MATCH STORIES
Follow UsHow do you want to measure Quinton de Kock’s innings against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Chinnaswamy?
Average? Better than that? Or Damn Good?
Reserve your judgment for now. First, let’s set up some context.
Four nights ago, Virat Kohli batted at a strike rate of 146 against Kolkata Knight Riders. In a world filled with judgment every single moment, not least because of a better strategic understanding of the shortest format of the sport, that innings was bound to garner some criticism.
Kohli ended up consuming almost 50% of all deliveries to score less than 45% of the team total at a venue where his side were at least 20 runs below par. It was particularly hard to digest for many that Kohli, who batted at a strike rate of 200 in the first six overs, batted at a strike rate below 130 in the remainder of the innings, effectively hurting RCB.
Whether it did or not would always be viewed through a tinted glass - particularly after the meek surrender of the other batters - but it also allows a decent understanding of how de Kock batted on April 2 (Tuesday).
In his innings of 81 runs, Quinton de Kock batted for 56 balls. He hit five sixes and eight fours, effectively managing 75% of his runs through boundaries. It showed in his powerplay batting as he hit those runs at an SR of 170 in the first 20 balls he faced, but that tempo suddenly flared down to provide a diametrically opposite response.
His SR was 110 between 21-30 balls and slightly went up to 138.46 after the 30th delivery. He could never maintain the initial tempo - pretty much like how Kohli batted in the previous encounter.
And that accurately brings the viewpoint of a KSCA insider, privy to how Chinnaswamy's wicket was prepared. After 10 matches of the Women’s Premier League was played at the venue, the wicket had become understandably slow. It was reworked but to paper over the cracks, they left behind more grass.
This issue was brought up with the curators by the RCB management, but the damage was already done. The middle-over struggles that we have seen at the venue in the last three games are a manifestation of that.
That may not justify the wicket-keeper’s struggles against full tosses though. He faced seven full tosses tonight yet managed to score only nine runs off those deliveries and ended up being dismissed by a Reece Topley full toss. That was the contrast on a night when others were begging to get a loose ball.
Currently, both RCB and LSG are grappling with similar problems. While Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, and Rajat Patidar are struggling to buy some runs, the fate is not so dissimilar for KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, and Marcus Stoinis in the LSG set-up. Like Kohli has been for the Red and Blue brigade, de Kock becomes that calming presence for LSG. In a long tournament, that is not an abstract commodity.
LSG’s win against Punjab Kings was shaped primarily by QdK and their bowlers - and this one against RCB followed a very similar script. But for them to sustain the momentum, others need to step up. Just relying on Mayank Yadav to fire like the way he has been wouldn’t cut it.
