BENGALURU: After winning the opener convincingly, the focus is once again on Royal Challengers Bangalore’s scintillating batting unit ahead of their match against Delhi Daredevils on Sunday.
As they trained at M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, the fans thronging the ground said it all. Former India captain and home hero Rahul Dravid was present too, as coach of the visiting team.
Bangalore should be keen on another commanding show. The likes of skipper Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers took Sunrisers Hyderabad to task in the first match and it was an absolutely stunning display of batting. Down the order, Sarfaraz Khan came up with some unique hits and contributed to the team’s cause. Chris Gayle missed out and sure enough, would be raring to have a go at the Daredevils attack.
Just like the Hyderabad team, the team from Delhi has good attack with Zaheer Khan, Carlos Brathwaite and Amit Mishra being the prominent faces. Thanks to them, they restricted Kings XI Punjab to a modest score on Friday and won by a huge margin. So, Kohli and Co will have to excel again to keep the scoreboard going.
Bangalore still can’t have the services of an Samuel Badree. The West Indies leg-spinner is injured. It’s not clear when he will be back. Speaking to the media, RCB batsman Kedar Jadhav said, “We still have no idea about Badree’s recovery. But his arrival will make our spin department more formidable.”
Jadhav, who gained prominence after doing well with the bat for the Daredevils, said of Sunday’s match and veteran spinner Mishra, “As opponents, we don’t focus on them. Instead, we look at ourselves, on what we’ve to do. We’re focused on that. We won the last game convincingly. We’re looking at it as another game. As a team, we’ve to score 180-200. I don’t think the bowlers should be blamed. The Chinnaswamy wicket is a batting paradise with a small boundary. Batsmen will have to put enough runs on the board to back bowlers.
“As for Mishra, we just have to see the ball, not the bowler. He’s an effective bowler but we’ve played him before. Everyone knows what his variations are and we’re looking forward to tackling him.”
Bangalore vs Delhi
Pros & Cons
Both teams are coming off wins, but Delhi will be wary of RCB’s explosive top three of Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. Self confessed ‘universal boss’ Gayle is yet to get going, and Delhi will hope his run continues. The team from the capital will also beware of their own inability to get a string of good results, and this could be a stumbling block.
Pitch & Conditions
Bengaluru is a batsman’s paradise, especially in the IPL. Another high-scoring game is in the offing, with warm temperatures for the evening.