Shreyas Iyer scored a half century against Royal Challengers Bangalore. (Source: IPL)Delhi Capitals defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore by four wickets to pick up their third win in Indian Premier League 2019 tournament. Chasing a total of 151, DC skipper Shreyas Iyer posted a 50-ball 67 to help his side to a win with 7 balls remaining. This is RCB’s sixth-straight defeat in the tournament and the Virat Kohli-led side remain without a win.
Toss:
Delhi Capitals won the toss and opted to bowl against a winless Royal Challengers Bangalore at M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Both the sides played unchanged XI.
First innings:
Virat Kohli played an uncharacteristic sedate knock as Delhi Capitals restricted Royal Challengers Bangalore to 149 for eighth in their Indian Premier League match, on Sunday. Still chasing their first win of the season, RCB batsmen found the going tough as the wicket was extremely tough for stroke-making. The ball was not coming on to the bat and the batsmen had to use muscle power than timing.
Kohli went almost a-run-a-ball before hitting two sixes late in his innings, consuming 33 balls for his 41. Had it not been for Kohli and Moeen Ali’s contributions, RCB would have been in deep trouble. Ali hit an 18-ball 32. South Africa paceman Kagiso Rabada (4/21) accounted for four RCB batsmen.
Second innings:
Delhi Capitals skipper Shreyas Iyer led from the front as Royal Challengers Bangalore horror tour continues. The right-handed batsman scored 67 in 50 balls as the visitors chased down the total of 151 with 4 wickets and 7 balls remaining. DC’s chase began on an edgy note with Shikhar Dhawan getting dismissed on the first ball. But, Iyer stitched partnerships with Prithvi Shaw, Colin Ingram, and Rishabh Pant, to steady his side.
DC reverted back to their old habits of making it tougher for them in the end, though. After Iyer’s dismissal, Chris Morris and Rishabh Pant were too, dismissed in quick succession. The side gave away too many dot balls and built pressure from them. A boundary from Rahul Tewatia, finally, finished off the chase. RCB bowlers once again struggled to take wickets and gave away easy runs. Moeen Ali, who picked up 1 wicket for 22 runs in his 4 overs, was the pick of the bowler but was brought too late into the attack.
Captains speak:
Virat Kohli: “We thought 160 would be competitive, but we kept losing wickets at regular intervals, so I wanted to take the game deep. Even 150, had we held on to our chances, would’ve been difficult for them. We need to grab those chances, can’t give excuses every day. We just weren’t good on the given day. That’s the whole story of RCB this season. When AB got out, I had to anchor the innings. Stoinis was good, Akshdeep was good too. When one senior batsman gets out, it’s important for the other senior to anchor. I wasn’t happy getting out at the stage, could’ve made 25-30 more for the team if I was still there till the end, but felt 160 was a good score. When the mind is cluttered, you wouldn’t be able to focus on the chances that come your way. When you have clarity, you can take your chances better. Shreyas made 65, he was dropped on eight. You never know, could’ve come into the game that time. There’s nothing more you can tell the team. We’ve asked the boys to take responsibility. It hasn’t happened so far, and that’s the reality. Need to play expressive cricket. Personally, not trying to control anything. After a while, it’s about the skill. Team needs to relax, whatever’s in front of us, we need to accept it. We want to enjoy as a team, otherwise we won’t be able to play any good cricket.”
Shreyas Iyer: “It was tough to bat on. I decided to play positive. That was my mindset and it worked out well. I was trying to manouevre the ball into the gaps. I think they were 10-15 less on this track. Our bowlers bowled really well. Especially Rabada in his last two overs. Obviously, we need to think about the areas we need to work on. It’s a big satisfaction when you win games. You get to see the smiling faces. I am doing alright as a skipper and want to maintain it.”
Gamechanger:
Kagiso Rabada has to be the biggest gamechanger in the match. RCB skipper Virat Kohli started slowly in the match. But in the 17th over, the right-handed batsman smashed Sandeep Lamichhane for two sixes in the season and was starting to accelerate. With three overs remaining, Kohli had the ability to take his side to a competitive total.
But in the next over, Rabada dismissed the skipper first ball. In the remaining five balls, the seamer picked up two more wickets, of Akshdeep Nath and Pawan Negi, who both have the ability to hit big sixes. The over completely shackled RCB in the death overs, and they could score only 11 runs in the final two overs, to post a target of 150.
Scorecard: Royal Challengers Bangalore (Kohli 41, Ali 32; Rabada 4/21); Delhi Capitals (Shreyas Iyer 67, Prithvi Shaw 28; Ali 1/22)
