Maxwell, Du Plessis and Harshal combine to down RR

Tags: Indian T20 League 2023, Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals, 32nd Match at Bengaluru, Apr 23, 2023, Rajasthan XI, Bangalore XI

Published on: Apr 24, 2023

Scorecard | Commentary | Graphs

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) beat Rajasthan Royals (RR) by seven runs in match number 32 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday, April 23. Sent into bat after losing the toss, Bangalore put up 189/9 and then held Rajasthan to 182/6.

RCB got off to a forgettable start as stand-in skipper Virat Kohli was trapped lbw first ball by Trent Boult. The RR left-armer claimed his second wicket with the first ball of his second over as Shahbaz Ahmed (2) pulled a short ball to midwicket. There was not much joy for Rajasthan thereafter.

Faf du Plessis (62 off 39) and Glenn Maxwell (77 off 44) added 127 runs for the third wicket. While Du Plessis struck eight fours and two sixes, Maxwell hit six fours and four sixes. The partnership ended when Du Plessis was run out by a direct hit from Yashasvi Jaiswal at extra cover. Maxwell then chipped a switch hit off Ravichandran Ashwin to backward point.

RR fought back well after the dismissal of the set batters to restrict RCB to under 200. Mahipal Lomror (8), Suyash Prabhudessai (0), Wanindu Hasaranga (6) and Vijaykumar Vyshak (0) all fell in quick succession. Dinesh Karthik contributed 16 off 13.

In the defense, Mohammed Siraj got Bangalore off to a brilliant start, knocking over Jos Buttler for a duck in the first over. Devdutt Padikkal (52 off 34) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (47 off 37) added 98 for the second wicket before the former fell to David Willey. Jaiswal perished soon after to Harshal Patel as RCB were right back in the contest.

Harshal also picked up the key wicket of RR skipper Sanju Samson (22) and Ravichandran Ashwin (12), while Suyash Prabhudessai ran out Shimron Hetmyer (3) with a direct hit. Dhruv Jurel (34* off 16) once again showed promise under pressure, but RCB hung on for a close win.

Speaking after the victory, stand-in Bangalore skipper Kohli hailed Du Plessis and Maxwell. He commented, “The counter-attack from Maxi and Faf was even better than the Chennai game, it was a better surface that day. Maxi took the game away in just four overs. We thought 160 might be enough but the way they batted helped us to 190.”

On Siraj, Kohli added, “Phenomenal, he's got him (Buttler) in the past and he's bowling as well as ever. Running in with the new ball he shows that intent, he has the Purple Cap and for good reason. He's leading the attack and hopefully Josh (Hazlewood) comes in next game. He always bowls the tough overs, not easy at Chinnaswamy. He's closed out games against DC and today as well.”

--By A Cricket Correspondent

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