IPL 8 Preview: Unstoppable vs immovable (from bottom)

RCB (beat MI)

What went Right: After the early departure of Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli made T20 history by stitching together an unbeaten partnership of 215 runs, the highest in the format. Except against Lasith Malinga, de Villiers scored at a strike rate of more than 200 against the rest of the Mumbai bowlers. By the time de Villiers reached his century, Royal Challengers Bangalore were 179 for 1, and Virat Kohli’s hits in the final four overs propelled them to an even more daunting score. With the race to the playoffs getting tense, Kohli and de Villiers’s show will boost the team’s morale. It also sent out a warning to the other teams: If Chris Gayle doesn’t get you, AB de Villiers or Virat Kohli will. The team would also take positive from another consistent performance by medium pacer Harshal Patel, who kept a check on runs during the Mumbai innings.

What Went Wrong: Their bowling, to some extent. The RCB bowlers did give away close to 200 runs in the high-scoring match, and that will be a concern for the team. The Mumbai Indians managed to score 115 runs in the last ten overs, and had Rohit or Parthiv Patel stayed at the crease during the initial ten overs, the match would have been even more close. Mitchell Starc and David Wiese had an economy rate close to ten which would be a worrying thing for the team before the all-important matches in the end phase of the league format.

KXIP (lost to SRH)

What went Wrong: With Mitchell Johnson not playing, KXIP’s opening bowlers Sandeep Sharma and Anureet Singh gave away 46 runs in the first four overs. Spinners Glenn Maxwell and Gurkeerat Singh too leaked runs in the end. Throughout the tournament, KXIP’s top-order batsmen have failed to keep their wickets intact till the 15th over, and that’s what cost them the match. David Miller took the match to the distance, but the hurricane effort was not enough in the end. Glenn Maxwell’s constant failure with the bat has also dented the team’s chances.

What Went Right: David Miller’s form and bowling in the final five overs. Miller stayed till the last ball and in the end it was only a difference of one six. Before that Hendricks and Sandeep Sharma controlled the flow of the runs in the Sunrisers’ last five overs. That would also be a positive for the bottom-placed team.

Conclusion

With AB de Villiers in fine form and skipper Virat Kohli among runs, too, the Royal Challengers Bangalore are likely to put up another dominating batting display. On the bouncy PCA Stadium wicket in Mohali, Mitchell Starc could also prove more than handy. The two team’s last meeting would also weigh heavily on Kings XI Punjab’s mind as they were run ragged by Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. That 138-run defeat was a soul-crushing blow, from which it will difficult for any side to recover.— ENS/Mohali