IPL 2018, KXIP vs RCB: Hits and Misses

It was a must-win game for Royal Challengers Bangalore and they came out and put up a clinical performance in Indore against Kings XI Punjab.

Put into bat by Virat Kohli, KXIP were off to a sedate start as RCB's new-ball bowlers were tight and disciplined in the initial few overs. And just when KL Rahul and Chris Gayle started to open their shoulders and threaten to take the game away from RCB, Umesh Yadav bounced both batsmen out.

And since then, Kings XI lost wickets in a heap and were eventually bowled out for a meagre total of 88. After an opening stand of 36, the hosts could only manage to score 52 runs for the next 9 wickets. All the RCB bowlers were very good with Umesh Yadav once again being the standout.

Virat Kohli and Parthiv Patel then came out and dominated the KXIP bowling attack and finished off the chase in just 8.1 overs. This was the first time RCB managed to win two consecutive games since 2016. This was their 5th win of the season and this huge win has helped them better their net run rate.

---

#5 Miss: Karun Nair

Mohammed Siraj dismissed Karun Nair as he had him caught at slip.

Karun Nair came into this IPL on the back of a very good domestic season. He was consistent in all three formats. He scored 1270 runs (in 28 innings) at an average of 47.03.

However, he hasn’t quite lived up to expectation despite being the third highest run-getter this season. He started the tournament very well as he scored a very good half-century against Delhi Daredevils. But since then he’s looked good but just hasn’t been able to convert his starts. In fact, in his first 8 innings this season, Nair just had one innings where he didn’t cross the 20-run mark.

But in the last couple of games, he failed to even get set. He got 3 and 3 in the last two games and in this game, he registered his third successive single-digit score as he managed to score just 1. He came into bat at No. 3 and with KXIP’s best batsman KL Rahul dismissed, Nair needed to take the responsibility and bat big.

However, the Karnataka batsman tried to guide a ball to third man despite the presence of a slip (which was standing wide) and was out caught.

#4 Hit: RCB openers

Parthiv Patel had a new opening partner in Virat Kohli in this game.

RCB had a new opening pair for the game as Virat Kohli strode out to open the batting alongside Parthiv Patel. One of the main reasons for the RCB skipper to open the batting was the target which was just 89 and he wanted to make a statement and finish the game as quickly as possible.

And that’s what happened. After the bowlers and fielders did a terrific job, both Kohli and Parthiv came out all guns blazing. The RCB skipper did survive a couple of close calls as Ashwin failed to hit the stumps from mid-on before Finch dropped a tough chance.

But the duo was on the attack as they didn’t spare any KXIP bowler. They got 66 runs in the powerplay before finishing things off in 8.1 overs. Kohli scored an unbeaten 28-ball 48 while Parthiv was not out on 40 (off 22 balls).

#3 Miss: KXIP middle-order

Aaron Finch was the top-scorer for KXIP but he couldn't kick on and build on his start.

The Kings XI Punjab have one of the most fragile middle-orders this IPL. None of the batsmen batting in that KXIP middle-order have performed up to expectation.

A couple of batsmen (Mayank Agarwal and Aaron Finch) are batting a little out of position. Mayank has scored just 120 runs in 11 innings and in this game, he batted at No. 6 and scored just 2 as he was strangled down leg-side. Finch has batted in the middle-order in the past and was also batting there for Australia in the recent T20I tri-series. But hasn’t been able to find form. But he top-scored for KXIP in this game with 26 but didn’t look convincing.

Marcus Stoinis has been in and out of the side and he failed as well in this game as he was knocked over by Yuzvendra Chahal for a 3-ball 2. The lower middle-order didn’t offer any resistance as KXIP folded up quickly after the first two wickets fell.

#2 Hit: RCB fielding

The RCB fielding was excellent and that made a big difference in this game.

RCB have been one of the best fielding sides in this IPL (they have saved the most runs in this season). However, their catching hasn’t been as good as their ground fielding as they have dropped a few important catches and that has cost them a lot.

But in this game, the fielding was absolutely brilliant. The game started with Parthiv Patel dropping a regulation catch and letting Chris Gayle off the hook. It seemed like the big West Indian might make his former team pay. But the team didn’t let that drop affect their intensity on the field.

The catching was spot on (barring that Parthiv drop) and the ground fielding was very good as usual. There were 3 run outs inflicted as well and hence, it was a clinical fielding performance.

#1 Hit: Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav was once again magnificent as he took 3/23 and broke the back of KXIP's batting line-up.

Umesh Yadav has been in terrific form in this IPL. He’s run in hard and has bowled fast throughout the tournament. He’s troubled the batsmen with pace and has been RCB’s go-to bowler in the initial overs. The Vidarbha pacer has been phenomenal in the powerplay and has taken most of his wickets in the first 6 overs.

Umesh wasn’t at his best in the last couple of games as he picked up just one wicket in the last two games. However, he picked up 3/23 and broke the back of the KXIP batting line-up early.

Yadav bowled a couple of tight overs and conceded just 8 runs. But in his next over, KL Rahul tried to take him on and also hit a six. But the 30-year-old pacer came back strongly after he was hit for a six as he dismissed KXIP’s best batsman with a short delivery. He then got another big fish as he bounced out Chris Gayle in the same over to put KXIP in early trouble. He also picked up the wicket of Andrew Tye in his final over, thereby finishing with another three-wicket haul.