PREVIEW | RCB V RR
Follow UsThere are days at work when nothing goes your way. In cricket, it has happened to every side. Royal Challengers Bangalore, in their last match, versus Sunrisers Hyderabad, endured that unfortunate day. Batting first, anytime they didn’t middle the ball, they had a dismissal. Every mistimed shot carried to a fielder. Every DRS call went in the opposition’s favor and whatnot.
On a larger scale, the Indian team suffered a similar fate on the third afternoon of the Adelaide Test that led to the infamous 36 all out. But we all know what followed?
RCB will be aiming at a revival too. For them, right now, it would be about taking it match by match. They are still one of the prime contenders for the playoffs as one of the five sides with 10 points or more.
They have Rajasthan Royals in front of them. Since their comeback in 2018, this is probably their best season thus far. Is this their best team or not is a topic for some another day but their stars who matter have certainly made them a force to reckon with.
The contrasting top-orders
RCB’s biggest, or probably the only Achilles Heel this season has been their top-order batting. Identified by many as a potential area of weakness, the trio of Faf du Plessis, Anuj Rawat and Virat Kohli haven’t found the consistency.
Skipper du Plessis has four single-digit scores in eight innings. Rawat has averaged only 4 in his last four innings while Virat Kohli has only 13 runs in the last four outings.
As a result, RCB have the second lowest strike-rate as well as the second-lowest batting average in the powerplay this year. They bat till number 9 but have left their middle-order too much to do. Therefore, a swap between Rawat and Mahipal Lomror seems to be on the cards for this fixture.
In comparison, RR’s top-order is flying high. Their lack of batting depth has been cocooned by the sailing performances of their top-order, Jos Buttler in particular. Three hundreds in seven matches from the Englishman tells the tale. Devdutt Padikkal and Sanju Samson have chipped in and Shimron Hetmyer has performed multiple roles for them.
Thus, the contrasting returns from the two top-orders underline the chasm between the two sides.
Can RCB get past Buttler?
The key to defeat Rajasthan lies in getting into their middle-order as soon as possible. They are the only side where the top four run-scorers have over 190 runs but the gulf is highlighted by the tally of the fifth in the list - Riyan Parag 48. The opposing sides have been unable to do that.
RCB, however, are one of the most well-rounded bowling units of the season. They had Rajasthan three down within the first 12 overs before Hetmyer ushered them to a challenging first innings total in Match 13.
The obstacle that is Rajasthan’s top-order has only grown bigger with Buttler taking his form to a godly level. Despite numerous match-winning bowling performances, RCB have continued to struggle in the powerplay. They have only eight wickets in as many matches at 47.9 runs apiece during the field restrictions. The same might not work out bowling against Buttler and they will have to find a way to circumvent the beast that holds the orange cap.
The contest
Glenn Maxwell vs RR spinners
The pair of Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal have engineered many come-from-behind victories for Rajasthan this season. In the RCB camp, Maxwell is the only proven spin basher. Both Rajasthan spinners have a match-up against Maxwell, on both ends of the spectrum. Hence, this will be a battle to watch out for given Maxwell has fed RCB with impetus after slow starts.
In overall T20s, Maxwell has scored 91 runs in 41 balls against Ashwin, losing his wicket once.
Against Chahal, Maxwell has scored only 22 runs from 25 balls, losing his wicket thrice.
Another match-up lies between Faf du Plessis and Trent Boult, a battle that will unfold from the first over of RCB’s innings itself. Boult has dismissed du Plessis thrice in T20 cricket without giving much away. If the left-armer makes it four in Pune, it could lead to a double whammy considering Kohli’s struggle to break the duck.
In overall T20s, du Plessis has scored 44 runs in 47 balls against Boult, losing his wicket thrice
Probable XIs
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Faf du Plessis (c), Mahipal Lomror, Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Suyash Prabhudessai, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Josh Hazlewood, Mohammad Siraj
Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Davdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Karun Nair, Riyan Parag, R Ashwin, Trent Boult, Obed McCoy, Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal
Venue: Maharashtra Cricket Association, Pune
Date & Time: Apr 26, 07:30 PM IST
