RCB vs RR: Mohammed Siraj dislodges Jos Buttler's middle pole with a pearler

Mohammed Siraj handed Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) a terrific start as he dismissed flamboyant Rajasthan Royals (RR) batter Jos Buttler for a duck in the first over. RCB have locked horns with Sanju Samson’s Royals at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday, April 23.

Courtesy of a scintillating batting performance by Glenn Maxwell (77 off 44 balls) and Faf du Plessis (62 off 39 balls), RCB posted a competitive first innings total of 189 runs. In reply, pacer Mohammed Siraj drew first blood as he got the prized scalp of Jos Buttler in the first over of the chase.

In the fourth ball of the first over, Siraj bowled a length ball outside off, which went through the gap to dislodge the middle-stump. Buttler headed back to the dugout for a nought off two balls as Siraj hit the famous ‘Ronaldo celebration’ to send him off.

Damon (Back up id )@_RCBTweets04

Mohammad Siraj best bowler actoss formats Gets Jos Buttler for a duck, what a bowler! #RCBvRR

05:54 PM · Apr 23, 2023

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However, prior to his dismal outing against the home side, Buttler seemed to be in fine touch as he registered three half-centuries to his name in six outings. The Somerset-born batter has compiled scores of 54, 19, 79, 52, 0, and 40 to get 244 runs to his account in the ongoing league. 

On the other hand, Siraj is currently relishing a terrific season in the competition as he scalped his 13^th wicket with Buttler’s dismissal. In the process, he has equaled Punjab Kings’ Arshdeep Singh’s tally of 13 wickets as the join-highest wicket-taker in the top-tier league.

Siraj outrightly dominated Punjab in RCB’s last outing as he returned a four-wicket haul for mere 21 runs in his four overs. Speaking about the match, RCB will look to hand the early blows to stay ahead of the visiting team in the high-octane clash.

The Bengaluru-based franchise is currently placed sixth in the IPL standings with three wins and as many losses. The side will be gunning to win the game at home and seal two points to move ahead.