'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABgAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAYQAAEEAgIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAgMRBAYFEhUzQQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgYRAAIBBQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwAEESFBEv/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8AzOv6vwnG6rmz4LMqMeQDHskmEnc0KN9W/FIYIL9YRFG3Ds0zkkk+jvujTuFWN0CqBmKMnXSuTX//2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) notched up their second successive win in the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season after defeating the Rajasthan Royals by seven runs at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday, April 23.
Virat Kohli led the team once again as Faf du Plessis featured as an impact player due to injury. RCB were put into bat first after RR skipper Sanju Samson won the toss in the afternoon encounter.
The hosts were in for a shocking start as the stand-in skipper was dismissed for a duck. Shahbaz Ahmed was promoted up the order in the rather ill-fated No.3 position but failed to flatter. The onus of scoring the bulk of runs was once again down to the experienced duo of du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell.
The overseas pair stepped up to the task and shared 127 runs for the third wicket. RR made their presence felt once they broke the mammoth partnership and took wickets at regular intervals in the death overs. RCB ultimately ended up posting 189-9.
In reply, RR were dealt an early blow as Jos Buttler was dismissed for a duck. Devdutt Padikkal recorded a fifty against his former franchise and joined Yashasvi Jaiswal to forge a crucial partnership for the second wicket.
RCB came back into the contest with the help of wickets and held their nerve with good death bowling and fielding. Despite Dhruv Jurel's valiant cameo at the back end of the innings, the three-time finalists prevailed by a narrow margin.
On that note, here are three moments that got the fans into an uproar during the contest between RCB and RR.
#1 Trent Boult traps Virat Kohli for a golden duck
Virat Kohli had a clean slate in the shortest format against Trent Boult prior to the RCB vs RR encounter. However, the in-form batter found himself vulnerable to the inswinger by the left-arm seamer, who struck off the first ball to continue his streak of impactful first overs.
Kohli was trapped as the ball swung in, beating the inside edge as the ace batter looked to flick it away towards the mid-wicket region. The umpire had no hesitation in raising his finger and Kohli walked away without questioning the decision.
This marks Kohli's first duck of the season and his seventh in the IPL overall. This was also the third time he was dismissed for a duck on 'April 23'.
#2 Mohammed Siraj uproots the middle stump to send back Jos Buttler
The England international recorded his second duck in three innings after being outfoxed by Mohammed Siraj. The in-form right-arm pacer breached Jos Buttler's defense with a scrambled seam delivery that came back in after pitching.
The opening batter tried to play through the line against a full delivery by Siraj, but the ball just managed to sneak past through the gap between the bat and the pad to give RCB a resounding start in the second innings.
#3 Suyash Prabhudessai's direct hit to dismiss Shimron Hetmyer
RR were set for a final flourish as Dhruv Jurel and Shimron Hetmyer faced RCB's death-overs charge. The explosive Caribbean player struggled to settle and tried to get Jurel back on strike with a mishit, trying to scamper through for a single.
Suyash Prabhudessai, the fielder in question, was sharp at short cover. He proceeded to pick up the ball, took his time to aim at the sole stump and let go of the ball in clean motion.
Hetmyer was caught well short of the crease as RCB got rid of the in-form finisher, who had single-handedly won RR a game against the Gujarat Titans (GT) recently.
