Reaction: George Bailey “takes full responsibility” and admits letting down Kings XI’s loyal fans with their performances, as any hopes his team had of going further in this year’s IPL are emphatically dashed. They were hopelessly outclassed here, not just as a result of Gayle’s fireworks but through some clever and accurate bowling from Starc and Aravind. Overall, this match served as a reminder of just how dangerous RCB can be when all their stars – new and emerging alike – all hit their straps. A complete all-round performance. Thanks for your company. See you next time.
Wicket! Sharma c & b Chahal 7, Kings XI 88 all out. RCB win by 138 runs
13.4 overs: Kings XI 88 all out (Patel 39*)
All over. All so simple. Sharma decides to have a go at Chahal – and why not? Hell, let’s go crazy – with an emphatic and well-timed thump over mid-on for four. Chalal is bowling a tight and varied spell though, and only yields a couple more singles before bringing this thrashing to an end by taking a comfortable return catch to his left to end Sharma’s “resistance”. And the match.
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13th over: Kings XI 82-9 (Patel 39, Sharma 2), target 227
Wiese comes into the attack for the first time, and forces Patel to grub out a low attempted yorker. He runs one and surrenders the strike with five balls of the over remaining. Sharma plays defensively off the back foot for two of them, before getting off the mark after driving to Mitchell Starc at mid-off where the bad bounce induces a fumble that enables them to run one. Patel dabs away behind gully for another single before Sharma gets away with a leading edge that bounces short of point and the batsmen run one.
12th over: Kings XI 78-9 (Patel 37, Sharma 0), target 227
Chahal comes into the attack, and Patel – ploughing the loneliest of furrows of stickability and competence out there – sweeps him away for a couple. Patel is bamboozled by a googly which he just about manages to keep out and then gloves a four that runs fine past the keeper and all the way to the ropes. Patel then advances down the track and smacks the bowler over his head for six, and he keeps the strike with a pull to deep square leg. This is good batting, considering.
11th over: Kings XI 65-9 (Patel 24, Sharma 0), target 227
Mitchell Starc bowls his last over: Karanveer pushes him down the ground for a single to bring the double-figures-maker Axar Patel back on strike, who adds one more. But the exposed tail-ender is no match for Starc, who picks up his fourth wicket with another full and straight one that clatters the stumps. One more scalp takes Starc to the top of this year’s IPL wicket-takers chart with 17. He doesn’t get it on this occasion – he beatsthe No11 Sharma with a couple of balls that are too good for the tail-ender to connect with. He misses them completely.
Wicket! Karanveer b Starc 4, Kings XI 65-9
Four for Starc, every dismissal much like the others. Clean bowled.
10th over: Kings XI 63-8 (Patel 23, Karanveer 3), target 227
Harshal Patel replaces the excellent Aravind and induces a wild swing and miss outside off-stump by Axar Patel, who produces a more calm flick on the legside to get a single next ball. Karanveer digs out a decent yorker with a correspondingly decent shot – from which his more exalted team-mates might learn – and gets a single from it. Axar then cracks a shorter ball for six, high over backward point. Four more follow, as Axar goes for a well-controlled hook shot on the legside. And why not?
9th over: Kings XI 51-8 (Patel 12, Karanveer 2), target 227
Mitchell Starc’s being used for one over in every four here, and is brought back for his third to have a go at his international compadre Johnson, who swings and misses at a wide one that is deemed too wide by the umpire. But all it takes is to bowl at the stumps, and a wicket will come, which it does: Johnson drives, misses and his off-stump takes a beating. Singh doesn’t hang around either, beaten by a beautiful full-length away-swinger, which takes out his off-stump too. Karanveer is the latest lamb to the slaughter but he at least gets off the mark, with a push square on the offside for two. These two should now try and bat through I reckon, with proper dour blocking, until the 20th over, just for a laugh.
Wicket! A Singh b Starc 0
And yet another off-stump is uprooted. This is outrageously easy.
Wicket! Johnson b Starc 1, Kings XI 49-7
The drubbing continues, as Starc castles his compatriot Johnson
8th over: Kings XI 48-6 (Patel 12, Johnson 1), target 227
The highest margin of victory in any IPL game ever is 140 runs by which Kolkata Knight Riders clobbered the Royal Challengers in 2008; this could be their chance for RCB get on top of that chart for the right reasons. Aravind is doing more than his bit in that respect, bowling Bailey, with another perfectly angled in-cutter that takes the top of the Australian’s off-stump for his fourth wicket. He’s on a hat-trick, which Mitchell Johnson denies him with a defensive dab towards gully. He’s off the mark with a flick to leg, which puts Patel on strike, who at least looks prepared to take the game to the bowlers, clouting fours over mid-on and then behind backward point. The end of a brilliant spell from Aravind.
Bailey b Aravind 2, Kings XI 39-6
Mayday! Mayday! Bailey is the latest to be bowled by Aravind, a fourth scalp in an excellent spell.
7th over: Kings XI 39-5 (Bailey 2, Patel 4), target 227
The leg-spinner Chalal is the latest to get a bowl up that end as the powerplay ends. Bailey nudges him for a single before Patel gets off the mark with a deft glide past the one slip that’s still there to the boundary for four. But it’s another tight over.
Fun with stats time:
6th over: Kings XI 34-5 (Bailey 1), target 227
The commentary team are still gushing over Gayle’s Cristiano Ronaldo-pastiche celebration with which he greeted his hundred – just about the least appealing and interesting thing about his remarkable innings – until we have an actual boundary to talk about, Saha turning and flicking Aravind backward of square on the legside for four. But Aravind is getting some pace and bounce here, and bamboozles the batsman with both next ball and he plays and misses, before he’s taken at mid-on. The visitors’ captain, Bailey, comes to the crease needing to instigate something close to a miracle. He’s off the mark with one but then Miller is bowled by another perfect-length delivery that clips his off stump. Three wickets for Aravind.
Wicket! Miller b Aravind 7, Kings XI 34-5
Deeper and deeper they fall. Miller’s off-stump is clipped, and he’s on his way
Wicket! Saha c Kohli b Arvind 13, Kings XI 33-4
And another! Saha is gathered comfortably at mid-on and this is a rout.
5th over: Kings XI 29-3 (Saha 9, Miller 7), target 227
More tinkering from Kohli as Starc is again introduced to the attack – this already looks a sharp and focused display in the field from the home side – and the batsmen trade singles from the first two balls of the over. They need more than that though, but will struggle to get it against balls like Starc’s third in this over, a feisty short outswinger that Miller plays and misses at. Two more singles follow but that’s all.
4th over: Kings XI 25-3 (Saha 7, Miller 5), target 227
Aravind strikes straight away! His first ball, straight and on a good line and length, is hopelessly missed by the out of form big-hitter Maxwell and is off stump cartwheels out of the ground. The left-handed Miller can’t work him away either off his first three balls, good seam-up back of a length deliveries, before he clips him away stylishly through the vacant midwicket area for four to get off the mark. A single square on the offside completes the over.
Wicket! Maxwell b Aravind 1, Kings XI 20-3
This could be painful for Kings XI – Maxwell is cleaned up by Aravind with the first ball of his over. A swing and a costly miss.
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3rd over: Kings XI 20-2 (Saha 7, Maxwell 1), target 227
Harshal Patel swiftly replaces Starc, and swiftly strikes, clean-bowling Vijay with a well-angled delivery that just straightens a little and clatters the top of middle stump. This brings Maxwell to the crease but he’s pinned back by some good accurate back-of-a-length quick bowling and his first three balls are dots before he rather awkwardly gets off the mark with a pivot and pull from a straight short ball that he diverts down to square leg for one. A terrific over.
Wicket! Vijay b Patel 2, Kings XI 19-2
Excellent bowling from Patel, spearing one in from an angle at Vijay’s stumps.
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2nd over: Kings XI 19-1 (Vijay 2, Saha 7), target 227
Aravind, the local lad, opens up from the other end and is effortlessly pulled over deep square leg for six by Saha, who then flicks another single away to midwicket. Aravind is making the batsmen work for their runs though, with a decent variety in length and some sharp pace, for a basically benign surface.
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1st over: Kings XI 11-1 (Vohra 1, Saha 0), target 227
Starc opens the bowling and Vijay is away straight away with a square drive past backward point for one. Starc’s radar is awry for his second delivery, which veers down the legside and brings a wide and two byes, and Vohra then clips him away on the legside for two to get off the mark. There’s plenty of swing in the night air for the Australian World Cup-winner here. And then he strikes, as Wiese dives forward to snaffle a catch, which is confirmed after a TV umpire review. There’s almost another as Starc has a sustained appeal for lbw with an inswinging yorker against the new man Saha but it’s just going down legside. In the kerfuffle, they scurry through for two leg-byes, capitalising on overthrows.
Wicket! Vohra c Wiese b Starc 2, Kings XI 6-1
That’s a great catch, Wises dives forward at cover point to scoop up Vohra’s drive – or did he? It looked like a dismissal in real time, hence the umpire Richard Illingworth’s initial dismissal, but it’s less clear on multi-angled slo-mo, but it’s not conclusive so the decision stays with the on-field umpire
Out come the Kings XI openers.
Innings complete – 20th over: RCB 226-3
20th over: RCB 226-3 (De Villiers 47, Sarfaraz 11)
Sarfaraz scurries through for one off the first ball of the final over, bowled by Anureet, even taking a ball in the thigh for his pains as the bowler aims a returning throw at the stumps as they run through. Anureet changes his angles and attacks nicely though and restricts De Villiers to a single off his second ball, but that merely allows Sarfaraz to dead-bat a bold and brilliant angled-bat scoop behind the stumps for four. Two more singles follow before Sarfaraz deftly glides another shot behind the stumps but it’s cut off before it reaches the boundary and they only manage to add one. It’s a good over – preventing De Villiers reaching a 50 for one thing – but it doesn’t mean much in the scheme of things, which is that RCB have run up a formidable total here and are overwhelming favourites. Thanks largely, but not totally, to Gayle.
19th over: RCB 217-3 (De Villiers 46, Sarfaraz 4)
Patel continues, and beats De Villiers with a full length one that hits him low on the pad outside the line. Anything that even hints at a half-volley, however, is liable to be punished, as De Villiers demonstrates with a beautifully timed straight six. He sweeps for four more away to square leg, and a clip through midwicket then beats the somewhat demoralised fielders for another boundary.
18th over: RCB 202-3 (De Villiers 31, Sarfaraz 3)
Sandeep is full and wide on the legside to De Villiers who digs out a flick down to fine leg for one. Karthik is off the mark with a two that should only have been one after Kings XI let the ball cannon off the stumps and rebound away. It’s actually sent for a review but there’s no run-out. Karthik knows the pressure’s off his team a little and swings lustily for six over long-on, but swings a little too fast and loose at the subsequent ball, a full-length delivery aimed at the stumps, which he hits. Three down. Sarfaraz Khan gets off the mark with two on the legside before trying an audacious – or risky – scoop over the keeper that the fielder at fine leg, Singh, can’t quite reach to make a catch. One run is taken.
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Wicket! Karthik b Sandeep 8
Karthik doesn’t last long, cleaned up by a line and length delivery that takes out his middle stump.
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Wicket! Gayle c & b Patel 117, RCB 190-2
17th over: RCB 190-2 (De Villiers 31)
There’s much mirth in the Sky studio when reviewing Maxwell’s attempt to claim a catch when one of Gayle’s sixes bounced off the roof and into the Australian’s hands. But no mirth for his team as Gayle’s punishment continues – a wide from Patel is followed by a swept four to the square-leg boundary and yet another high straight drive for six. Patel comes back with three fine dot balls and then takes a great sharp return catch to finally end Gayle’s tremendous innings. Even by the biff-bang standards of the IPL, it’s been a glorious privilege to watch this knock. A cut above.
16th over: RCB 179-1 (Gayle 107, De Villiers 31)
Bailey reshuffles again, with Anureet returning to the attack. It makes no odds – a high full toss that’s bordering on being called a no-ball looks initially to have caught De Villiers off guard, but he swivels brilliantly, turns his bat round and flicks it over his and the in-field’s heads for four down to the third man boundary. That’s a measure of the man, frankly. The batsmen then deal in singles for the remainder of a variable over, but a decent and imaginative one in the wretched context of this innings from Kings XI’s point of view.
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15th over: RCB 171-1 (Gayle 105, De Villiers 25)
Karanveer gets the better of De Villiers with a swifter, fuller one that De Villiers mistimes down to leg-slip for no run, but then the punishment continues: De Villiers makes amends with the next ball, which is everything the previous one wasn’t – it’s short and wide – and it’s pulled into the stands on the legside for six. Emboldened, the South African does it again twice more, carving the next two balls over extra-cover for two more sixes. A cut for one brings Gayle on strike for the last ball of the over, which is a full toss that Gayle punishes with a mere four, swept to the ropes behind square leg. This is bordering on sadism.
14th over: RCB 148-1 (Gayle 101, De Villiers 6)
Bailey keeps pace at one end but rotates the personnel, with Johnson bowling the 14th over. De Villiers inside edges a single to bring Gayle on strike with a hundred in sight. Which he reaches, effortlessly, clipping a low full-toss to the square-leg boundary for four more – what a fabulous exhibition this has been, his fifth IPL hundred and first this season, and one that has included 11 sixes. Johnson responds with a well-disguised slower ball that Gayle adjusts to with a push on the offside and a well-run single. He’s so in the mood tonight, Gayle, that he’s even prepared to scamper between the wickets, an aspect of the game so often beneath him. De Villiers plays a neatly-improvised whip through midwicket for one to round off the over.
13th over: RCB 141-1 (Gayle 96, De Villiers 4)
Another bowling change sees the leg-spinner Karanveer Singh introduced to the attack, and his first ball – loose and ugly – is called wide. The second one also drifts across Gayle and he cuts it away square for a single. The right-handed De Villiers, to whom Karanveer already looks happier bowling, drives through the covers for one more, and after more singles are traded, Gayle launches Karanveer over the top for TWO SIXES IN A ROW. This is stunning/brilliant/vaguely ridiculous. The West Indian opener has 96 off 45 balls.
12th over: RCB 123-1 (Gayle 82, De Villiers 2)
The experiment with spin having been an expensive flop, Bailey brings Sandeep Sharma back into the attack, and he vindicates the decision straight away with a fine inswinging yorker for no run, followed by a wicket with a similar sort of delivery, that Kohli misses and it clips the bottom of off-stump. A brilliant opening stand ends. De Villiers is off the mark with a single through extra-cover, and Gayle can only flick away a single from another angled low full-toss on leg stump. But they can only deal in singles from what is a really fine over in the circumstances – the best Kings XI have bowled so far.
Wicket! Kohli b Sharma 32
Sandeep Sharma returns to the attack and gets a deserved wicket at last, castling Kohli with a well-arrowed yorker.
11th over: RCB 119-0 (Gayle 80, Kohli 32)
Kings XI are bowling far too wide here, and Patel is punished for another loose delivery with an addition to the extras total. The next one is on the money – and met by Gayle with a towering six over long-off. What can you do? In Patel’s case it’s drop the next one a bit shorter, which Gayle mistimes and is thus a dot ball. A single follows, and Kohli, playing the straight man again, plays Proper Cricket Shots – a defensive push and then a controlled drive along the ground for one. And guess what Gayle does with the final ball of the over? A nonchalant swish down the ground for six of course. It’s all so predictable.
10th over: RCB 104-0 (Gayle 67, Kohli 31)
Maxwell is around the wicket to Gayle, who launches his sixth six with force and precision straight over the bowler’s head – and the heads of the fans in the first few rows. He enjoyed it so much he does exactly the same thing with the next ball – six number seven. And when Gayle does fail to connect, it’s called wide. Maxwell though, the cheeky scamp, then tries to claim a caught and bowled, when Gayle drives one into the ground and into the bowler’s hands. But no one’s buying it, not even the bowler himself. At the halfway stage, RCB are set for a huge score.
9th over: RCB 89-0 (Gayle 54, Kohli 30)
ANOTHER DROP! We have spin at both ends, and the left-armer Patel’s first ball is swept out to deep midwicket where the chance is spilled by Vohra and they take a single. Kohli then decides to attack, taking one step away and toe-ending a six over long-on. He makes it look so simple. A couple more singles are traded, and these two batsmen look booked in here.
8th over: RCB 79-0 (Gayle 53, Kohli 22)
One Australian World Cup star replaces another, and it’s Maxwell and his spin, but he’s off to a poor start here, Kohli cutting his opening loosener for four. Another single brings Gayle on strike, but he’s watchful this time, trying nothing more than a push down the ground for one. Kohli drives firmly for a single, but with the field pushed out and Maxwell finding the right pace and flight Kings XI manage to restrict the pyrotechnics this time.
7th over: RCB 71-0 (Gayle 51, Kohli 16)
Anureet continues, and Kohli grubs a single with an inside-edge on the offside off the first ball. Gayle is timing the ball beautifully as well as just walloping it, and flicks elegantly away on the onside for one more. Bailey, for whom not a lot has gone right so far, redeems himself a little with a fine stop at backward point to stop a probable four from Kohli, who dabs a single down to third man from the following ball. But this is a good, tight comeback over and Gayle can’t cut loose from this one. Only three from it.
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6th over: RCB 68-0 (Gayle 50, Kohli 14)
The Spidercam cable’s existence must conceivably be the only way in which IPL cricket favours bowlers rather than batsman - harsh on Gayle to be denied a six for hitting it just then. Johnson’s first ball, which Gayle misses down the legside, is called wide. Johnson’s not having a good time of it here, and Gayle revels in his superiority in this battle, pulling the bowler for six over deep midwicket. Johnson’s next ball is worse – a full toss on legside but Gayle is as surprised by it as the bowler, and it rebounds off the back of his bat as he tries to sweep and dribbles out behind him for no run. He reaches his 50 soon enough though, with a single off his 22nd ball faced. Johnson then finally gets one where he wants it – slanting a venomous bouncer across Kohli, who avoids it skilfully – before an attempt to repeat the trick goes wrong and is too wide, and called as such. Kohli then hurries through for a single to complete the over. Time for an <insert sponsor’s name here> strategic time-out. I think we all need a breather.
5th over: RCB 58-0 (Gayle 43, Kohli 13)
Anureet Singh comes into the attack, and his first ball is nudged off Gayle’s pads for a leg-bye. He gives Kohli too much room next ball though, and the captain steps back and cracks it over extra-cover for four. A dab down to third man brings a single, and Gayle back on strike for the first time in a while. Anureet greets him with a bouncer over leg-stump that the batsman can’t do anything about. He can next ball though, this short-pitched one being lashed to the legside boundary for six. But the umpires want another look at it, and replays confirm it hit the Spidercam cable, so a dead ball is called. Gayle can only take one from the re-played final ball, so has a trifling 43 from 19 balls, rather than 48.
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4th over: RCB 51-0 (Gayle 42, Kohli 8)
Kohli, practically a spectator so far, struggles against Johnson: he’s watchful to the first two balls of the over before hooking and missing at a short, sharp bouncer from the Australian, then swinging across the line and missing. He’s clearly just finding his range though, for the fifth ball is swatted emphatically over mid-off for four, and brings up his team’s 50 with two more down to fine leg.
3rd over: RCB 45-0 (Gayle 42, Kohli 2)
Carnage. Sharma continues to Kohli, who gets off the mark with an inside edge down to fine leg for one. Gayle’s not one for running his runs though, and clatters a perfectly decent length ball from Sharma over long-on for six more. Then, A DROP: Gayle hammers it skyward in the direction of George Bailey at long-off, but he spills it and then parries it for four. A no-ball and a single for Gayle follows, giving Kohli a free hit, from which he can only get one as Sharma constricts him with a good full-length inswinger. The next one is too full though, and Gayle effortlessly reaches it before it bounces and swings it over the long-on boundary for yet another six. The next shot is even better, a delightfully orthodox punch down the ground for four. Wonderful batting.
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2nd over: RCB 21-0 (Gayle 21, Kohli 0)
So here it is: Mitchell Johnson to Chris Gayle, almost a caricature of the sort of gladiatorial contest the IPL trades on, and Gayle claims the early advantage emphatically. He starts with an on-drive for four, though he mistimes the second ball and only bottom-edges it to midwicket for no run. Gayle times the next two right enough though – a glorious controlled cover drive/slog for six, followed by another straight drive, out of the blockhole, into the stands. Johnson decides to drop a fraction shorter with his next ball, but Gayle is right on top of it, turning it nonchalantly down to the square leg boundary for four more. A bounced wraps up the over, which Gayle can well afford to duck under having milked 20 from the over already.
1st over: RCB 1-0 (Gayle 1, Kohli 0)
Sandeep Sharma opens the bowling to Gayle, and in style, beating him with a lovely, zippy out-swinger second ball. He repeats the delivery next up, which Gayle just pulls his bat away from. The bowler pitches the next one up a little but gets the same result, beating Gayle with movement off the seam before RCB are finally off the mark with a single through the offside. There’s bounce and movement here, and this is a good start for Kings XI.
The teams in full:
RCB: Gayle, Kohli (capt), De Villiers, Mandeep Singh, Karthik (wk), Khan, Wiese, Starc, Patel, Chahal, Aravind.
Kings XI: Vijay, Vohra, Maxwell, Miller, Bailey (capt), Saha (wk), Patel, Johnson, Singh, Sharma, Karanveer Singh.
Some team change news: Chris Gayle and Harshal Patel come back in for RCB, and Manan Vohra replaces the veteran Sehwag in the Kings XI lineup.
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The toss: George Bailey, the Kings XI captain, calls correctly and decides to bowl. RCB will bat first.
Preamble
Good afternoon/evening everyone. Watching the IPL can sometimes feel like gorging on a lunch consisting entirely of chocolate cake, washed down by a dessert of a massive bowl of strawberries: you know you could be consuming something that is better for you in the long run, but so what – this feels good. Anyway, today we have the chance to possibly feast ourselves on the likes of Chris Gayle, AB De Villiers, Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Virender Sehwag, though Harbhajan Singh’s stunning bowling spell for Mumbai in yesterday’s match offered a timely reminder that this isn’t, and shouldn’t be, just a batsman’s game.
That said, both these sides should be doing better. Mid-table Royal Challengers Bangalore collapsed horribly in their most recent match, against Chennai Super Kings, while rock-bottom Kings XI haven’t beaten anyone for a couple of weeks, and at 7.31 they have the poorest scoring rate in this year’s IPL. They need to win today or they’re gone. RCB look the stronger side, both in star and team quality, and will be favourites here, though it’s an unpredictable old game. Kings XI were, after all, runners-up last year.
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Tom will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s Daniel Harris’s report of yesterday’s match, in which Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Daredevils by five wickets:
Mumbai Indians continued their recent good form, defeating Delhi Daredevils by five wickets and with three balls to spare – though the margin of their victory was a good deal more comfortable than the score suggests. They jump from seventh to fourth in the table and look a good bet to reach the play-offs, while Delhi – who drop to sixth – must rely on the results of other teams.
After winning the toss, Delhi elected to bat – their captain, JP Duminy, cited a pitch not expected to deteriorate, though perhaps Sunday’s game against the Rajasthan Royals was also influential, the Daredevils batted out of it after opting to field. And immediately, it looked an iffy call, Lasith Malinga sending down a nondescript outswinger that the talented Mayank Agarwal followed, edging behind for a diamond duck.
This brought Duminy to the wicket, and he quickly reminded the Mumbai attack of his fine form, taking just 19 balls to reach 28, only to then check a drive and gift Jagadeesha Suchith a tame return catch. This placed Delhi in something of a bind, as by this time Shreyas Iyer had also departed, impetuously swinging the bat at Harbhajan Singh’s first delivery and miscuing to third-man. Nor was Harbhajan finished there, also removing the dangerous Kedar Jadhav in a superb spell that produced 16 dot balls and ceded just 11 runs in four overs.
