IPL 2021, KKR vs RCB: Player Ratings as Kohli, De Villiers flop in horror batting display

RCB were hammered by nine wickets in their first game of the second phase of IPL 2021
RCB were hammered by nine wickets in their first game of the second phase of IPL 2021

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) had the chance to make a statement in their first game of the second phase of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL), with a top-two spot on the line. But the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) made a statement of their own, hammering Virat Kohli's men by nine wickets to move to fifth in the IPL 2021 points table.

After winning the toss and electing to bat first, nothing went right for RCB in Abu Dhabi. 22 was RCB's highest individual score as they were rolled over for just 93. KKR made light work of the chase, crossing the finish line in the 10th over to significantly boost their net run rate.

Here are the player ratings for both teams from Match 31 of IPL 2021 between RCB and KKR.


IPL 2021: RCB player ratings vs KKR as marquee players fail miserably

Virat Kohli: 2/10

Kohli's first game after his big announcement didn't go to plan as he was outfoxed by Prasidh Krishna for 5. A sparkling boundary on the off-side was the only highlight of his innings as he took the innings' sole review with him back to the hut.


Devdutt Padikkal: 6.5/10

Padikkal started promisingly against pace and hit three boundaries, but a rash upper cut attempt against Ferguson cut short his stay at the crease. He ended up as RCB's highest scorer in the innings, but he should've made the most of his start.


KS Bharat: 4/10

Afforded a chance in the playing XI after his exploits in the pre-tournament practice games, Bharat looked at sea in the middle. He played a fidgety 16-run knock that didn't seem assured at all, despite his clear intent to keep the scoreboard moving.


Glenn Maxwell: 2/10

If Bharat looked uneasy at the crease, Maxwell looked positively woeful. 31 painful minutes saw him attempt a series of ungainly shots before Varun Chakravarthy sent him back for 10 off 17. It was a disastrous display from RCB's highest run-scorer in IPL 2021 thus far.


AB de Villiers: 1/10

De Villiers lasted only one ball as he played the shot of a man who wasn't active at the top level outside the IPL. A yorker from Andre Russell bamboozled the veteran.


Sachin Baby: 1/10

Batting at No. 6 as a specialist batsman, Baby did himself and his team no favors. He scratched his way to 7 off 17 before perishing while trying to up the ante - something he should've done way earlier. A misfield in the second innings capped off a miserable overall display.


Wanindu Hasaranga: 2/10

Hasaranga's highly anticipated IPL debut didn't go to plan as a googly from Chakravarthy completely flummoxed him. While he bowled a few threatening googlies of his own, his two overs went for 20 runs.


Kyle Jamieson: 3/10

Jamieson struggled in the middle before an unfortunate run-out at the non-striker's end sent him back to the hut for 4. He sent down two expensive overs for 26 runs as the KKR openers feasted on his innocuous bowling in the powerplay.


Harshal Patel: 6/10

The game was over by the time Harshal came into bowl. In fact, it was even over when he came into bat. IPL 2021's Purple Cap holder bowled two wicketless overs for 13 runs.


Mohammed Siraj: 6/10

Siraj bowled aggressively as always, but end product in the form of wickets deserted him. RCB needed him to provide an early breakthrough or two, but it wasn't to be for the spearhead.


Yuzvendra Chahal: 7/10

The only RCB bowler to pick up a wicket, Chahal leaked 23 runs in his two overs as the KKR openers handled him with professional disdain. The leg-spinner couldn't have done much without a fighting total to defend, though.


IPL 2021: KKR player ratings vs RCB as bowlers run riot

Shubman Gill: 8/10

Gill finally saw a turnaround in his IPL 2021 fortunes as he notched up an attacking 48. Returning from injury, the young opener played a series of classy shots to go with a smart catch in the first innings.


Venkatesh Iyer: 8/10

Making his IPL debut, Iyer showed no signs of nerves. He struck seven fours and one six in a confident display of batsmanship, finishing on an unbeaten 41 and hitting the winning runs for KKR.


Nitish Rana: 6/10

Rana wasn't required with the bat, but he took a smart catch to dismiss Baby.


Rahul Tripathi: 5/10

Tripathi had nothing to do in the match and receives a standard rating.


Eoin Morgan: 7/10

Morgan's captaincy was attacking and put RCB on the backfoot almost immediately. Barring a decision that could've proved costly had Siraj survived the 19th over, the Englishman led his team to a much-needed victory.


Dinesh Karthik: 5/10

Karthik's words of encouragement from behind the stumps were his only contribution, barring a regulation catch to dismiss Padikkal.


Andre Russell: 9/10

Playing as the third pacer, Russell scalped two crucial wickets in his first spell before returning to drill the final nail in RCB's coffin. He hurried the batsmen and did exactly what was asked of him.


Sunil Narine: 8/10

Narine bowled four economical overs for 20 runs and looked like picking up wickets throughout his spell. The pressure he builds and his partnership with Chakravarthy are essential to KKR's bowling plans.


Lockie Ferguson: 8.5/10

Replacing Pat Cummins in the KKR playing XI, Ferguson added a different dimension to the bowling attack with his raw pace and variations. He scalped two wickets in an excellent display.


Prasidh Krishna: 7/10

Krishna copped some stick from Padikkal after dismissing Kohli with a peach, but recovered well to bowl out his quota for just 24 runs.


Varun Chakravarthy: 9.5/10

Chakravarthy was the star of the show for KKR as he took three wickets while conceding just 13 runs. His variations were unreadable, and he even played a role in Jamieson's run-out.

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Edited by Sai Krishna