 (1).jpeg)
*RCB VS CSK PREVIEW*
*BUILD UP:*
*TIME FOR THE SOUTH INDIAN DERBY:*
It’s time to glue ourselves to the screen in front, as two giant franchises all the way from the south of India are ready to entertain. One being lead by Thala, 41 and still giving us joy while RCB, being lead by a former CSK player in Faf Duplessis.
There is so much history behind this rivalry. With the finishing touches of MSD, to the consistency of King Kohli or the shift in loyalty of Duplessis. However the head to head doesn’t reflect so much intensity as RCB are still 9wins behind CSK, suffering from a 10:19 win/loss ratio. Regardless, when these two powerhouses clash at the Chinnaswamy where red would be the favourable colour, all of this is going to nullify into a seriously good contest between the bat and ball.
*RCB PROBABLE XI:*
Virat Kohli, Faf Duplessis(c), Mahipal Lomror, Glenn Maxwell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik(wk), Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Wayne Parnell, Mohammad Siraj, Vyshal Vijaykumar
RCB would expect another good outing from their opening pair, hoping for any one of them to anchor and play through the innings. With slight shortage of quality batting down the order, there is likely to be heavy emphasis on a few batters at the top. Young guns like Lomror and Shahbaz will have to step up to reduce the pressure from the “Big 3”
RCB have been a phenomenal new ball bowling team and if they want to keep up with this, they will have to make early inroads and stop Ruturaj who has been in the form of his life. On a surface that is conductive for stroke play, Ruturaj walking back early should be a huge momentum rider. Siraj is expected to play a pivotal role.
A common negative territory for RCB, this season again, has been their poor death bowling. Despite winning against DC last game, they still conceded unnecessary boundaries at the backend and this problem has been haunting them for long. With MSD taking on bowlers in the last 4 overs and showing off his bossy attitude, Harshal and co will have to get their act together and deliver a strong performance during the latter stages.
*CSK PROBABLE XI:*
Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Ajinkya Rahane, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Shivam Dube, Mahendra Singh Dhoni(c)(wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Pretorious, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande
Expecting an all round blitz from Jadeja, he boasts of a good record vs RCB, specially with the ball holding the aces in his favour against two of the star batters of RCB in the form of Glenn Maxwell and Kohli. Dhoni’s usage of Jadeja is likely to be in the middle overs where he can be the real wicket taking enforcer and breaking the backbone of RCB’s batting line-up.
MS Dhoni has been enjoying his time while batting at the death this season, his contributions have been invaluable for the team and he nearly pulled off the impossible against Sandeep Sharma the other day as well. The RCB bowling group who has fared poorly at the death should be under the pump soon if MSD shows the same kind of power that he did the other day.
With Magala splitting his web, the Protea medium bowler known for his variations,Pretorious, is likely to be drafted in. Should be a good matchup against the brittle middle order of RCB.
Another factor that should tilt the favour in CSK’s favour is the combined effort of the spin trio that they possess. RCB haven’t batted in the best manner possible against spinners this season and with Patidar missing an entire season, their troubles have been multiplied. Getting Maxwell back in the hut and going for an “all kill” approach against the others is one way to choke RCB with spin.
*MY PREDICTIONS FOR THE GAME:*
*FOR RCB:*
Highest run getter- Virat Kohli/Glenn Maxwell
Highest wicket taker- Mohammad Siraj/Wanindu Hasaranga
*FOR CSK:*
Highest run getter- Ajinkya Rahane/Ruturaj Gaikwad
Highest wicket taker- Maheesh Theekshana/Ravindra Jadeja
*FOR THE GAME ITSELF:*
The Challengers to win this game if they bat first. I expect them to falter if they chase.