Bracewell. (Photo Source: BCCI/IPL)
The fifth match of the sixteenth edition of the Indian Premier League saw two big rivals lock horns with each other on Sunday, April 2. As things turned out, the home team skipper Faf du Plessis won the toss and put the Rohit Sharma-led side into bat first on a batter-friendly surface at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Mumbai experienced a poor start, as their top order including Rohit (1 off 10), Ishan Kishan (10 off 13), and Cameron Green (5 off 4) fell prey to Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, and Reece Topley, respectively.
However, Tilak Varma and Nehal Wadhera did not let the RCB bowlers dominate further, as they engaged in a crucial 50-run partnership to steady the sinking ship of Mumbai. Wadhera though, couldn’t quite convert the start he got and was caught at long on to a flighted delivery bowled by veteran spinner Karn Sharma.
The wicket of his partner did not stop the young southpaw from playing his shots, as he notched up his fifty off just 32 balls. With the added efforts of the lower-middle order, the visiting side posted a target of 172, after being 29 for 3 at the end of the powerplay.
In the second innings, veteran batter Virat Kohli opened alongside skipper Faf du Plessis. Contrary to MI’s batting display at the start, RCB batters started tonking the ball from the word go. By the end of the powerplay, Virat and Faf had already crossed their unbeaten half-century partnership.
Even after the end of the fielding restrictions, both batters kept scoring runs at a brisk rate. While the Proteas batter reached his fifty off just 29 balls, Virat took 38 balls to reach the same.
Faf du Plessis lost his wicket by getting caught in the deep off Arshad Khan’s bowling, but by the time he left, it had become just a formality, as Bangalore needed 24 off 31 balls. Speaking of MI’s bowling, Arshad Khan and Cameron Green picked up a wicket each, while all the other bowlers except Piyush Chawla (conceded 26 runs in his spell) turned out to be fairly expensive.
Coming in at no. 4 allrounder Glenn Maxwell added the finishing touch after playing a short cameo of unbeaten 12, which included two maximums. Hitting a six on the second ball of the 17th over, Kohli clinched a win for his side, as he remained unbeaten on 82 off 49. Faf was adjudged Player of the Match for his domineering performance.
Here are the best memes from RCB’s emphatic victory against Mumbai:
Mahesh Sharma