IPL 9, Match 16: RPS v RCB – 5 Talking Points

The match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rising Pune Supergiants was the much-awaited game as the match had two dynamic skippers locking horns. MS Dhoni led RPS and Virat Kohli led RCB were both looking to attain stability. Both teams had a win under their belts to go with two losses prior to this game.

RCB got an early jolt as KL Rahul was dismissed cheaply but then AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli put an excellent display of elegant stroke making and brutal power-hitting to propel RCB to a mammoth 185/3 in their stipulated 20 overs. RPS had a shocker of a start as their in-form batsman Faf de Plessis was dismissed cheaply. A delivery later, Kevin Pietersen had to walk off the field with an injury. It all meant trouble for the Supergiants. Dhoni (41) and Ajinkya Rahane (60) stabilised the innings. Thisara Perera and Rajat Bhatia smoked the ball to parts of the park to get the equation down to 25 needed off 12 balls. But in the end, it was RCB who held their nerves to win by 13 runs.

1. Perera’s surprise selection:

MS Dhoni never ceases to come up with surprises when it comes to team selection. Thisara Perera had an ordinary outing in the previous game and there were speculations of him missing out from the playing eleven. Albie Morkel or Mitchell Marsh could have got a look into the side. However, Dhoni decided to go ahead with the Sri Lankan all-rounder. The gamble worked well as Perera got the early breakthrough in the form of Rahul. He bowled his complete quota of 4 overs to return with figures of 3/34 and was the only RPS bowler to get among the wickets. On the other hand, Irfan Pathan, who bowled just one over in the previous game, missed out on this match and was replaced by Rajat Bhatia! Later the duo of Bhatia and Perera almost took the game away from RCB. Perera smacked 34 off 13 to give RCB a brief scare.

2. Kohli-de Villiers marathon stand:

The big guns of RCB and perhaps the two of the best batsmen in world cricket at the moment, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers were at their very best yet again. The duo plundered the RPS bowling unit and put on a marathon 155-run stand in just 95 balls. Both the batsmen were unlucky to have missed out on centuries yet again as they were dismissed in 80s. While Kohli started in an uncharacteristic manner, going slow about the proceedings, AB was on the fifth gear right from the word go. De Villiers hit 83 runs in just 46 deliveries with 6 fours and 4 sixes. On the other hand, Kohli hit a classy 80 of 63 balls with 7 fours and 2 maximums. Both the batsmen were dismissed in the last over. Their efforts saw the score propel to a par 185/3.

3. Dhoni’s street smart keeping:

MS Dhoni has always been credited for his captaincy skills and match-finishing abilities. But off late he is being hailed as one of the top wicketkeepers in the world. With his quick stumpings and jaw-dropping saves, MS is certainly a keeper to have. In the previous match, he presumed the batsman to be hitting in the third man direction and outstretched his leg to save a certain boundary. Today as well, he gave a recap of the same. In the 8th over, it was R Ashwin bowling to Virat Kohli. Kohli tried to glide the ball to third man, but Dhoni extended his right foot and fielded the ball. Dhoni was also amused at his smart wicket keeping skills and smiled at the moment.

Watch the video – Watch: MS Dhoni executes a wonderful save behind the stumps

4. Pune’s batting woes – Dhoni-Rahane stabilize the innings:

The chase simply didn’t begin the way Pune wished for. RPS have been having a problem of getting too slow in the middle overs and being overly dependent on Faf du Plessis. In this game, du Plessis lost his wicket in the second over of the match. In came Kevin Pietersen, only to last one delivery. He didn’t get out but gave RPS a worry in the longer run by limping off the field. Things looked grim as Steven Smith walked in to bat. Trying to be cheeky, he got run out at the hands of RCB skipper Virat Kohli. Certainly, mishaps like these in wholesale would never aid the cause of Pune’s batting. Only Rahane and Dhoni showed resistance at the crease. The two Indian internationals put on 91 off 73 balls for the 3rd wicket before Rahane got out to debutant Tabraiz Shamsi. Dhoni faltered an over later to Harshal Patel. While Rahane score 60 off 43 balls, Dhoni 38 balls for his 41.

5. Late hitting by Perera and Bhatia:

The wickets of Rahane and Dhoni in successive overs meant disaster for Supergiants. Just when everyone was ruling them out, Thisara Perera and Rajat Bhatia came all guns blazing to put the ball out of the park. They put on 44 runs in just 16 balls to bring the game back to even-stevens. RCB had a brief scare when Perera was hitting the ball cleanly. He was dismissed for 34 off 13 balls in the penultimate over by Shane Watson. Perera hit 3 fours and 3 sixes in his cameo. Bhatia tried his best with his 11-ball 21 as the Supergiants succumbed to a 13-run defeat.

How did Twitter react to Dhoni’s superb wicketkeeping? – Twitter Reactions: MS Dhoni impresses once again with his street smart keeping