Same Problem, just another season. The middle-order woes continue to suffer Sunrisers Hyderabad. They are too dependant on their top-order to deliver big. Despite Jonny Bairstow’s (61) thumping innings, the incompetency of SRH’s middle-order cost them their first match against RCB. Chasing a total of 163, SRH got all out for 153 and lost the match by 10 runs. The credit goes to Yuzvendra Chahal’s stunning spell (3/18). Earlier, RCB made a defendable total with the help of half-centuries by debutante Devdutt Padikkal(56) and AB De Villiers (51).
RCB got a phenomenal start from their openers Devdutt Padikkal and Aaron Finch. Especially, Devdutt turned out to be a show-stealer. He proved what a serious talent he is, right in his debut IPL debut. When things were going out of hand for Sunrisers, Vijay Shankar bowled Padikkal. Right in the next ball, Finch got LBW under the bowling of Abhishek Sharma. With two major blows, RCB’s score came down to 90/2. The star players Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers started playing slow. Virat tried to go big after a few overs and caught near the boundary rope. AB then took the job in his arms and entertained with a classy show. He completed his half-century in the last over and was run out on the very next ball. RCB managed to score only 2 runs in the last four balls, which resulted in a moderate total of 163.
Sunrisers wanted a stunning start from their star openers Warner and Bairstow. But Warner got dismissed in the second over through an unlucky run-out. Manish Pandey then settled the innings with Bairstow. Both of them played sensible cricket and made a partnership of 71 runs. Chahal dismissed Pandey in the 12th over. Bairstow on the other end continued his superb form and scored a half-century. It was again Chahal who dismissed him in the crucial 16th over. The very next ball, he bowled Vijay Shankar for a golden duck. Then, the whole batting order of Sunrisers rattled in a few overs, which eventually resulted in a run victory for Virat Kohli’s side.
Scorecard:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 163/5 (Devdutt Padikkal 56, AB de Villiers 51, Abhishek Sharma 1/16)
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 153 all-out (Jonny Bairstow 61, Manish Pandey 34, Yuzvendra Chahal 3/18)