Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) holds all the aces in its IPL fixture against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday.
RCB is flying high with three wins in as many games, while RR has slipped to two losses in three outings. RCB has fired in all departments, and looks a dominant force. The evergreen A.B. de Villiers underlined his class in RCB’s 38-run victory over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) with a whirlwind unbeaten
34-ball 76. The middle-order is further solidified by Australian Glenn Maxwell, who has back-to-back fifties to his name.
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On the bowling front, pacers Harshal Patel and Mohammed Siraj have withstood the pressure at the death. Harshal, with nine scalps in the tournament, has emerged as a wicket-taking match-winner.
If skipper Virat Kohli - going at a sub-par tournament average of 23.66 - finds the big runs, RCB could be unstoppable. After notching up an exciting three-wicket win over Delhi Capitals, RR came undone with a mediocre performance against Chennai Super Kings on Monday. The team depends heavily on Jos Buttler and captain Sanju Samson, both of whom have all the shots in the book. Samson was
magnificent in the campaign opener against Punjab Kings, nearly taking his side over the line with a 63-ball 119.
The Kerala cricketer, however, has since recorded two single digit scores. Opener Buttler made 49 against CSK, but he would have liked to cash in.
RR’s bowling is led by left-arm fast bowler Chetan Sakariya, who has two three-wicket hauls in the tournament. Chris Morris can contribute handsomely with bat and ball. RR will need its big-match players to step up if it hopes to halt RCB’s charge.
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