IPL 2018, RCB vs RR: 5 reasons why RCB lost

Chasing a record total of 218, Royal Challengers Bangalore who sported a green jersey, fall short of the target despite Kohli sparkling with the bat.

Quinton de Kock and AB de Villiers's efforts were not enough to mount a challenge for Rajasthan Royals and Mandeep Singh’s cameo came too late in the day for RCB which helped only to narrow the margin of their loss.

Sportskeeda takes a look at the possible 5 reasons, which might have been the responsible for RCB’s loss.

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#1 Foreign players not turning up

Chasing a record total of 218, RCB needed their big foreign players to mount a challenge for Rajasthan Royals and needed at least one of them to stay with Virat Kohli who fought a lone battle of 57, sadly that’s not been a case for them today.

Brendon McCullum perished in the first over thanks to a brilliant catch from Stokes and Quinton de Kock stayed with Kohli for a brief period stringing a decent partnership to set up a base but got out at the wrong time trying to up the ante.

After helping RCB to chase a successfully last match, AB de Villiers couldn’t replicate his magic and got out to Shreyas Gopal for 20, who also scalped Kohli.

#2 Umesh Yadav's spell

Bagging three wickets in the last match and winning Man of the Match award, Umesh Yadav endured a torrid game with the ball, which included free hits spilling 59 runs in his spell of 4 overs without a single wicket.

He was trusted with the powerplay and at death overs by Virat but failed to replicate the performance in his previous match. Sanju Samson cashed in and dispatched him all over the park throughout his spell, amassing 92 runs which included a free hit six in the last over.

#3 Virat Kohli's decision to bowl first

Rated as a batting track by pitch experts, Virat’s decision to bowl first raised a few eyeballs, which was proven to be a wrong decision in the end. Virat Kohli would have backed his big hitters to chase the target owing to their last match performance headed by AB de Villiers.

But they were made to chase 218 by the Rajasthan Royals thanks to sparkling innings from Sanju Samson which was never chased before in the IPL, proved to be too much for them despite a decent batting effort from Virat Kohli and a cameo from Mandeep Singh late in the innings.

#4 Pawan Negi and Kulwant Khejroliya not turning up

Royal Challengers Bangalore dropped their retained player Sarfaraz Khan for Pawan Negi, who contributed neither with the bat nor with the ball failing to justify his selection. Bowling a solitary over for 13 runs, Negi didn’t contribute much with the bat edging to Jos Buttler for 3 runs.

Kulwant Khejroliya also had a forgettable outing with the ball conceding 40 runs with the ball off 3 overs. Indian players have to stand up for RCB if they have to mount a challenge for a playoff spot this season.

#5 Stunning Sanju Samson

Dealing in more sixes than fours, Sanju Samson had a brilliant match with the bat amassing 92 runs which included 10 maximums and a couple of boundaries. He was positive right from the start and built on a strong base set up by his captain Ajinkya Rahane.

RCB bowlers had no answers to his onslaught except for Chahal who had a decent match with the ball. Winning Orange cap and Man of the Match award for his innings, Samson had a match to remember and cherish.