NEW DELHI: Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign began with a setback as they faced defeat against champions Chennai Super Kings. A notable top-order collapse marred their performance, but veteran batsman Dinesh Karthik remains optimistic about the team's batting prowess.
Reflecting on the match, Karthik acknowledged the challenges faced by the Bengaluru side, stating, "When you have a long batting lineup, ideally what you want to be doing is putting pressure throughout. That's what we tried to do, play shots."
Despite the early setbacks, Bengaluru staged a commendable comeback, with Karthik explaining, "Sometimes it becomes important for the backend players to soak up the pressure, try and see what's required at that stage. That's what Anuj and I did."
1/10:Chennai Super Kings down Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2024 opener
IANS
2/10:Mustafizur's brilliance
Bangladesh's Mustafizur Rahman returned figures of 4-29 to set up a six-wicket win for defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the IPL opener against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Friday.PTI
3/10:Shivam Dube & Ravindra Jadeja's stand
Hosts CSK restricted Bengaluru to 173/6 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Shivam Dube, who hit 34, and Ravindra Jadeja, who made 25, put on an unbeaten stand of 66 to steer the team home.PTI
4/10:IPL opening ceremony
The 17th edition of the lucrative league began with a glitzy ceremony, with performances by Bollywood stars including India's Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman.AFP
5/10:Dhoni's captaincy handover
<p>Old warhorse MS Dhoni had shocked his fans on the eve of the opener when he handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad, who said he got to know of the decision last week.</p>PTI
6/10:Man of the Match: Mustafizur
Mustafizur had Du Plessis caught out for 35 and RCB slipped from 41-0 to 42-3 in the space of seven balls when Glenn Maxwell was out for a first-ball duck off Deepak Chahar. Mustafizur was named man of the match.AP
7/10:Virat Kohli's return
Virat Kohli returned to competitive cricket after two months following a paternity break. He made 21 off 20 balls including a six off spinner Maheesh Theekshana before his departure in another inspired spell by Mustafizur.AP
8/10:Chennai's batting display
CSK's batsmen including IPL debutant Ravindra, who hit a 15-ball 37, got starts but lost regular wickets. Dube, who came in as impact substitute in place of Mustafizur, and Jadeja ensured the team sailed through.ANI
9/10:Green's bowling impact
Green struck with two key wickets including Rahane (27) and Daryl Mitchell (22) with his fast-medium bowling but Jadeja kept the chase going.PTI
10/10:Rawat & Karthik's partnership
For RCB, Anuj Rawat, a wicketkeeper-batsman who hit 48, and Dinesh Karthik, 38 not out, steadied the ship and then took the attack to the opposition in their partnership of 95 in 50 balls.PTIAnuj Rawat, who played a crucial innings, shared his perspective, saying, "Having said that, I'm sure most of these batters are high pedigree, they're playing international cricket and playing so well that they're dominating international cricket."
On the bowling front, Chennai's bowling consultant Eric Simons praised Mustafizur Rahman's performance, stating, "It was always about the conditions and the balance of the side that we would like a left-armer, somebody that brings something different." He added, "He executed beautifully."
Despite the defeat, RCB remain determined to bounce back stronger in the upcoming matches. With a talented lineup at their disposal, RCB aim to showcase their potential and make a mark in the tournament.
(With inputs from Reuters)
