New Delhi: A six-hitting masterclass from Tim David and solid hands from skipper Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal meant defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) pulverised five-time winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 43 runs in Bengaluru on Sunday.
More than two points though, the match, not for the first time, served to underscore the value a thoroughbred power-hitter brings to a side.
Agreed, the boundaries at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium are short and the CSK bowling didn’t exactly inspire awe, but to clear the field almost on command requires special ability and belief. And Tim David showed he has enough of both. The tall Aussie smashed an unbeaten 25-ball 70 not out (3×4, 8×6) as RCB galloped to 250/3—the highest total of this IPL edition—against CSK in front of a raucous home support. CSK, after losing early wickets, were 207 all out in 19.4 overs.
In a brutal yet beautiful exhibition of range hitting, the towering David once again proved why he is a prized T20 batter across franchise leagues. Treating pace and spin with equal disdain, he tore into the CSK attack with a mix of power and timing. Walking in to bat at the fall of Devdutt Padikkal in the 15th over, David took his time to settle in as Jamie Overton was in the middle of an inspired spell. But once he got his eye in, there was no stopping him.
RCB’s carnage began in the death overs with a 19-run 16th over. Patidar, who was in fine rhythm, took a special liking to Khaleel Ahmed, using the left-hander’s angle to access the arc between long off and extra cover to hit him for two sixes and a four.
That was just the start though. Next up, David pummelled Noor Ahmed’s left-arm wrist spin for three consecutive sixes, relying on brute power to hit back of length deliveries in front of square off the back foot. The penultimate over, bowled by Overton, saw David slam 30 runs which included four towering sixes and a four.
Overall, RCB hammered 97 runs in last five overs without losing a wicket. The match-defining unbroken Patidar-David partnership yielded 99 runs off 37 balls as RCB racked up 199 runs in the post Powerplay overs. A measure of their dominance can be gauged from the fact that CSK managed only four dot balls in last five overs. By the time David smashed the last ball of RCB innings for another four, memories of CSK bowlers having their moments in the Powerplay were long forgotten.
The Chinnaswamy Stadium track was tacky to begin with and Khaleel in particular impressed with his control on the two-paced surface. Openers Virat Kohli and Phil Salt struggled for early rhythm, going at less than run-a-ball in the first three overs. The first boundary of the innings came in the fourth over when Kohli broke the shackles in a 16-run over.
The Powerplay produced 51 runs, and with Kohli dismissed by Anshul Kamboj, RCB needed a bit of a rebuild. Enter Padikkal. The tall southpaw used his reach to good effect, especially against Noor, and added 56 runs with Phil Salt. As the pitch began to settle in, CSK bowlers started to err on either side of good length and the Padikkal-Patidar pair cashed in. A 58-run alliance was churned out in 21 balls, the left-right duo picking their bowlers to go after. Nothing however could’ve prepared CSK for the blaze that was to follow from David’s blade.
In reply, CSK, despite maintaining a healthy tempo, kept losing wickets at regular intervals. The chase never really took off, with Sarfaraz Khan’s 25-ball 50 (8×4, 2×6) the lone bright spot. Four of CSK’s top-five were dismissed for single-digit scores—Sanju Samson fell for 9 after he fell for 6 and 7 in the first two games—with RCB’s primary pace duo of Jacob Duffy and Bhuvneshwar Kumar picking five wickets between them. CSK’s big buy ( ₹14.20 crore) Prashant Veer, playing only his second game, impressed with a 29-ball 43 while Overton’s 16-ball 37 offered a modicum of consolation.
