Debutant Devdutt Padikkal and AB de Villiers hammered a half-century each before bowlers came to the fore as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) beat SunRisers Hyderbad by 10 runs to kick start their campaign at the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on a winning note at the Dubai International Stadium on Monday.
The David Warner-led side won the toss and opted to bowl first against Virat Kohli’s RCB in their opening match of this year’s lucrative T20 tournament.
Padikkal (56) provided a perfect start to Bangalore-based franchise as he not only smashed his maiden IPL fifty but also stitched a crucial 90-run partnership with Aaron Finch (29) to take his side close to 100-run mark.
Subsequently, Indian skipper Virat Kohli failed to contribute much to his side’s innings and departed for 13-ball 14.
AB de Villiers then hammered a quick-fire 30-ball 51 to help RCB post 163 for five in their stipulated 20 overs.
For SunRisers Hyderabad, T Natarajan, Vijay Shankar and Abhishekh Sharma chipped in with a wicket each.
In reply, the Hyderabad franchise lost skipper David Warner cheaply for six runs.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow then scored a significant knock of 43-ball 61 runs besides sharing a 71-run stand with Manish Pandey (34) to rebuild SunRisers Hyderabad’s innings.
However, the two departed in quick succession off Yuzvendra Chahal’s deliveries.Following the two’s departure, the SRH fell like a pack of cards to get eventually bundled out for 153 in 19.4 overs.
Chahal was the pick of the bowlers for RCB with brilliant figures of three for 18. Shivam Dube and Navdeep Saini bagged two wickets each, while Dale Steyn also added a wicket to his account.
Chahal was also adjudged ‘Man of the Match’ for his impressive show with the ball.
Royals Challengers Bangalore will now lock horns with Kings XI Punjab on September 24 in Dubai, while SunRisers Hyderabad will face Kolkata Knight Riders in Abu Dhabi on September 26.
Source: Zee News