IPL 2023: 3 positives for RR in spite of loss against RCB

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) defeated the Rajasthan Royals (RR) by seven runs in another close match in the IPL 2023 on Sunday.

RR won the toss and sent Virat Kohli-led RCB into bat. RR had a dream start as Virat Kohli was dismissed for a golden duck while Shahbaz Ahmed too went cheaply.

However, the experienced duo of Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell made an amazing counter-attacking partnership to take RCB to a position of strength. When Faf Du Plessis was dismissed at 139/3 in 13.2 overs, RCB looked good to set a target of around 220 on the board if they continued at the same rate. However, a collapse meant that RCB could only manage to post 189/9 at the end of 20 overs which was about 15 runs below-par.

In reply, Mohammed Siraj continued his excellent season as he dismissed the in-form Jos Butler. Following this, a 98-run partnership between Devdutt Padikkal and Yashasvi Jaiswal, kept RR in the hunt. However, the quick dismissals of Padikkal, Jaiswal and Sanju Samson meant that RCB got their noses in front.

In the end, it was the phenomenal death bowling display by Siraj, Harshal Patel and David Willey that took RCB to victory. RR would feel that they bottled a chase which they should have completed easily on a flat Chinaswamy wicket.

On that note, let’s discuss three positives for RR from their loss against RCB.

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#1 Devdutt Padikkal finds form for RR

After an initial struggle for RR at the start of the tournament, the 22-year old seems to have finally come to terms in terms of adjusting to his middle-order position in RR, instead of his regular opening slot. In the last four games, the youngster has scores of 38, 26, 26 and 52, which is a positive sign for the Royals.

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#2 Dhruv Jurel impresses with his striking ability

Dhruv Jurel has been highly-impressive this season with his quality hitting in the death overs. On Sunday, the youngster played yet another fine knock as he smashed 34 runs in just 16 balls, striking two fours and two maximums, keeping RR in the hunt till the final over.

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#3 Yuzvendra Chahal bowls fine spell

While most bowlers are taken to the cleaners at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, Yuzvendra Chahal has been one of the few bowlers who has mastered the art of bowling in this 'Batters Paradise'.

Chahal (4 - 0 - 28 - 1) bowled an excellent spell that kept the RCB batters at bay. The leg-spinner is having an excellent tournament, having picked up 12 wickets in seven matches at a decent economy rate of 8.07 and is placed at No. 3 in the the race for the purple cap.