Exactly a month after their last victory, Royal Challengers Bangalore got the better of Sunrisers Hyderabad by 35 runs for only their second victory in IPL 2024.
RCB's batters once again delivered as they went past the 200-run mark for the third match in a row. Their bowlers also finally came to the party as RCB ended a horror run of six consecutive losses to stay alive in the tournament.
RCB's spin duo of Karn Sharma and Swapnil Singh broke the back of the SRH batting line-up as they both bagged two wickets. For SRH, Jaydev Unadkat was the only performer with either bat or ball as he picked up three wickets.
A look at the best spells:
Karn Sharma
The experienced Karn Sharma was expected to lead RCB's spin attack in IPL 2024, but struggled to get game time.
With RCB winning just one of their first eight games, Karn spent a lot of time on the bench as he played just two games before Thursday. But the 36 year old, who bagged 10 wickets last season, showed he is capable of doing damage in the middle overs with a fantastic spell against SRH's powerful batting line-up.
Introduced in the eighth over, he took just two deliveries to strike as he bowled Nitish Reddy, who missed the reverse sweep. He struck again in his second over as Abdul Samad was done in the flight as he used his feet and he could only miscue a simple catch back to the bowler.
His figures read 2/8 in two overs, including six dot balls.
Karn went for some runs in his third over as Pat Cummins slammed him for a four and a six. He was unlucky not to bag another wicket in his final over when Cameron Green put down a sharp chance in the slip to give Bhuvneshwar Kumar a lifeline.
Karn, who played RCB's opening game against CSK, spent a month on the sidelines before he returned against KKR but went wicketless. However, following his good showing against SRH and with the pitches getting a bit slower in the second half of IPL, the senior leg-spinner could play a lot more games in the next few weeks.
Swapnil Singh
UP spin all-rounder Swapnil Singh excelled on his debut for RCB.
The 33-year-old spinner, who was signed by RCB at the December auction in Dubai for Rs 20 lakh (Rs 2 million), finally got a chance against SRH and he made sure to grab the opportunity with both hands.
Introduced in the Powerplay, Swapnil was fortunate to strike with his second delivery as Aiden Markram missed a full toss and was struck in front to be given out leg before wicket.
In the same over, he had the dangerous Heinrich Klaasen caught at mid on after he looked to loft the left-arm spinner down the ground to leave SRH reeling on 56/4.
It was the first time that RCB had taken four wickets in the Powerplay in IPL 2024 and Swapnil's double strike was a major factor.
Strangely despite the fine start he bowled just two overs in his first spell. Later on, he went for runs as Cummins slammed him for two sixes in a row, as he finished with 2/40 from three overs.
Cameron Green
Green enjoyed his best showing of the season for RCB.
After a quickfire knock in the death overs, Green did the damage with the ball as well. The Australian was the seventh bowler to be used by RCB as he was called up to bowl the 14th over.
He started with a wicket in his first over as he dismissed compatriot Cummins for 31 and then nearly had Bhuvneshwar Kumar a few balls later, as he awkwardly fended the short ball which went off the gloves and fell just short off diving wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik.
After a couple of near misses, Green bagged the wicket of Bhuvneshwar, who flicked a full delivery off his pads straight to Mohammad Siraj at mid wicket.
Green got only two overs to finish with a creditable 2/12.
Jaydev Unadkat
Veteran Unadkat turned his 100th IPL appearance into a night of magic with a fantastic spell of bowling in the middle overs. His experience shone through as he delivered a phenomenal bowling performance, finishing with figures of 4-0-30-3 and restricting the opposition despite a shaky start by his team.
Unadkat's celebration for the milestone came in the form of a crucial three wicket haul, including the scalps of Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar.
Unadkat's strategic use of slower cutters into the pitch proved to be a game-changer. He cleverly avoided full deliveries, forcing the batsmen to play across the line or on the off side. This tactic yielded rich dividends, as he dismantled the opposition's batting order.
In the 13th over, Unadkat halted Patidar's (50 off 20) blazing knock. Despite a well-struck shot off a slower full toss, Patidar found Abdul Samad perfectly positioned at deep square leg.
Next, Unadkat's trickery trapped Kohli. A slower off-cutter dug in and deceived Kohli, resulting in a mistimed pull shot easily pouched by Samad at deep square leg in the 15th over. Kohli's dismissal (51 off 43) halted the momentum and brought SRH firmly back into the game.
Unadkat's wicket-taking spree continued. In the 17th over, Mahipal Lomror's attempt at a big slog sweep off another slower ball outside off ended up in a well-judged catch by Cummins over his head.
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Photographs: BCCI
