Punjab look for winning run against struggling Bangalore - Match 18
Punjab look to continue their winning run against struggling Bangalore
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) were termed as one of the favourites this season before Chris Lynn's catch robbed them from victory against KKR and then they were bowled out for 70 against Rajasthan, losing the match by six wickets. And on Monday, RCB will be facing a tough task when they take on the yet-to-be-beaten table-toppers Kings XI Punjab (KXIP).
Kings XI Punjab defended a small total of 132 against Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday to register their fourth win on the trot. Maxwell, who has been the star performer for Punjab this season, was dismissed for just 15, but the bowlers did a brilliant job to bundle out Kolkata for 109 as Sandeep claimed three crucial wickets.
Bangalore, without Chris Gayle, who is nursing a sore back, were then completely outplayed in their last match against Rajasthan Royals. Their star-studded batting line-up collapsed to the third lowest IPL total ever before Rajasthan made short work of the paltry 71-run target in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Except for skipper Virat Kohli, none of the RCB batsmen could make any noteworthy contribution on Sunday. Yuvraj Singh has been getting decent knocks but the pace at which he is scoring those runs has been a matter of concern for the team.
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The defeat against Rajasthan was a crushing one and Kohli wants to forget it as quickly as possible ,but it would be quite a task for his team to turn it around against Punjab, by far the most consistent team of the season. Barring the victory against Kolkata, which was won by their bowlers, Punjab's batsmen, especially Maxwell and David Miller, have been in phenomenal form.
Bangalore would need a very special effort to stop them, something that KKR's spin combo of Sunil Narine and Piyush Chawla managed to do on Saturday before KXIP produced some magic of their own with the ball through the pace pair of Sharma and Mitchell Johnson.
A big positive for KXIP is Virender Sehwag's return to some form. The veteran, who has fallen out of national reckoning, is slowly getting back into the groove with some decent contributions in the past couple of matches. But Cheteshwar Pujara is still finding his feet in the format even though his individual form has not yet hurt the team too much.
It would be a massive boost for Bangalore if Gayle makes it back to the squad after recovering from his back problem, but his availability is still not confirmed. Also, more would be expected from South African swashbuckler AB de Villiers, who is yet to produce an eye-catching performance in the tournament. (With PTI inputs)
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