The M. Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore saw yet another epic chase in the IPL. This time, however, the Royal Challengers Bangalore were on the receiving end as a Quinton de Kock inspired Delhi Daredevils chased down a mammoth 191 with 7 wickets to spare.
The home team came into the match looking to move up to 2nd spot in the table. On the other hand, with a win and a loss from their opening two encounters, Delhi were looking for more consistency in the campaign.
There were plenty of memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, just like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes. Here are five of the best:
1) Quinton de shock for RCB
An innings that is often seen come from the willow of RCB's favourite son, Virat Kohli came from an opposition batsman this time. Young Quinton de Kock played the innings of his life as he silenced the home crowd and carried Delhi over the finishing line.
With a mammoth 15 fours and 3 sixes in a knock that lasted 51 balls, de Kock hammered the first century of the ninth season of the IPL. The 23-year-old batted at a strike rate of over 200 and departed only after the result was secure.
Despite the loss of two wickets in the powerplay, the wicket-keeper batsman ensured that he finished the job and in style by hitting every bowler out of the park en route to his 108 runs. An innings of a lifetime!
2) Streak ended
25 March 2010! The last time Delhi Daredevils beat Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium was six years ago, a run of 6 straight losses. However, that streak finally came to an end in stunning fashion in the 9th edition of the IPL.
Right after winning the toss and choosing to bowl first on a wicket which has seen 10 of the last 11 chasing sides emerge victorious, the writing was on the wall for the visitors. Despite de Villiers' and Kohli's splendid innings, which carried RCB to 191, the Daredevils had history on their side and that gave them hope.
The Chinnaswamy boasts of a solid batting track, which was taken advantage of by a resolute Delhi batting line-up on the day. In the process, they ended their 6-match losing run in Bangalore.
3) Wiese's stunner
The name on the scorecard would read David Wiese's, but the catch was a joint effort from both Shane Watson and Wiese. And what a stunning catch it was!
Having played out 3 dot balls, Shreyas Iyer took the aerial route to Sreenath Aravind's bowling and looked to have cleared the mid-off fielder as the ball raced towards the boundary line! However, this was no ordinary player at mid-off; it was Shane Watson.
The Australian ran back about 30 yards before catching the ball, but he was going off balance and the boundary was nearing in.
Realising that he will step outside, he threw the ball in the air and ran outside the boundary. The South African Wiese was there to support him and dived right beside the ropes to complete the catch that dismissed Iyer for a duck. It was a catch that will certainly not fade away from our memories.
4) Kohli/ABD's resistance
Once again, Chris Gayle departed the scene early. Once again it was left to Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers to steady the ship. And steady the ship they did, and how!
A 107-run partnership was stitched in just 65 balls as Kohli and de Villiers made the Daredevils hope they had not got Gayle out. They proved that they are two of the very best batsmen in the world currently as the South African's 55 came from just 33 balls while Kohli stayed longer in the crease and put up 79 off 48 balls.
The duo's partnership was finally broken by West Indies' World T20 hero, Carlos Brathwaite, who got ABD out, but Kohli ensured that their partnership that steadied the innings didn't go in vain as RCB reached an extremely competitive total.
5) Karun Nair's anchor innings
Chasing a total nearing 200 and losing 2 wickets in the powerplay generally spells doom for a team. However, the Delhi Daredevils proved that they are no ordinary team as they not just overcame the twin setbacks, they went a notch higher!
Karun Nair stepped in to accompany the dangerous Quinton de Kock and he played the role of the support staff to perfection. Every Ram needs a Laxman, every Batman needs a Robin; similarly de Kock needed Nair.
The young Indian paced his innings splendidly as he rotated the strike well, ran hard to convert 1s into 2s while hitting the ball beyond the boundary on regular occasions. Playing a knock of 54 off 42 balls, Karun gave de Kock the freedom and the platform to play his range of shots.
He stayed till the end to complete Delhi's unlikely victory that helped them move up to 3rd spot in the table, above their opponents on the night.
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