While the RCB will look to start afresh, CSK got a confidence-boosting 20-run win against defending champions Mumbai Indians on Sunday night. It is imperative for RCB to improve upon their batting as they seek to keep their place in the top half of the points table.
It will be important that the openers — Devdutt Padikkal (217 runs) and skipper Virat Kohli (203 runs) — provide a solid start.
But the opening duo would also need support from the middle-order, which crumbled against Kolkata Knight Riders.
The likes of Glenn Maxwell (233 runs) and AB de Villiers (207 runs) will have to perform in unison against a strong CSK attack. Australian Maxwell did justify his high price tag during the first leg, becoming the side’s top scorer.
He would be raring to go once again as will the ever-reliant De Villiers. The RCB bowlers will also have to forget the underwhelming display against KKR.
While pacers Mohammed Siraj, Harshal Patel bowled well, Kiwi quick Kyle Jamieson, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga all had leaked more than 10 runs an over.
CSK could have suffered the reversal in their tie against Mumbai had it not been for youngster Ruturaj Gaikwad’s mature unbeaten knock of 88 off 58 balls. The team’s leading run-getter Faf du Plessis (320 runs), Moeen Ali were out for ducks while Ambati Rayudu was retired hurt on nought.
Veterans Suresh Raina and Dhoni also failed to reach double digit scores and the side was reeling at 24 for 4.
But Gaikwad was not ruffled and kept his calm, steering the three-time champions to a respectable 156 for 6. He stitched crucial partnerships with all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo, who smashed 23 runs off eight deliveries, taking the team over the 150-run mark.
Defending a modest total, CSK showed immense resilience as the bowlers led by pacer Deepak Chahar and Dwayne Bravo handed the “Yellow Army” their sixth win of the season.
A win on Friday will take them back to the top of the table. CSK will also have the option to choose young England all-rounder Sam Curran, who had been one of the breakout stars of last year’s IPL, shining with both the bat and the ball.
The Kohli problem
Royal Challengers Bangalore Director of Cricket and head coach Mike Hesson said skipper Kohli is desperate to do well in the ongoing IPL 2021.
RCB had suffered a nine-wicket loss against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the side remains in third place in the points table.
The side will next lock horns against CSK on Friday at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. “Look, there are some times when our batsmen look to do that to get some extra opportunity.
“Virat is obviously desperate to do well, he likes one-on-one sessions to get his confidence and basically find his rhythm. It definitely looks like he has found it,” said Hesson in a video posted on the official YouTube channel of RCB.
Kohli failed with the bat in hand against KKR as he managed to score just five runs. The right-handed batsman was sent back to the pavilion by Prasidh Krishna after the pacer caught him right plumb in front.
After stumbling to a nine-wicket loss against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Hesson had said skipper Kohli’s announcement to step down as skipper after the ongoing season did not impact the team’s performance.
On Sunday, Kohli had announced that he would step down as the RCB captain after the IPL 2021 season.
“I think it was actually to get any form of distraction out early. We talked about making that announcement as soon as possible really, all the players were aware of it.
“It has not impacted performance against KKR, we were not sharp with the bat, we lost wickets. But I am confident that this group will turn around pretty quickly,” said Hesson during a virtual post-match press conference.
Teams (From): Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (Captain) Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi, Deepak Chahar, Imran Tahir, Faf du Plessis, Robin Uthappa, Karn Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Jason Behrendorff, Krishnappa Gowtham, Mitchell Santner, R Sai Kishore, Hari Nishanth, N Jagadeesan, Cheteshwar Pujara, KM Asif, Harishankar Reddy, Bhagath Varma.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli (Captain), Navdeep Saini, Glenn Maxwell, Dan Christian, Rajat Patidar, Dushmantha Chameera, Pavan Deshpande, Mohammed Siraj, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Sachin Baby, Wanindu Hasaranga, George Garton, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shahbaz Ahmed, Devdutt Padikkal, Kyle Jamieson, Suyash Prabhudessai, KS Bharat, Tim David, Akash Deep, AB de Villiers.
Match info:
Match date: Friday (September 24).
Match starts at 7:30PM IST.
Live telecast: Star Sports Networks
Live streaming: Disney + Hotstar
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