IPL 10, Match 12, Royal Challengers Bangalore v Mumbai Indians: 5 Tracking Points

Another interesting match that involved Mumbai Indians getting into the shell and coming through at the end. The Pandyas were the rescuers this time too, and Pollard made it count. People complained of one-sided contests in the last few games, but the momentum in this one kept swaying.

Despite a great knock from Virat Kohli, Royal Challengers Bangalore did not post a threatening total. And the pitch had surprised everyone. More so after RCB bowled, because it looked like MI were batting worse than RCB did. Badree who debuted for RCB decided to own the stage. He removed Parthiv, McClenaghan and Rohit to pick a hat-trick for RCB.

But, MI clawed back first with the help of Pollard-Rana combo and then put the skating wheels on with the help of the Pollard-Krunal partnership. It wasn’t over even after Pollard departed, the Pandya brothers got together and helped their side sail towards their third consecutive win, becoming table toppers after this.

Here are 5 Tracking Points from today’s RCB v MI encounter:

1. Badree takes the first hattrick of IPL 10

Talk about good performances ending up in the losing cause for RCB. In the last match it was AB de Villiers 89* off 46, today it was Virat Kohli’s 62 off 47 and Samuel Badree’s 4/9 that ended in the losing cause. Badree became the first bowler to take a hattrick in this edition and the second bowler from RCB to take one, the first one being Praveen Kumar. He was also the first bowler to have bowled a maiden over in this season. Badree had comfortably put RCB in a good position with his bowling, but it was MI who ended up winning the match in spite of that.

2. Pollard answers with performance

After the ongoing, much speculated Sanjay Manjrekar vs Kieron Pollard tiff, Pollard registered a brilliant 70 off 47 that brought MI back into the game. This knock was indeed, intelligence personified. He tactfully went after specific bowlers, and exploited the short boundaries, in the process. Apart from that,  he also kept up with the asking rate and bridged the gap between the target and their score. Batting at a strike rate of 148.90, he also guided Krunal Pandya who was anchoring the innings on the other end. A top-class knock from the Trinidadian.

3. Kohli marks his return with a half century

After being out of the game for about 2 weeks due to the shoulder injury, Virat Kohli finally made a comeback, in the game and “his dipping form”, too. The skipper scored a half-century in his comeback game, 62 off 47, precisely. It also marked the return of RCB’s captain while some bold moves were made. Watson was dropped, Gayle was back in. Stanlake was out, Badree was finally in. Though that too ended in the losing cause, it meant that there was nothing to worry about, for Kohli, as such.

4. Pandya brothers prove to be assets for MI again

Hardik Pandya had a great season in 2015. He was a revelation. When he failed to perform in 2016, his brother impressed. He was a revelation too. This year, however, both of them are having a gala time. Krunal Pandya has been impressing with both the bat and the ball, he was involved in 2 consecutive match winning knocks, first against the Sunrisers and now against the Challengers. He also took 3 wickets against the Knight Riders.

While MI have been part of three thrillers, Hardik Pandya has been there to finish all three innings. Today, both the brothers were at the crease as they guided MI to victory. Krunal Pandya took 1/21 and scored 37*, while Hardik Pandya had 1/9 and scored the winning runs.

5. Rohit’s low string of scores still hasn’t ended

Rohit Sharma in this IPL has had scores of 3, 2, 4, 0. It is for the first time that he got out for 4 consecutive single-digit scores in his T20 career. He was the final victim of Badree’s hattrick today.  He has looked very unlike himself after the injury, and we can only hope that it hasn’t had an adverse effect on his game. However, he is only one performance away from getting his form back, MI will be hoping that it happens soon.