RCB falter at home as DC seize fourth consecutive win

A fightback wasn’t enough for the Royal Challengers as they went down battling against Delhi Capitals in Chinnaswamy. After three wins from the first four games, RCB went forth with the winning combination from the previous game.

Winning the toss, DC opted to bowl first. The hosts got off to a very good start, courtesy of Phil Salt (37). A full-blown assault from the English wicket-keeper left Mitchell Starc and Axar Patel reeling. The opening partnership of Salt and Kohli added 61 runs before Vipraj Nigam ran out the former.

The departure of Salt triggered a dominoes effect for RCB as their batters struggled to fend off the DC infringements. Virat Kohli (22) and Rajat Patidar (23) did put up a show of resistance but it wasn’t enough to defy the DC bowling unit.

It was eventually a fine show from Tim David who blasted an unbeaten 37 off just 20 balls. He rocked two fours and four sixes, propelling RCB to a fighting total of 163/7. With the surface proving to be a two-paced wicket, RCB hoped that they had enough in their bank to put the DC batting unit to test.

RCB roared off to a rollicking start, thanks to Yash Dayal who got the better of his former captain, Faf du Plessis (2) in the very second over of the innings. A ball later it was Jake Fraser-McGurk (7) who was on his way back to the pavilion after miscuing one from Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Abhishek Porel (7) who came on as an impact player could do very little as Bhuvi got the better of him with Jitesh Sharma pouching a couple of sky-high catches. Axar Patel (15) did get himself a start but couldn’t make the most of it. Suyash Sharma delivered the prized scalp of the Delhi captain, reducing DC to 58/4.

Much to the woes of RCB though, KL Rahul (93*) and Tristan Stubbs (38*) cemented DC’s position in the game, growing gradually from a defensive stance to an unstoppable attack. The duo posted 111 runs for the fifth wicket, ushering DC home for their fourth straight win of the tournament.