IPL 2019: RCB vs KXIP – Suffering at death takes KXIP down, twice!
Usually, there is a calm before the storm. But at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, there was first a storm and then the calm. Inserted to bat first by Kings XI Punjab, Royal Challengers Bangalore reached 202/4 thanks to a flurry of boundaries at the death. KXIP got close in the chase but failed to make the most of the end overs and fell short by 17 runs. The win elevated RCB from the last place on the points table.
Stoinis and ABD launch an onslaught
At the 17th over mark, RCB had 138 runs on the board. Marcus Stoinis was batting on 23(26) while ABD had worked his way to 46(34). Another 50 runs would have taken RCB to a daunting score but they thought of much more. It began with a legside full-toss from Hardus Viljoen which ABD swept away to complete his fifty.
AB de Villiers remained unbeaten on 82 from 44 balls. Photo courtesy: IPLT20
After this, there was no stopping. ABD-Stoinis collected 16 runs from Viljoen’s over. De Villiers subsequently took M Shami to the cleaners and smashed three consecutive sixes in the 21-run over. The duo then completed the innings with 27 runs from the final over of Viljoen. The over description read: 6,1,4,6,4,6!
The spectacular hitting carried RCB from 138/4 to 202/4 in just three overs. 64 runs were scored in these 18 balls and KXIP ended up with a mammoth tally to chase down.
RCB keeps KXIP grounded
Kings XI Punjab did not lose hope and embarked on the chase with all their might. Gayle played a fiery but brief knock of 23(10) at the top while KL Rahul raced to 42(27) on his home ground. Efforts from Mayank Agarwal and Nicholas Pooran brought the chasing equation down ton a manageable 36 runs from 18 balls.
RCB’s death bowling had already received much flak about its inability to defend the target. With 12 runs an over required, past disappointments must have flashed before Kohli’s eyes. Umesh Yadav, bowling the 18th over, conceded only six runs. It was a confident start.
While defending a target, the penultimate over is often touted to be the most crucial one. Young Navdeep Saini ran in to bowl the 19th over. He sent back David Miller and Nicholas Pooran while conceding only four runs. Umesh Yadav, who almost gave away 26 runs in the last over in the previous match, now had to defend 27. Umesh gave away nine runs and picked up two wickets. RCB allowed KXIP only 18 runs in the last three overs.
Final three overs at the death proved to be the difference between two sides. While RCB scored 64 runs in their last three overs, KXIP managed only 18. The win kept RCB’s playoff hopes alive while KXIP slipped further in their pursuit of the playoff qualification.
