On this day in 2013 - RCB beat RR by 7 wickets
Royal Challengers Bangalore had a strange habit in the 2013 season. They were thoroughly entertaining, but kept their supporters’ hearts racing with a slew of thrillers. The game against Delhi Daredevils, which the team should have won comfortably, needing only 24 off the last 4 overs, but eventually ended in a tie and a subsequent super-over victory for RCB was a quintessential instance of RCB’s symptoms. Their next opponents at home would be Rajasthan Royals.
RCB put the Royals in to bat first, and the pressure of having to score big on a ground renowned for its favouritism towards chasing teams showed. Royals tried to break free against some disciplined RCB bowling, but unsuccessfully. Shane Watson, the marquee name in Rajasthan’s top order capable of damage was dismissed trying to clear mid-off, where Murali Karthik took a smart leaping catch to give Rampaul and RCB the first wicket of the evening. Watson’s dismissal brought a huge cheer, as the raucous Chinnaswamy crowd greeted the hometown legend Rahul Dravid to the middle.
Dravid and Rahane could hardly muster any momentum, and the scoring rate trudged along at a rate RCB would be least concerned. Rahane fell to Jaydev Unadkat’s off-cutter, trying to play it through the off-side field, instead leaning into the shot too early, spooning the ball to the reliable Dilshan at point. Rajasthan’s innings finally found some impetus when Stuart Binny escaped the shackles and took on Murali Karthik in the ninth over of the innings. Incidentally, that was the first time the Royals’ run rate crossed even 6 an over. But, Binny’s Karnataka teammate Vinay Kumar bounced him out.
Vinay Kumar’s 3/18 was the standout performance as RCB bowled out Royals for only 117
The responsibility of getting Royals out of trouble now fell on the experienced shoulders of Dravid and Aussie Brad Hodge. But, the duo never got going. First, it was Dravid who fell to Murali Karthik’s guile to put an end to his struggles. When Brad Hodge fell 4 balls later to Vinay Kumar, Royals were reeling at 105/5 after 15.2 overs. The bottom half of Rajasthan’s batting contributed only 12 more runs to the total, and the Royals were dismissed for 117 with 2 balls still left in their quota. Vinay Kumar was the standout performer for RCB with figures of 3/18 in his four overs.
Chasing 118 would be a cakewalk, especially at Chinnaswamy, one would be justified in assuming. The assumption would be further substantiated when the opening partnership puts up 53 runs in the first 40 balls. But, the fall of Dilshan brought two more wickets. Kohli and De Villiers fell cheaply, and RCB had lost Dilshan, Kohli and De Villiers in a span of 15 balls and 11 runs. RCB had a penchant for complicating seemingly straightforward scenarios in the tournament, and that would have made the fall of wickets a cause for concern.
Chris Gayle was joined by Saurabh Tiwary. The two southpaws recognised the need for sensibility. They put away their natural instincts, and took the road often taken. They rotated strike and kept the scoreboard ticking with singles and twos with a boundary thrown in every now and then. The risk-free approach took the sting out of Royals’ ascendancy and put RCB’s chase back on track. The total was chased down comfortably with 13 balls to spare. The Gayle-Tiwary partnership, which was worth 59 runs in 53 balls had taken RCB home.
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