Bowlers choke out Sunrisers after Maxwell’s brilliant 59 to make it 2 in 2 for RCB

You know those games where you kind of know there’s a twist coming at some point, but then as an onlooker might just convince yourself for a while that it may never arrive. Even more so when two batsmen are going strong in a run-chase. But, the twist came. The slow, turning Chennai pitch has produced two identical games where the team seemingly down are never really out of the contest.

Devdutt Padikkal’s return posed a serious question of who should make way for the emerging player of IPL 2020. While the return of Padikkal was well in focus, it was the decision of whom to retain which in hindsight turned out to be the bigger call. Shahbaz’s ability to chip in with a few handy overs of spin appeared to have tilted the scales against Rajat Patidar, and a game-changing 17th over in the Sunrisers’ innings vindicated the decision. Three wickets and just a run meant SRH’s run-chase was derailed.

While David Warner and Manish Pandey crafted a partnership that threatened to wrap the game before a twist could arrive, there was always a sense of “Just one wicket”. And that one wicket, that of David Warner, came courtesy of 16 boundary-less preceding deliveries which also yielded just 11 runs. Once Warner departed, the SRH batsmen had their fingers glued to the panic button as if a contestant on a buzzer round. The required rate jumping up to almost 9 with 4 overs to go, and a strategic timeout to build up their nervousness was enough to nudge them towards pressing it. While Rashid tried valiantly to wrestle the game out of RCB’s hands, the pacers kept their calm with a slippery ball in hand and delivered 2 crucial points.

Have we even spoken about Glenn Maxwell yet? The pitch turned. They say never judge a track until both the teams have batted. In a phase where SRH could muster just 66 off the latter half of the innings, Maxwell alone contributed 50 massive runs off only half the number of balls. If RCB hoped to bag a game-changer, Maxwell certainly appears to have fit into that role. The innings started off promisingly for RCB with Captain Kohli and Shahbaz giving the team a brisk beginning. But the middle overs yet again proved hard to negotiate on the Chennai track, and RCB had to drive a hard bargain between keeping wickets and accelerating. Virat and AB departed, and the fears of folding for a below-par score had set in. But, Maxwell put to rest all those worries, as his invaluable 41-ball 59 pushed RCB to a competitive 149.

Often when we look back on games, we tend to figure out defining moments. In a game full of heavyweights, it was 2 overs from Shahbaz’s on either side that proved decisive. Shahbaz Nadeem’s 11th over of RCB’s innings in which Maxwell hammered him for 6,4,6 and the over eventually going for 22 was the propellant RCB needed for the second half. A 1-run, 3-wicket stunner from Shahbaz Ahmed right after the 16th was the tonic RCB needed to tilt the game in their favor. A fascinating contest on a slow turner, but 2 wins from 2 games is a sight any RCB supporter would gladly welcome. Oh, did we mention Harshal Patel now owns the purple cap with 7 wickets?!