RCB have a chance to go on top of the table as they are set to face CSK in match 22 of this season’s IPL.
RCB will have to change venues yet again as they move back to DY Patil stadium.
They showed a lot of courage and executed their plans really well in the previous game against Mumbai Indians. Hard lengths along with subtle variations to expose the weakness of each batsman meant that they had a below-par total to chase.
SKY’s onslaught over the bowlers should not be something RCB should worry about as they had bowled according to the plan and it was more to do with Surya’s execution.
We might have also seen the most mature batting performance this season. With the pitch holding up and MI bowling pitch-perfect lengths, RCB relied on strike rotation and looked to use any pace given to them to target the gaps which meant they reached the target with little to no risk being taken.
Without Harshal Patel and a new face in the bowling lineup, it will be interesting to see if they are as accurate as they have been this season.
CSK on the other hand was blown away by SRH with both the bat and ball.
They have been known not to make changes, but with their season falling apart, will they look at other options on the bench as uncertainties about Deepak’s availability continue to grow?
Pitch Report/Analysis
DY Patil has changed a lot since RCB last played. The pitch seems much more dead but isn’t breaking apart, indicating a strong presence of grass but enough to help the bowlers.
The pitch has been supporting the bowlers with enough turn and the ball keeping its line which really troubles the batsmen. It is not gripping as much as the other pitches.
The pace of the ball is being used as well as the carry, that we usually get, is not there anymore. With the pitch’s bouncy nature it is easier to dispatch the ball. The fuller lengths are being given no mercy with the ball going to all parts of the ground when it is being bowled there.
The excess pace is the only kind of bowling that yields no dividends as there has been no success so far and as time passes it will only get worse.
The T20 fundamentals still work. Batsmen should take their time to settle and should continue to use explosive choices in the middle to increase their CRR.
This pitch reminds me of the Rajiv Gandhi stadium which has a batting surface with enough assistance to the bowler to keep the competition alive.
Phase Wise Comparision
Powerplay → RCB’s batting will be up against Theekshana and Choudhary. Choudhary tends to bowl a fuller length which shouldn’t work.
Theekshana’s role will be interesting to watch. He bowls much flatter than the usual spinner and has high control which will force batsmen to be innovative and depend on their feet moving to tackle his bowling.
I feel RCB will walk out as winners with Rawat being in top form and not losing any wickets in the powerplay to an MI bowling attack that had lots of variation will mean that this duo will be favourites walking into this clash.
Gaikwad continues to struggle with Uthappa having a rare failure in the powerplay. With spinners proving to be lethal, RCB might look to Maxi or Shahbaz to pitch in with an over or 2.
Siraj has been missing his lengths so far and overseas internationals are struggling to hit the ground up and running.
Strictly from a statistical standpoint RCB shouldn’t give them too many runs and maybe pitch in with a wicket or 2.
RCB have so far not been able to bowl very tight lengths and instead have gotten wickets through batsmen going too hard at the ball.
Based on form and overall merit, I think both of them will have an equal chance to succeed in this part of the game.
Middle overs → Virat Kohli, Maxi and Shahbaz will be against a rather mediocre CSK bowling lineup.Â
With DJ Bravo containing runs won’t be a problem but pairing that along with wicket-taking deliveries is what makes a team successful which CSK have so far not been able to do.
Ali and Jadeja troubled RCB last year but have been nothing more than ordinary this year.
The usage of Chris Jordan is also not clear as he is being asked to bowl regular seamer lengths which are not his strongest trait.
With Theekshana we could see Jordan operating more in the middle overs trying to replicate the role DJ Bravo and Harshal Patel have been doing so far which is mixing up lengths and adding lots of variation.
Kohli seems to be back with a well-made 48 where he rotated the strike and played some risk-free shots, confirming RCB’s victory before he got out to a wrong call by the 3rd umpire.
Strike rotation seems to be a problem on this pitch as batsmen either get juicy full-length balls or struggle to find room and have to take the aerial route, the solution which has been pioneered by Virat.
Maxwell, the player has the uncanny ability to have a high strike rate even while struggling to adapt to the pitch.
360 range of shots with high match awareness makes him a threat to every single team and his vast experience means that he works well with almost every kind of player.
With the pitch still proving to be a threat we might not see the huge 100 runs in the middle, but anything less than 70-80 will be an under-par score for this pair.
Ali, Rayudu and Dube, are very good strikers of the ball and have the ability to dispatch the ball out of the ground with power alone. Their struggle against certain kinds of bowlers is very visible tho.
Ali is a well-rounded player whose match awareness is one of his most valuable assets. The ability to read the game so well and change gears is what has made him successful so far and with a 50 in the last game, he will be the batsman to get out for the RCB bowlers.
Rayudu and Dube have limited footwork and struggle to read any sort of variations.
Hasaranga will have the edge over both of them with his clever deception and change of pace.
Rayudu has struggled with the short ball and Dube has little to no room as he never moves his feet which is something Akash deep will take advantage off.
Shahbaz’s ability is still not certain as he has bowled well but has always looked to keep a low economy more than wicket-taking balls, which is always worrying for a youngster.
RCB walkout clear favourites in this part.
Slog overs → Without Harshal Patel RCB will look to Sid Kaul to bowl these overs.
Having improved quite a bit, he will be looking forward to impressing the management with his skills but it will be a very hard task.
Hazlewood’s form is something we are not sure about and Siraj has been bowling lengths that even debutants don’t bowl.
This trio’s performance on the day will be under a dark cloud of uncertainty as they will be up against India’s finest ever finisher(Dhoni), India’s most informed finisher(Jadeja) and a huge tail that wags when it is asked to.
Without a change in fortune for these bowlers, CSK will look to capitalize and gain as many runs as possible in this phase of the game.
Over the past so many seasons we have seen teams spend a lot for experienced players who have done well in IPL before.
With skill being an obvious factor in this equation, it’s also about how much teams value players who they can always rely on.
With everything going wrong with the bowling lineup and RCB batsmen having batsmen who are very explosive, DJ will be CSK’s go-to man to stop any sort of onslaughts on their bowling attack.
His contribution may not make enough difference if the rest don’t pitch in but his success with the ball is all but guaranteed in this match.
