IPL 2020: What's written on RCB pacer Navdeep Saini's shoe?

Vying for the third victory of their IPL 2020 campaign, Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore locked horns with an in-form Rajasthan Royals side at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi. RR skipper Steve Smith, after winning the toss, elected to bat first but RCB was able to scalp early wickets and stamp their authority at the start.

Royals’ top-order trio of skipper Smith, Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson was shown the exit door in the Powerplay itself. After being jolted by early setbacks, the RR side managed to post a challenging 154-run total on the board.

It was nevertheless a strong bowling performance by RCB’s unit as Isuru Udana, Yuzvendra Chahal and Navdeep Saini registered their names into the list of wicket-takers. Chahal, after scalping a three wicket-haul, also became the leading wicket-taker of the on-going T20 extravaganza.

Navdeep Saini is currently the fourth-fastest bowler of IPL 2020

Udana registered two wickets to his name while Saini plucked one. Saini, one of the fastest Indian bowlers at present, dismissed Buttler off a fullish delivery in the fourth over of the inning. The England international, baffled by Saini’s pace, got a thick outside edge and the ball flew straight to Devdutt Padikkal at the slip.

27-year-old Saini has already bowled several rippers in this year’s IPL. He has crossed the 145 kmph barrier on multiple occasions and is sitting 14th in the list of fastest deliveries bowled in the on-going IPL season. After Kagiso Rabada, the Karnal-born quick is the fastest bowler in the tournament.

Even against Royals, Saini made sure that he leaves his mark with his vicious pace. Meanwhile, what caught the attention of many fans was Saini’s shoe. The speedster’s white shoe had “F**k it! Bowl fast” written on it.

Talking about Royals’ retaliation, the middle-order, led by 20-year-old Mahipal Lomror, stitched vital runs in the middle. Lomror scored a much-needed 47 off 39 and Robin Uthappa (17) and Riyan Parag (16) assisted the youngster with their cameos.

In the end, it was the destructive pair of Rahul Tewatia and Jofra Archer who provided fans with late fireworks. Both the hard-hitting players hit several maximums to guide Royals to a respectable total. Tewatia stitched 24 off 12 and Archer scored a 10-ball 16 as RR registered a total of 154 runs on the board.