New Delhi: The quirks of the Indian Premier League have always surprised onlookers. The venue, which had witnessed carnage from wildly swinging bats two days ago as 265 was chased down with ease, saw the swinging new white ball wipe out the batting line-up on Monday night. Royal Challengers Bangalore stitched after four overs Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood Turning the Delhi Capitals dugout into a crime scene, with six batsmen buried in their seats, their confidence bruised, the scoreboard read 8/6. Rub your eyes and read it again.Capitals marched towards a near-wicket-taking pace before ending the Powerplay with a score of 13/6. Call it the worst batting performance in the Powerplay or the best spell from fast bowling in the Powerplay, these six overs were a firm reminder of how cricket can be a great equalizer. RCB chasing the target of 76 runs from 1 wicket behind in just 6.3 overs was a commentary on the superior skills of Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood and the sub-par batting acumen of the Capitals batsmen. Partizan fans in Delhi came to watch Virat Kohli bat and went home chanting his name when he finished and slapped T Natarajan imperiously on the mid-wicket boundary. But the night will be remembered for the convincing statement that Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood made with figures of 3/5 and 4/12. With two experienced and proud international bowlers standing like hounds at the top of their runs, the bowlers on the same pitch had been reduced to bowling machines on Saturday afternoon. Every time they charge in, it feels like a personal battle. Every dismissal is celebrated like it’s an answer to all the helpless days bowlers endure in the IPL, thanks to good surfaces, bigger bats, short boundaries and the impact player rule. The course didn’t produce the pace and bounce of Perth’s WACA, nor did it offer the exaggerated movement of British tracks in early summer. All that was needed from Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood was a swing in the air and relatively more quickness off the pitch to expose the technical shortcomings of a batting line-up that thrived mainly on flat decks. A lot has been said about the power batting displayed in this IPL. From the moment KL Rahul decided to let debutant Sahil Parakh take the first ball against Bhuvneshwar, the RCB combination got a glimmer of help. Capitals hitters flopped around center field like frightened chickens, not knowing what the ball was doing. The RCB fielders converged on the DC batsmen from the heavily manned slip cordon, a rarity in T20 cricket, leaving them reeling on the pads. A sandstorm engulfed the Arun Jaitley Stadium as the match progressed into the ninth over, but the home side were already stunned by the new-ball prowess of Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood. It was an eye-rubbing moment when designated opener Abhishek Porel came in as an impact player in the third over of the match, tasked with bowling the new ball. He fought for 30 off 33 balls before Hazlewood bowled him out in the 17th over, with Delhi still managing just 75.Brief rating:DC: 75 all out in 16.3 overs (Abishek Porel 30; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 3/5, Josh Hazlewood 4/12).RCB: 77 for 1 in 6.3 overs (Devdutt Padikkal 34; Kyle Jamieson 1/42).
