IPL 2021: RCB and PBKS exchange hilarious banter over Glenn Maxwell's knock

Glenn Maxwell's first six in two IPL editions prompted a rib-tickling repartee between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings' (PBKS) social media handles on Friday.

Glenn Maxwell, who played for PBKS in IPL 2020 and could only muster 108 runs from 13 games, made a resounding debut for RCB.

Coming in at number four in a chase of 160, the Aussie all-rounder played with eye-catching elan, hitting reverse sweeps for boundaries with ease.

In the 11th over, he waltzed down the track to Krunal Pandya and slammed a massive six that landed on the stadium's roof over long-on.

Seeing this, RCB's Twitter page, in typically tongue-in-cheek style, immediately thanked PBKS for releasing Glenn Maxwell last season on Twitter.

PBKS didn't hold back either and in turn thanked RCB for Chris Gayle, KL Rahul, Mandeep Singh, Sarfraz Khan and Mayank Agarwal, all former RCB players who have now established themselves at the Punjab-based franchise.

RCB wrote on Twitter:

"First Maxi-mum in Red and Gold and he nearly hits it out of Chennai! Thank you @PunjabKingsIPL. We would hug you if not for social distancing."

In reply, PBKS quipped:

"Aww and thank you for Gayle, KL, Mandy, Sarfaraz, Mayank..."

Aww and thank you for Gayle, KL, Mandy, Sarfaraz, Mayank... 🤗#SaddaPunjab #IPL2021 #PunjabKings

— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) April 9, 2021

The banter didn't stop here. RCB's handle posted another hilarious comment, this time teasing PBKS for the similarities in its helmet, logo and the rest of the IPL 2021 kit with some earlier RCB jerseys. RCB tweeted:

"You missed jersey, helmet, pads...and logo? But between us, who's keeping count?"

AB de Villiers's brilliance leads RCB to victory following Glenn Maxwell's dismissal

AB de Villiers

Coming back to the game, Glenn Maxwell scored 39 off 28 balls including three fours and two sixes. Maxwell imbued RCB's chase with some much-needed aggression after Washington Sundar's early dismissal and skipper Virat Kohli's cautious 33 (29).

Although RCB never lost the plot during the chase, Glenn Maxwell's wicket, which was followed by a mini middle-order collapse, might have given their camp some major jitters. However, AB de Villiers proved his worth once again by uncorking a masterful 27-ball 48.

The South African made sure the chase didn't lose momentum. He hit four boundaries and two sixes to take his team to a winning position.

Harshal Patel, who bowled a match-winning spell of 5-27 in the first innings, fittingly hit the last run off the final ball to seal a memorable victory for his team. RCB won by two wickets to secure the first two points of IPL 2021.

WE HAVE NO WORDS. 🤯🙏🏻#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #MIvRCB #DareToDream pic.twitter.com/wcWa4DfYUi

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 9, 2021