IPL SRL | RR vs RCB Evaluation Chart - Jos Buttler's unbeaten 93 ensures a Royal win for Rajasthan

IPL SRL | RR vs RCB Evaluation Chart - Jos Buttler's unbeaten 93 ensures a Royal win for Rajasthan

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Jos Buttler's 93* ensured an easy victory for RR

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After opting to bat in this round of the Simulated Reality League, Rajasthan were riding on the back of the English keeper Jos Buttlerā€™s performance, who scored a 93 to take RR to 170. On top of that, an inspired bowling performance from Ankit Rajpoot was enough to take RR home on the night.

Match Review

Rajasthanā€™s approach to this particular fixture was fascinating, stepping up with an aggressive approach early on in the innings, scoring 60 runs in just the powerplay phase of the fixture while still having both the openers intact. Together, the duo scored 70 runs before Uthappa walked back. While the run-rate did slow down during the middle-period, Rajasthan ensured that they did not lose wickets in a heap. Combined with the brilliance towards the end of the innings by Jos ButtlerĀ alongside Sanju Samson and Steve Smith, the Royals finished royally on 170 for the loss of two wickets. The English keeper remained unbeaten on 93 from 63 deliveries, including nine boundaries and three sixes.Ā 

RCBā€™s batting unit has been best described as hit or less. More often than not, they hit the right notes, with the top order of Aussie-India partnership between Parthiv Patel and Aaron Finch has helped them. However, in this particular fixture, it was not so as Finch found himself walking back early. After that, even the most reliable of batsmen in World cricket right now, Virat Kohli did not make any sort of impact on the game. While AB de Villiers waged a lone battle, even his efforts were cut short by the leggie, Shreyas Gopal. A weird pattern surrounded the Redsā€™ in the encounter, with them losing two wickets in consecutive overs. There were four such instances as they lost the plot towards the end.Ā 

You can check out the live scorecard and the match tracker here

Turning Point

There werenā€™t a lot of instances in the game where the visitors had a chance of making a comeback in this particular game. But there was one instance where the game could have been either sideā€™s favour, which is Virat Kohliā€™s dismissal. His seven-ball six-run was a tragic performance, in a game where the visitors required a victory to fuel their campaign. Alongside that, in his absence, AB de Villiers could not muster any significant runs in this game.Ā 

Highs and Lows

Since joining the Royals franchise, Jos Buttlerā€™s consistency has been reminiscent of the Australian legend Sir Don Bradman. At the top of the order alongside Robin Uthappa, the English keeperā€™s form has seen a massive rise. On the back his purple form, he continued his run in this encounter, scoring 93 runs off 63 deliveries. Moreso, the way he led the side throughout the innings, remaining unbeaten was massively impressive.

Virat Kohliā€™s innings in the run chase of 171 runs was the lowest point in the encounter, with the Indian skipper ending up just scoring 6 runs from the seven deliveries. While he not only ate up the seven deliveries in an attempt to get himself right on track but when he walked back to the hut, it broke the RCB fansā€™ hearts. A lot was expected from the Bengaluru skipper, who left the battle in the hands of AB de Villiers and Moeen Ali to wage a lone battle.Ā 

Rating Charts

Powerplay exploitation: RR 7/10 and RCB 3/10

What is an ideal start in T20s? Scoring runs at 10 runs an over in the powerplay phase or to not lose any wicket throughout the same period? In this case, both, as Robin Uthappa and Jos Buttler put on a rattling performance early on, scoring 60 runs in just the first six over phase. While Uthappa stayed on with his defensive approach early on in the innings, it was the English opener who put on a dazzling show, putting the ball across the ground en route to his quick-fire 30 early on. On the other hand, Umesh Yadav and Navdeep Sainiā€™s performance in the powerplay left the tourists disappointed.Ā 

In reply, RCB, being the usual RCB side, choked early on in the innings, where they lost both the Australian opener Aaron Finch and Indian skipper Virat Kohli. At one point, the away side were 20 for the loss of two wickets. From thereon, the task of chasing 171 was in itself a big task, as they struggled to grab the encounter by its neck. Overall, in the first 36 deliveries, the chase-masters could only add on 40 runs.Ā 

Middle-overs manoeuvring: RR 5/10 and RCB 1/10

The middle overs are often dicey section in a T20 game for any side, be itĀ a good startĀ or a struggling start. With the field spread away from the inner circle, the onus lies on the batsman to put in efforts to clear the boundary. Here too, it was no different after a great start from the duo - Uthappa and Buttler. However, as soon as they were beaming with confidence, the Indian opener walked a long way back to the dressing room. In the next 30 deliveries, they added 28 runs to the total before accumulating 24 runs in the next four overs. In comparison to their quick-fire start, the momentum kind of got stagnant before the last phase of the innings.Ā 

Despite being 40/2, the visitors had the firepower to get past the initial hiccup in their chase of 171. And that firepower works nine times out of ten, but today was that one time where it didnā€™t click. Starting from the skipper Virat Kohli to the South African AB de Villiers, all of them were found out pretty cheaply in this particular fixture by the Royalsā€™ bowlers. In the ten-over phase, all they could manage is score 50 runs while losing four wickets and their chasing plot.Ā 

Death bowling: RR 7/10 and RCB 3/10

RCBā€™s death bowling was pretty much on point in most of the places but as the statement reads, most not all. In the 19th over, not only did Navdeep Saini concede 18 runs but also ensured that the hosts had the momentum going into the second innings. For the visitors, that over was the difference between chasing 160 and ultimately ending up chasing ten runs extra. Apart from that, they conceded just 50 runs in the last five overs, which is an exceptional job, considering the pressure away from home.Ā 

A single-sided contest towards the end part of the innings ensured that Rajasthan walked away as victors in the encounter by 48 runs. But what transpired them to this moment in this particular fixture was a mixture of their good bowling and Bangaloreā€™s terrible batting display. Starting from the 17th over, the Royals bowlers picked up one wicket every over as the Redsā€™ were reduced to a total of 121 in pursuit of their 171 run chase.Ā 

Match Frenzy O Meter - Poor

The game could not more terribly one-sided, with Rajasthan walking away as the only side that turned out to play in this particular match. Buttlerā€™s performance in the first innings, where he scored 91 combined with the bowlerā€™s efforts was indeed the only impressive display in the game. However, apart from that, the fixture had nothing on display.Ā 

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