BENGALURU: Of the ten matches in IPL so far, the Royal Challengers Bangalore have restricted their opponents to 155 or less in five games.
Barring Chris Morris, this is the same bowling attack, which struggled last season. If one looks at their bowling performance during the last edition, teams scored above 155 against them in 12 of the 13 matches.
The pitches in the United Arab Emirates might not be flat as the ones you get back home in India, but Bangalore's attack has mostly been on the money. Initially, some questions were raised when Dale Steyn and Umesh Yadav started but that seems to have been a long time back as the likes of Isuru Udana and Chris Morris have become regulars.
Now, the bowling line-up has shared responsibility. Spinners and pacers have come to the party and Virat Kohli's men are not dependent on a single bowler, the hallmark of a quality unit.
Yuzvendra Chahal is their highest wicket-taker, with 15 scalps and his approach of flighting the ball has worked. Morris, after recovering from a side strain, has been brilliant, with nine wickets from five matches. His economy rate of 5.00 is best in the competition among players, who have played more than three matches.
Also, Washington Sundar with his flatter trajectory and intelligent change of pace has been economical at 5.60. What makes the duo's numbers impressive is the fact that they are regularly used during the powerplay too. When bowlers stifle batsmen for runs, it normally leads to wickets from the other end.
Morris has delivered in the death overs too. Navdeep Saini, who has bowled 94 dot balls, has been consistent with his pace to trouble opponents. Udana with his slow cutters adds variety to their bowling attack.
It would be fair to say that the bowlers have played an important role in Bangalore, who lie second on the table, inching closer to sealing a playoff spot. The bowlers have responded to the call of duty. If Morris struck gold immediately after his return from injury, Mohammed Siraj, who replaced Shahbaz Ahmed for the Kolkata Knight Riders game, delivered his best IPL performance on Wednesday. The pacer came up with a spell for ages (4-2-8-3), helping them register their seventh win of the season.
"After Morris came into the squad, it has helped a lot in the bowling department. Washy (Washington) has done well for us in the powerplays. It is looking very good the way we have been bowling and I am also enjoying it," said Siraj in the post-match press conference.
Such wins are good signs for a team, which is searching for their maiden title. It is not only their bowlers, who are enjoying a good campaign. The batsmen have stood up to the task when required, and with the top four of Devdutt Padikkal, Aaron Finch, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers amongst runs, it puts them in great shape for the remainder of the competition.
If Bangalore can maintain consistency with both the bat and ball, the fans' clarion call -- ee sala cup namde (this time, cup is ours) -- may come true.