IPL 2019: 26th Match, Kolkata Knight Riders vs Delhi Capitals – Match Review; For the very first time in Vivo IPL 12, Royal Challengers Bangalore registered a victory as they romped home against the Kings XI Punjab by 8 wickets in the 28th match of the tournament. Courtesy great knocks from AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli, Bangalore chased down a target of 175 in the final over. Earlier in the day it was Chris Gayle who scored a magnificent unbeaten 99 for Kings XI Punjab.
The turning point of the match
Undoubtedly the knock from AB de Villiers proved to be the difference between the two sides. He remained till the end and ensured Royal Challengers Bangalore cruise to the victory target in the final over. First, he shared an 85 runs stand with Virat Kohli and after his dismissal, De Villiers took the onus on himself to finish off the job for Bangalore. He remained unbeaten on 59 of 38 deliveries which included 5 fours and a couple of sixes.
Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore- 2nd innings
Chasing a target of 175 runs, it was Virat Kohli and Parthiv Patel who began proceedings for the visitors who were searching for their maiden win of the tournament. Parthiv Patel and Virat Kohli began with some delightful shots. However, the wicket-keeper batsman was dismissed pretty soon as Kohli was joined by Mr 360 AB de Villiers.
The duo started building the partnership and looked in complete control of proceedings. Both struck the desired boundaries and sixes whenever the required rate went above the radar. They shared a sensational stand of 85 runs between each other. Kohli looked set to finish the match off with de Villiers. However, after making 67 he was dismissed by a short delivery from Mohammed Shami.
Despite the wicket of Virat Kohli, Mr 360 AB de Villiers kept going along with his new partner Marcus Stoinis. The latter struck some important boundaries in the 18th over which turned the match in RCB’s favour. With 20 required of the final two overs it was AB de Villiers who collected 14 runs from the 19th over to make it 6 of the final over. Eventually, it was a stroll for Bangalore as Stoinis just took a couple of deliveries to finish the match off.
Scoreboard
Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore- 1st innings
It was Virat Kohli who won the toss and put the hosts in. Chris Gayle and KL Rahul came out to begin proceedings and looked in ominous touch. Gayle, in particular, started taking on the Bangalore bowlers to the cleaners from the outset which disturbed the momentum of the Bangalore bowlers. KL Rahul on the other hand also struck some delightful shots to get going. However, he was dismissed after a 66 runs partnership with Chris Gayle.
The southpaw was at his ominous best but never got enough support at the other end. Sarfaraz Khan looked good for a score of 15 of 12 deliveries before Mohammed Siraj bounced him with a brilliant delivery. He kept playing the big shots to perfection but lack of partnerships didn’t allow him to go all guns blazing.
Eventually, he remained just a run short of his 7th IPL century when the allotted 20 overs were done and dusted. He struck a four and a six of the final over of Mohammed Siraj but still left a solitary run short of a well deserved century. In the end, the score of 174 didn’t prove to be enough in the end.
Scorecard:
