Devdutt Padikkal. Pic: IPLT20.COM

IPL 2021: RCB vs RR - Who won yesterday’s match?

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) hammered a listless Rajasthan Royals (RR) team by ten wickets in the 16th match of IPL 2021 on Thursday.

Devdutt Padikkal (101 not out off 52) and Virat Kohli (72 not out off 47) made a mockery of a chase of 178, as RCB romped home by ten wickets and 21 balls to spare. The Padikkal-Kohli 181-run unbroken stand is the best opening partnership in RCB’s history.

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Chasing 178 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, RCB got off to a rollicking start, racing to 59 for 0 at the end of the powerplay overs. Virat Kohli got off the mark in impressive fashion, dancing down the track to leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal and launching him for a six over mid-off.

It was the young Padikkal who was the dominant partner, though. Displaying exquisite timing, the left-hander got two fours apiece in consecutive overs from Gopal and Chris Morris, imperiously piercing the gaps in the field.

When left-arm seamer Mustafizur Rahman was introduced, Padikkal attacked the left-armer too. The highlight of the over was a sweetly-timed six caressed over the bowler’s head.

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RCB ended their powerplay on a high as Padikkal easily lofted a length delivery over mid-wicket for a six. The left-hander raced to his fifty off 27 balls, caressing Riyan Parag over extra cover for four. The over ended with Padikkal clobbering the bowler over his head for another six.

RCB remained on charge, as there was no stopping Padikkal on the night. The ninth over bowled by Rahul Tewatia saw the ball disappear over the fence two more times. The first six was launched down the ground, while the second was swatted over mid-wicket.

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Another six off Mustafizur Rahman followed, this time courtesy a pull over deep square leg, as RCB breezed past hundred in the tenth over. To give one an idea of Padikkal’s dominance, he raced to 80 off 36 after ten overs, while Kohli contributed a rather sedate 26 off 24.

The RCB captain soon joined the fun by whacking Chris Morris for a six over mid-off to kickstart the 13th over. In the same over, Kohli brought up his fifty and also became the first player to breach the 6000-run mark in the IPL. He arrived at the landmark in emphatic fashion, whipping a full toss past long leg for four.

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The end to the chase came quickly, as Kohli and Padikkal combined to loot 17 off the 14th over, bowled by leg-spinner Gopal.

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Playing in only his second IPL season, Padikkal brought up his maiden hundred off 51 balls, creaming Mustafizur Rahman past extra cover for a four. Padikkal’s ton is the fastest IPL hundred by an uncapped player.

The match ended aptly, considering RR's listless bowling on the night, with five wides down the leg side bringing the one-sided match to a merciful close. RCB’s triumph is the 15th 10-wicket win in IPL history and also the third-highest total chased down by a team in competition history without losing a wicket.

Tewatia, Dube 40s lift RR to 177 for 9

Mohammed Siraj Pic: IPLT20.COM
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Rajasthan Royals (RR) recovered from another poor start to post a competitive 177 for 9 after being sent into bat by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Mumbai. Shivam Dube (46 off 32) and Rahul Tewatia (40 off 23) made crucial contributions as RR fought back after being reduced to 43 for 4.

As has been the norm with RR this season, they lost early wickets at the top once again. Jos Buttler (8) was the first to go, exposing his stumps to Mohammed Siraj and getting bowled by a well-directed ball that darted in.

Manan Vohra (7) continued his horror run with the bat. He tried to take on Kyle Jamieson but only managed to loft the ball as far as mid-on. Vohra had scored 12, 9 and 14 in his three previous outings in the tournament this season.

RR were dealt another big blow when David Miller was trapped lbw for a duck off a searing Siraj yorker. The on-field umpire had adjudged Miller not out, but RCB reviewed the decision. Replays showed the ball had hit Miller's shoe before hitting the bat and was going to hit the stumps, and the left-hander was sent back to the hut.

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18 for 3 soon became 43 for 4 as Sanju Samson (21), after a couple of good hits, chipped Washington Sundar straight to Glenn Maxwell at mid-wicket.

It seemed like the same old story for RR all over again, as RCB bowlers were clearly on top. Dube, however, led the fightback for the batting side. In the ninth over of the innings, the left-hander slammed Yuzvendra Chahal for two sixes - the first one was launched over long-on, while the second was swatted over mid-wicket.

Dube also hit Kane Richardson for a couple of boundaries in an over as the RR innings started to gain some momentum. At the other end, Riyan Parag was also looking good. He even pulled off a grounded version of the helicopter shot against Harshal Patel. He fell very next ball, though, for 25 off 16, as his ramp shot went awry and found the third-man fielder.

Tewatia came in and swung into action right away. He guided one to fine leg for a maximum and found a four off an inside edge. Meanwhile, Dube, who was looking set for a half-century, fell four short, slogging Richardson to long-on.

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In the penultimate over of RR's innings, Tewatia carved a six off Siraj over cover-point and then scooped one for four over the wicketkeeper.

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Mohammed Siraj had his revenge, though, as Rahul Tewatia pulled the next ball to deep midwicket. After Chris Morris (10) and Chetan Sakariya (0) fell to Harshal Patel off consecutive deliveries, Shreyas Gopal creamed a six over deep midwicket to give RR some momentum going into the break.

IPL 2021: RCB vs RR - Man of the Match

Shivam Dube and Rahul Tewatia batted well to help RR post a decent score. While Dube contributed 46 off 32, Tewatia scored some cheeky boundaries to lift RR at the end.

Mohammed Siraj was the best of the RCB bowlers, registering figures of 3 for 27. He dismissed Jos Buttler and David Miller at the top of the innings and came back to take out Tewatia. Harshal Patel also picked up three wickets, although he was a tad expensive, conceding 47 runs in three overs.

When it was RCB’s turn to chase, Devdutt Padikkal got the innings off to a sensational start. The RCB opener converted his knock into a big one and a pretty scintillating one at that.

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RCB captain Virat Kohli was happy to play second fiddle for a change, but he too joined the fun with some big hits as the result of the match became a foregone conclusion.

For his scintillating maiden century, it was Devdutt Padikkal who was named the Man of the Match as RCB remain unbeaten after four games.

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