Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won their second consecutive match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 after a late batting collapse from Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) restricted them six runs short of the target, at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Glenn Maxwell’s quickfire half-century propelled RCB to a respectable 149/8. In reply, SRH got off a rollicking start as David Warner led from the front to complete the 49th half-century of his IPL career. But a collapse triggered by Shahbaz Ahmed in the 17th over of the match proved too devastating for the Sunrisers to overcome.
Devdutt Padikkal’s return to competitive cricket was marked by his struggle to come to terms with the dubious nature of the pitch. Except on a couple of occasions when he found that sweet spot of the bat, Padikkal looked lost out in the middle. After playing three consecutive dots, he tried to trade his timing for a muscular pull. But it did not work out in his favour as Bhuvneshwar Kumar got the better of him.
RCB lost their second wicket when Shahbaz Ahmed attempted a wild slog off his namesake – Shahbaz Nadeem – in the seventh over. Rashid Khan made a dashing sprint from deep square-leg and ensnared the ball with both hands.
Rashid and Nadeem bowled in tandem to keep things under control for the next four overs after the Powerplay. When Nadeem came on to bowl his last of the night, Maxwell went berserk, clobbering him all over the park with disdain. A brilliant spell from Nadeem ended in a disastrous epilogue.
Rashid, however, ended on the same note. He picked up AB de Villiers in his third over and trapped Washington Sundar in his last. He was characteristically parsimonious and probing, and not even Maxwell dared to go after him.
Virat Kohli once again failed to convert his start into something substantial. He got out in the 13th over off Jason Holder, and just a single came for RCB on the next five balls.
Maxwell went on with his act, standing tall amidst the rubble and ruins. He completed his first half-century since aeons in the IPL and propelled RCB to 149/8.
Wriddhiman Saha failed to make an impact at the top yet again. He somehow survived the first over from Mohammed Siraj, played five straight dots before a big in-swinging delivery missed his bat and raced to the boundary line. But Siraj got his reward in his second over when Saha went hard and gave an easy catch to Maxwell.
After that, there was a period of absolute domination from David Warner and Manish Pandey. They saw off Siraj’s over, then thrashed Kyle Jamieson for two sixes and a four in the next over. While Warner was the more aggressive of the two, Pandey looked unhurried and kept things simple. Too simple, in fact, allowing RCB to claw back in the game.
Shahbaz turned the game on its head after picking three crucial wickets. Jonny Bairstow mistimed an slog. Manish went after a ball without reaching the pitch. And Abdul Samad’s attempt was as ungainly as Bairstow’s.
The drama did not end here. With 16 needed off the last over, Harshal Patel bowled a beamer that Rashid managed to hook for four, reducing the equation to 8 in 3 balls. This was Harshal’s second beamer of the innings, which should have resulted in him being taken off.
Harshal continued, beating Rashid with a short-pitched delivery on the next. Rashid was gets run out, and SRH failed to cross the finishing line for the second time in a row.
Brief scores
Royal Challengers Bangalore 149/8 in 20 overs (Glenn Maxwell 59; Jason Holder 3-30) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 143/9 in 20 overs (David Warner 54; Shahbaz Ahmed 3-7) by 6 runs. Player of the Match: Glenn Maxwell.