the man highly responsible for setting up the platform for Bangalore win. The opening duo of Gayle and Dilshan gave them a good start but Gayle could not carry on the start he got. On the other hand, Dilshan was in no mood to relent and scored at a breezy knock which yielded him 71 off 54 deliveries which included eight fours and a six.

AB de Villiers: The most complete and dependable cricketer did it again for RCB. He came in at a time where Bangalore needed to score more than 10 runs an over in order to win. But that was not enough to intimidate him. He took some time to set his eyes in and perhaps had saved his best for the rear end. He was brutally hard on his South African teammate Dale Steyn and scored 23 runs off his third over which set up the win for RCB. De Villiers scored 47 of just 17 deliveries which was laced with five fours and three sixes.

Flops:

P Parameswaram: He was taken to the cleaners by the Deccan batsmen. He bowled a very wayward spell and leaked 45 runs in his four overs.

Hits and flop of Deccan Chargers:

Hits:

Daniel Harris: He was on fire at the top of the innings. He scored at a breezy pace and gave the kind of start that a team always desires. He played his shots with conviction and scored 47 of 41 deliveries which included two fours and four sixes.

Shikhar Dhawan: He is making continuous stride towards the Orange Cap. Shikhar who has been the most consistent batsmen for his side this season registered his third half century of the tournament. He scored 73 of 52 deliveries and hit 10 fours and a six.

Cameron White: Cameron White yet again played a great cameo to help his team to a challenging total. White who was struggling with his form early has found his touch back few matches back and now it seems there is no stopping him. Yesterday he scored 45 of just 24 balls which contained two boundaries and three sixes.

Flops:

Dale Steyn: He was the man from whom Deccan expects a lot. Yesterday when Bangalore were staring at defeat and it was 39 required of three overs, the skipper gave the bowl to him in order to tighten the noose. But it backfired and he was belted for 23 runs in that over by AB which sealed the fate of the match. He gave away 30 runs in three overs.

By Samikshan Dutta Choudhury

Indian Sports News