RCB hopeful of a turnaround as KKR challenge awaits

With an unexpected start to the campaign where the Challengers had to bite the dust as Punjab Kings edged past them in a high-octane thriller, Faf and company will be raring to get back to winning ways as they take on the Knights for their second fray of the tournament.

RCB pumped out some solid batting in the IPL opener as Faf du Plessis led the ranks with some crazy strikes after a slow start to his innings while Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik crafted important cameos to allow the Challengers garner 205 in the first innings.

Despite a momentous total on the cards, the Challengers lost the narrative in the latter half as Odean Smith and Bhanuka Rajapaksa went ballistic, taking out the RCB bowlers mercilessly. There was another hint of a comeback for RCB with Siraj dealing a double-whammy in the middle, leaving the door for a remarkable turnaround open. Sadly, for Bengaluru, the door was slam shut as Odean Smith blasted a masterclass to take the Kings home.

With a lot to learn from the opener, Faf and his men will be hoping to rally the proceedings from scratch and put forth a decent display that would once again bloom smiles on the faces of their fans. The batting unit would simply remain intact with Adam Griffith needing to pull a couple of shifts with his bowlers that would help them regain their confidence ahead of the second encounter.

The Knights had a fine start to their campaign as they schooled the defending champions comprehensively, thanks to an all-round display from their players that left the Super Kings teetering with the bat while their batters scorched the Chennai bowlers with an incredible display of aggression.

This won’t be an easy outing for Bengaluru given their sloppy start to the campaign but once again with Faf at the helm of affairs and Virat Kohli looking confident, a turnaround of the tide can always be on the cards. Shreyas Iyer’s introduction as KKR captain will simply amplify the thrill that these two teams will be bringing forth to the contest.

Venue watch:

This will be the second game for the Challengers at the DY Patil Stadium in the current edition and as we have seen in the opening fixture, it will once again be a paradise for the batters and especially with the small boundaries in the frame, you can obviously expect 180 plus scores from both sides. However, the team batting second will have an added advantage given the presence of dew that will make it tougher for the bowlers to grip the ball. Also, with an average second innings score of 164, a chase would be far more comfortable than batting first, especially given the early movement of the ball.

Rivalries:

Faf du Plessis versus Shreyas Iyer – These two are incredible strikers of the cherry and can wreak absolute madness if both of them gets going. In the opener, we saw Faf du Plessis bringing out the big guns after a slow start while Shreyas Iyer seemed in total control of the proceedings on the field as a captain. He stayed unbeaten for 20, a knock that was well placed to help KKR to the finishing lines.

Virat Kohli versus Andre Russell – Two contrasting players of the ball where Kohli plays with calculated aggression while for Russell its madness if he manages to get his eyes in. Kohli seemed to be in decent touch and shape in the opener where he racked up 41 runs from 29 balls while Russell conjured a decent opening spell with the ball in his arms. Kohli may not be an all-rounder but he makes up for it with some electric fielding. Consider it an even.

Mohammed Siraj versus Varun Chakravarthy – Siraj didn’t really have the start that he was hoping to get but whenever he has been up against the Knights in the last two years, he has actually managed to come up with decent figures. With an ardent zeal to prove his critiques wrong, it is needless to say that he will be a player to watch out for. Varun Chakravarthy, on the contrary is still an enigma for the batters out in the middle and he started the tournament with a bang. With the pitch being conducive to the spinners in the second innings, you never know, what would be going on in his mind.

Squads:

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Siraj, Faf du Plessis, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dinesh Karthik, Josh Hazlewood, Shahbaz Ahmed, Anuj Rawat, Akash Deep, Mahipal Lomror, Finn Allen, Sherfane Rutherford, Jason Behrendorff, Suyash Prabhudesai, Chama Milind, Aneeshwar Gautam, Karn Sharma, David Willey, Luvnith Sisodia, Siddharth Kaul.

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, Shreyas Iyer, Pat Cummins, Nitish Rana, Shivam Mavi, Sheldon Jackson, Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Rasikh Dar, Chamika Karunaratne, Baba Indrajith, Ashok Sharma, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Sam Billings, Alex Hales, Ramesh Kumar, Mohammed Nabi, Aman Khan, Umesh Yadav.

Match details:

Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders

Venue: D.Y. Patil Stadium

Date: 30th March 2022

Time: 7:30 PM IST