Abu Dhabi: Buoyed by Pravin Tambe’s magnificent bowling, Rajasthan Royals handed Royal Challengers Bangalore a crushing six-wicket defeat in Match 14 of IPL 7 at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
Rajasthan Royals’ captain Shane Watson did not put a foot wrong yesterday after winning the toss as his bowlers shot RCB out for their third lowest total, 70, in IPL’s history.
Chasing a paltry 71, Ajinkya Rahane and Karun Nair treaded with caution to begin with. The question was when, rather than who or how would Rajasthan Royals go about their task.
In the end, they did manage to get over the line after 13 overs with six wickets in hand as Watson scored run-a-ball 24.
Earlier, put into bat, Royal Challengers Bangalore were off to a horrendous start after losing both their openers in the very first over.
Watson’s decision to open the bowling with Stuart Binny yielded instant results as the bowler struck with his fourth ball as opener Yogesh Takawale’s attempted swipe landed in Sanju Samson’s gloves, while Parthiv Patel was run out next ball.
Virat Kohli, eager to get off strike, took off late for the single and Rahane’s throw found Patel short of the crease.
Royal Challengers Bangalore never recovered from that initial jolt as batsman after batsman just made the walk in and out.
Kane Richardson, who had replaced James Faulkner in the team, struck twice in two balls to dismiss Yuvraj Singh and AB de Villiers to send
Royal Challengers Bangalore in deep trouble at 5 for 4. Both batsmen were guilty of chasing wide balls, only to see their fall. Yuvraj [3], de Villiers [0], Sachin Rana [3], Albie Morkel [7], Ashok Dinda [0] presented a sorry scorecard.
Except Kohli, who fought a brief battle with his 25-ball 21, none of the RCB batsmen managed to get past the 20-run mark.
The 18-run seventh-wicket partnership between Kohli and Mitchel Starc was Royal Challengers Bangalore’s highest. The capitulation of a star-studded batting line-up can be blamed more to poor shot selection rather than demons in the pitch.
Tambe was the pick of the Rajasthan Royals bowlers as the leg spinner scalped 4 for 20, including the prized one of Kohli. Royal Challengers Bangalore, who were reduced to 17 for 5 in the sixth over, eventually collapsed to IPL’s third lowest total - 70 all out in 15 overs.Agencies
