BENGALURU: The M Chinnaswamy Stadium was bathed in red on Saturday night – not just the color, but the defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore started the IPL season with a six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.After pacer Jacob Duffy (3/22) started the match with a fantastic debut, it was Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli Who ignited the chase. Padikkal’s fluid 61 off 26 balls and Kohli’s unbeaten 69 off 38 balls ensured that RCB achieved the 200-run target with ease, returning home with 26 balls to spare.Padikkal looked to be in control as he played in his backyard. Fresh off an impressive domestic season in which he played a key role in Karnataka’s progression to the Ranji Trophy final, the southpaw carried that form into the night.Phil Salt (8) walked in after leaving early and Padikkal settled in quickly. Jaydev Unadkat’s iconic six set the tone. Particularly impressive were his intentions against left-arm pacer David Paine, including a knee-six.Padikkal was often criticized for getting stuck in the crease but he showed improved footwork and smashed in a half-century with a crisp straight drive, with Kohli cheering on at the other end. Padikkal tried to hit a big ball against Harsh Dubey but it failed to pass through the mid-wicket area and Klaasen took a regular catch. Kohli was 30 when the partnership ended and his attitude changed. He stabilized the innings with a brief swing that led to captain Rajat Patidar (31) and Jitesh Sharma (0) bowling to Payne in succession. The finish line was in sight and Kohli and Tim David (16th) completed the race effortlessly.
Duffy, Ishan Show
The early stories belong to the debutants – one making his IPL bow, the other leading the team for the first time.RCB pacer Jacob Duffy made his debut and smashed SRH’s top order. But Ishan, captaining SRH for the first time, stood firm in the early spurt and scored a 38-ball 80 to help his team out of trouble.SRH recovered from early turbulence and credited the total to Ishan’s composure and Aniket Verma (43 off 18 balls) late flourishes.Tamiflu made an immediate impact. The New Zealand pacer batted in the second over in the absence of Australian quick Josh Hazlewood to break up SRH’s explosive top order. Abhishek Sharma misplayed his pull on wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma. Five balls later, Travis Head caught a short ball and pulled it straight to Phil Salt deep behind leg. Nitish Reddy followed with another short delivery to Abhinandan Kumar at Midwicket.Ishan kept his cool as wickets fell around him. The southpaw found his rhythm against medium-pacer Abhinandan Kumar in the sixth over, scoring 6, 4, 6 to mark a shift in momentum.Ishan, who is coming off a stellar performance in the T20 World Cup, has maintained this form perfectly. Ishan found a capable ally in Heinrich Klaasen (31) and the two put together a crucial 97-run fielding stand for the fourth wicket.Just as Ishan looked set to score a century, his 74-minute stay ended in dramatic fashion with Salter taking a stunning one-handed catch at the boundary to take Abhinandan’s first IPL wicket.
