Royal Challengers Bangalore needed a win desperately when they took the field against Pune Warriors and the last year’s finalist played some terrific cricket to move up to third position in the points table.
RCB was always the favorites to win the match, but no one expected them to have such an easy outing against a team which had nothing to lose. Pune Warriors won the toss and decided to field, their decision back-fired as Chris Gayle took the attack to the Pune Warriors right from the start and got Bangalore off to a flier. Some impressive batting took Bangalore to a score of 173.
It was a tough ask and Pune’s start made it even tougher for the home side. They kept losing wickets and fell short by 35 runs in the end.
Let’s have a look at some of the hits and flops from both sides.
Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Hits:
Chris Gayle: He was in the thick of the action once again and his innings provided RCB the momentum that they would have been looking for. Gayle took the attack to the bowlers very early in the innings and hit four sixes in one over. He scored 57 runs in 31 deliveries and his innings included six sixes and three fours.
Tillakaratne Dilshan: He played a very intelligent innings. He rotated the strike beautifully till the time Gayle was on the crease and started playing aggressive shots after the fall of his explosive partner. Dilshan scored 53 runs and his innings included six fours and one six.
Zaheer Khan: Zaheer bowled beautifully in his first spell and was virtually unplayable at times. Zaheer got two wickets in the first over and jolted Pune’s plan. His line and length throughout his spell was immaculate.
Muttiah Muralitharan: Murali has bowled well in every match that he played and the match against Pune was no exception. Murali bowled superbly and took the wicket of the dangerous looking Uthappa. Murali conceded only 16 runs in the four overs that he bowled and took 2 wickets.
Flops:
Virat Kohli: Kohli has been struggling in the tournament and he once again missed a golden opportunity to play a good innings. He came in to bat when RCB was in a comfortable position but he lost his wicket trying to play against the turn. Kohli managed only nine runs before he threw his wicket away.
Pune Warriors:
Hits:
Robin Uthappa: Uthappa was the only Pune batsmen who looked dangerous and till the time he was on the crease, Pune were in with a chance. Uthappa played some good shots and got the required run rate within Pune’s reach. He scored a quick fire 38 and he hit five fours and one six in his innings.
Angelo Mathews’ bowling: Mathews came in to bowl when Gayle was in complete control and he got his wicket. He was the most economical bowler in the Pune Warriors’ side and it is a mystery why he didn’t bowl his complete quota of four overs.
Flops:
Alfonso Thomas: He has a lot of experience playing in this format and Pune would have expected him to bowl well. It didn’t happen though, as he bowled far too many loose balls and conceded 46 runs in his four overs.
Michael Clarke: The Australian captain is yet to play a substantial innings in IPL. He played some good shots early in his innings but lost his wicket trying to clear the mid-wicket boundary. He managed only 13 runs before getting out.
By Gaurav Jha
Indian Sports News
