IPL 2018, Match 31, RCB vs MI - Royal Challengers Bangalore Player Ratings

Two teams, languishing at the bottom of the table, battling hard to get a win under their belt faced off each other in a reverse fixture in Bangalore today. The Mumbai Indians and the Royal Challengers Bangalore who stood 6th and 7th on the points table before the game were up against each other. In the earlier fixture between the two sides, Mumbai Indians emerged victoriously. A win in this fixture could have made a huge difference for each of these sides.

However, it was the Challengers who held their nerve in the game and successfully got two points to their name. RCB batted first on what was a pitch that really looked different from the typical Chinnaswamy pitch. The ball was holding up slightly and furthermore, it got slower as the match progressed. But, the RCB batsmen took on the challenge. Manan Vohra who opened the innings looked good with 45 off 31 at the top. His innings was bolstered by knocks from Virat Kohli and Brendon McCullum. Colin de Grandhomme provided the team with the much-needed impetus as he managed to get 24 off the last over to take RCB to 167.

Chasing this tough total, Mumbai Indians were down early in the innings. Their batsmen queued back one after the other to the pavilion. They were reduced to 21/3 within the powerplay which further went down to 47/4. The pressure kept mounting on the Mumbai batters and they kept losing timely wickets. RCB finally defended a target as they won it by 14 runs.

Here is the Royal Challengers Bangalore player rating for the match:

Manan Vohra – 6.5/10

Manan Vohra provided the RCB just the kind of start that they wanted. It was never easy to get going there on a pitch where the ball was gripping early. He took the attack early on to the Mumbai bowlers and also took JP Duminy for a few cleaners. Vohra scored 45 off 31 balls in his innings which included four sixes and two fours.

Quinton de Kock – 3/10

Quinton de Kock has had quite an off-day on the field today. He didn’t look comfortable in his brief stay out there in the middle. He only scored 7 off the 13 balls he faced. Furthermore, he had a terrible day on the field with the gloves. A lot of wides went to the boundary and he has dropped quite a few catches.

Brendon McCullum – 7.5/10

McCullum was probably best RCB batter of the day. He built an important partnership with Virat Kohli in the middle and almost scored at a strike rate of 150. He scored 37 off 25 balls which included two big sixes. McCullum was unfortunate to have got run out just as he was looking good. He was literally captaining the RCB side in the death overs with Virat Kohli doing the fielding duties at long on. He made quite some useful fielding changes and scores an added point for that. McCullum also saved a crucial boundary towards the end.

Virat Kohli – 7/10

What better gift could Virat have given to his ladylove Anushka Sharma on her birthday! Virat Kohli just played the kind of innings that was required by RCB. Although he played the second fiddle to McCullum, he kept hitting those timely boundaries. He couldn’t accelerate after McCullum’s dismissal although he got lucky once when he was given not out when he was dismissed by Bumrah. His presence out in the middle could have made a bigger difference had MI batsmen clicked. The over-ambitious shot that he got out to is what is very disappointing. He looked pumped in the field and made some noteworthy bowling changes.

Mandeep Singh – 3/10

Mandeep got out when it mattered the most. In an attempt to hit a big shot, he lost his shape completely hitting the ball high up in the air. He could have shouldered more responsibility in the middle.

Colin de Grandhomme – 8.5/10

Undoubtedly, he was the difference between both the sides. Colin absolutely smashed his countryman, Mitchell McClenaghan to all parts of the ground in the last over. RCB managed to get 24 of the last courtesy this man. He remained not out on 23 off 10. He came in pretty handy with the ball and also saved some crucial runs on the field.

Washington Sundar – 1/10

Oppositions are quickly figuring out Washington Sundar and are getting the better of him. Sundar will have to add more dimensions quickly before he gets lost out of the limelight. He scored 1 run with the bat and conceded 14 runs off the only over that he bowled.

Tim Southee – 8/10

Tim Southee was the pick of the RCB bowlers. He bowled brilliantly at the top as well as at the death. He returned with figures of 2/25 in his four helping RCB win their third game of this tournament.

Umesh Yadav – 8.5/10

There is something special about Umesh Yadav bowling at the top in the powerplay. He completely unsettles the batsmen with his pace, line and lengths. He is one of the best powerplay bowlers this IPL. Umesh picked the important wickets of Surya Kumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma pushing MI down into deep troubles. He was brilliant in the field and was also involved in the run out of JP Duminy who was looking good.

Mohammad Siraj – 8/10

Mohammad Siraj got his yorkers bang on in this game and didn’t allow the batsmen to score freely. Siraj has picked two wickets in the game and hit some great lines and lengths. Furthermore, his economy was just 7 in this game which is a big positive.

Yuzvendra Chahal – 6/10

Yuzvendra Chahal didn’t have any wickets against his name but was pretty economical. Chahal conceded only 23 in his four overs and curtailed down the batsmen in the middle overs. However, he gave away quite a few extras which is a tad too much for a bowler of his liking which affected his rating for the match a bit.

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