New Delhi: Welcome to our Live coverage of the Indian Premier League 2017 clash between Rising Pune Supergiant and Royal Challengers Bangalore, at MCA Stadium, Pune.
SCORECARD | FULL COVERAGE | MATCH REPORT
CATCH OF THE MATCH- Steve Smith
MAXIMUM SIXES- Rahul Tripathi
STYLISH PLAYER- Manoj Tiwary
MAN OF THE MATCH- Lockie Ferguson
RPS win by 61 runs
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE; Target 158
Over 20 | Score 96/9 | Chahal 4 (9) ; Aravind 8 (5)
And it is the last six deliveries to go. Daniel Christian to finish things up. Three bruns scooped up off the first half of the over. Last delivery, four by Aravind as RPS once again topple down RCB hope with a comprehensive 61 run victory
Over 19 | Score 88/9 | Chahal 1 (5) ; Aravind 3 (3)
12 more deliveries to go as Lockie Ferguson returns back to the attack for his final over now. Four dot balls and then an anxious single by Chahal off a slice down to third man. Another single to end the over.
Over 18 | Score 86/9 | Chahal 0 (0) ; Aravind 2 (2)
Daniel Christian in for his third over as Kohli is complete dismay now. Hasn't taken a single till now off the three deliveries, probably not wanting to. And that costs him his own wicket. Slow ball, well outside off as Kohli bends it slice it high to long-off. Fielder there to take it and off goes Bengaluru's last hope.
V Kohli c sub (MA Agarwal) b Christian 55 (48b)
Over 17 | Score 82/8 | Kohli 53 (43) ; Aravind 0 (1)
Last four overs to go now as Tahir returns back into the attack to finish up with his quota. Third delivery, googly, but Virat picks it up right to ramp it over midwicket for a six and thats his fifty.
But Tahir returns to strike back. His third off the day as Samuel Badree goes for just 2. It was the googly once again doing all the damage.
S Badree b Imran Tahir 2 (7b)
Over 16 | Score 74/7 | Kohli 46 (40) ; Badree 1 (5)
And it is Jaydev Unadkat in for his fourth and final over now. Virat gets his bat changed, probably that could change things around. 86 off 27 needed from RCB. Just a single by Kohli off the four deliveries and thyen some the wide ball. Required rate inching towards 20 now. Wonder what is currently going on in Virat's mind.
Over 15 | Score 71/7 | Kohli 45 (39) ; 0 (0)
And Imran Tahir back in for his third over now. Four off the four deliveries bowled. Last delivery, googly again, spins across to the leg side as Milne flicks it off to Steve Smith at midwicket and that is wicket number 7.
AF Milne c Smith b Imran Tahir 5 (8b)
Over 14 | Score 66/6 | Kohli 43 (37) ; Milne 2 (4)
And it is Jaydev Unadkat back into the attack for his third over now. Two singles off the first two deliveries. Three singles off the last three deliveries to sum up the over to five.
Over 13 | Score 61/6 | Kohli 40 (33) ; Milne 0 (2)
After an incredible first over, Imran Tahir returns for his sevond over. Two dot balls to start off with. Fourth ball, tossed up, googly placed well wide as Negi slashes it high to long-off. Fielder there to take it effortlessly as RCB go six down now. Virat can only stand and stare as batsmen depart on regular intervals from the other end.
P Negi c Christian b Imran Tahir 3 (7b)
Adam Milne is the new man in. Just one run and that wicket off the over.
Over 12 | Score 60/5 | Kohli 39 (30) ; Negi 3 (6)
And it is Daniel Christian back into the attack now for his second over. Three off the first half off the over- two, single, dot. Run rate just nearing five now, while the asking rate well over 12. Trouble indeed, as Kohli is looking for some support at the pitch. Seven off the over.
Over 11 | Score 53/5 | Kohli 33 (26) ; Negi 2 (4)
Washington Sundar back again for his second over to give away just four runs.
Over 10 | Score 49/5 | Kohli 31 (23) ; Negi 1 (1)
Lockie Ferguson in for his third over now. No need for keeping him back for the death, given that they can load on ample pressure on RCB, who are already four down. Fourth delivery, paced up shorter delivery, angling in as Binny pulls it hard off the middle of the bat. Man there at fine leg to take it comfortable.
STR Binny c Washington Sundar b Ferguson 1 (7b)
Over 9 | Score 48/4 | Kohli 31 (23) ; Binny 1 (2)
Washington Sundar is the new bowler in and Sachin Baby is the new batsman in. Fourth ball, spinning off as Baby punches it to Steve Smith at cover...but is it out? Umpire goes upstairs to confirm, though soft signal is a dismissal. Smith too tells that he is unsure. Does look like an out, as the fingers rolled in under the ball. So the third umpire says...OUT.
Sachin Baby c Smith b Washington Sundar 2 (4b)
Over 8 | Score 45/3 | Kohli 30 (21) ;Baby 1 (2)
And it is Lockie Ferguson back into the attack for his second over. 1/2 was his figure off the first over. Fourth ball, shorter, outside off as Jadhav cuts it hard, but fielder there grabs it and throws it at the runner's end where Kohli was looking for the run. Lockie misfields it and again Kohli calls for a single and immediately calls it off, but Jadhav was half-way through, and run-out. Complete mix-up!
KM Jadhav run out 7 (12b)
Over 7 | Score 43/2 | Kohli 29 (20) ; Jadhav 7 (9)
And after that short time-out, RPS bring in Imran Tahir. Just a single off the first half off the over. Three singles off the next three deliveries to sum the over upto five.
Over 6 | Score 39/2 | Kohli 27 (17) ; Jadhav 5 (6)
Last over of power-play as Smith introduces Daniel Christian. Third delivery, length, outside off as Kedar shimmies down off front foot pulls it down midwicket to get his first boundary today. Just six off the over. Strategic time-out.
Over 5 | Score 33/2 | Kohli 26 (15) ; Jadhav 0 (2)
A little change in attack as Lockie Ferguson comes into the attack now. Singles off the first two deliveries. And then the WICKET off the fourth delivery. Good length, placing it off as AB flicks it to the cover region, but Manoj Tiwary there to take the sharp catch.
AB de Villiers c Tiwary b Ferguson 3 (8b)
Kedar Jadhav is the new man in.
Over 4 | Score 30/1 | Kohli 25 (14) ; AB de 2 (5)
And it is Jaydev Unadkat back into the attack now for his second over. Two dot balls to start off with as AB breaks the ice with a slice down cover to take a quick single. Five off the over.
Over 3 | Score 25/1 | Kohli 22 (12) ; AB de 1 (1)
Chahar in now for his second over. First ball, full, well off and Kohli once again with the cover drive for a four. Third delivery, shorter this time, off again, as it edges off Kohli's bat past slip for a four again. And then again, four more down midwicket. Kohli is on fire!
Over 2 | Score 11/1 | Kohli 9 (7) ; 0 (0)
Jaydev Unadkat is the new bowler now, coming in from the northern end. Second ball, length, seams to the off as Kohli plays his trademark cover drive off his front foot for the first boundary for RCB today. Six off the first four deliveries as the next one goes for a risky single from Kohli. Last ball, back of the length, paced up, seams in as Head goes for the pull. Ball zips through the thigh and bat and drops the bails over leg and middle stump. Magical indeed.
TM Head b Unadkat 2 (5b)
Over 1 | Score 4/0 | Kohli 2 (2) ; Head 2 (4)
Not at all a big total, but RCB batsmen have failed repeatedly in this tournament. So no prediction as of now. Its a new opening partnership for Bengaluru as Travis Head joins the skipper at the pitch.
For Pune it is Deepak Chahar opening up the attack. Single off the first two deliveries as the duo get off the mark with singles each. And then follows two troubling deliveries to Travis Head. Just four off the over.
RCB need 158 runs off 120 deliveries to win
RISING PUNE SUPERGIANT
Over 20 | Score 157/3 | Dhoni 19 (16) ; Tiwary 44 (35)
And it is the last six deliveries to go as Sreenath Aravind is the bowler now. Singles off the first two deliveries as Dhoni returns to strike. And once again a single. Fourth delivery, slow off-cutter, backside edge off Tiwary's bat and off it goes for a boundary past the slip. Last ball, Dhoni on strike and its just two runs.
Over 19 | Score 147/3 | Dhoni 18 (14) ; Tiwary 38 (32)
12 more deliveries to go now as Adam Milne returns for his fourth and final over. Single off the first ball by Tiwary to put Dhoni back on strike. But Dhoni fails to get that four as the ball taps against the bat and Dhoni takes a single. Fourth ball, outside off, inside edge and past the keeper, behind the wickets for a boundary by Tiwary. Two off the last ball.
Over 18 | Score 139/3 | Dhoni 17 (13) ; Tiwary 31 (27)
Aravind in for his third over now. Third delivery, full, outside off and Dhoni sends it sailing high over the bowler, down town for a maximum. Well, it crashed on to the sightscreen it seems. 10 off the over.
Over 17 | Score 129/3 | Dhoni 9 (10) ; Tiwary 29 (24)
Milne returns back for his third over now. First ball, cross-seam, outsied off as Dhoni stretches to thump it down backward point for a boundary. Five more racked up in the next three deliveries. And the over finishes off with a four from Tiwary. Short, to off and Tiwary pulls it down square-leg to get that four.
Over 16 | Score 115/3 | Dhoni 2 (7) ; Tiwary 23 (21)
Quite a ruckus at Rajkot as the crowd chant "Dhoni, Dhoni". Well, much is exepected off him when Pune is en route to a big total, which is cureently seeming a little tough. Badree finishes up with his quota giving just four in his last over. Time-out
Over 14 | Score 109/3 | Dhoni 0 (0) ; Tiwary 20 (16)
Binny into the attack now for his second over as Smith whacks him up for two consecutive boundaries off the first two deliveries and then Binny gets the better off him in the fifth ball. Outside edge, as Smith strikes it hard over to long-leg, but too short of the rope as Milne takes it with much difficulty.
SPD Smith c Milne b Binny 45 (32b)
Over 12 | Score 85/2 | Smith 32 (26) ; Tiwary 9 (10)
Samuel Badree into the attack now. And Smith punishes him with two back-to-back biggies off the third and fourth delivery. First, a six ramped high over long-on, then a boundary cut down point for a four, And then again. Outside edged to third man for a boundary.
Over 10 | Score 67/2 | Smith 16 (18) ; Tiwary 7 (6)
After an expensive first over, Sreenath Aravind returns back for his second over. Just three singles off the first five deliveries and the last one goes for a dot.
Over 9 | Score 63/2 | Smith 14 (15) ; Tiwary 5 (3)
And Pawan Negi returns to attack for his second over as he strikes off the hard-hitting young lad to break an important partnership in the very second delivery. Flat, yet full as Tripathi was looking for the cut, but top edge and into the hands of the keeper. Not a wicket-taking ball, but it worked for Negi and for RCB.
RA Tripathi c Jadhav b Negi 37 (28b)
Manoj Tiwary is the new man in and he gets off the mark with a four sweeped down fine leg.
Over 8 | Score 57/1 | Smith 13 (13) ; Tripathi 37 (27)
Surprise! Stuart Binny into the attack now for his first over. Five runs already racked up off the four deliveries bowled, mostly coming off singles. Six off the over, with the last ball finish as a dot.
Over 6 | Score 43/1 | Smith 7 (8) ; Tripathi 29 (20)
RCB now bring in their game changer as Yuzvendra Chahal makes his way into the attack. First ball, spinning off as Tripathi rightfully finds the gap to elegantly cut it through point for a boundary. And then again off the fourth delivery. Length ball, as Tripathi shimmies down to whack it over midwicket for another four. Strategic time-out
Over 5 | Score 31/1 | Smith 5 (5) ; Tripathi 19 (16)
A little change in bowling as Sreenath Aravind has been introduced into the attack only to be dismissed for a maximum off the very first delivery. Full, to the off as Tripthai bends on one knee to slog it high, over the bowler, downtown and into the crowd. However, the bowler comes back strong to give just one off the next five deliveries.
Over 4 | Score 24/1 | Smith 5 (4) ; Tripathi 12 (12)
And it is Badree back in for his second over as he strikes down Rahane to get big breakthrough for the Royals. First ball, too full as Rahane goes too early for the sweep, top edge and off the fielder at short fine leg
AM Rahane c Milne b Badree 6 (8b)
Skipper is the new man in and he gets off the mark with a boundary dragged down square-leg.
Over 3 | Score 18/0 | Rahane 6 (7) ; Tripathi 11 (11)
Returning back into the attack is Adam Milne for his second over now. Second delivery, short, seaming leg side as Rahul pulls it hard down midwicket to bting up the first boundary of the match. And then again off the fifth delivery. Similar ball, as Rahul glanced it down fine leg for a boundary.
Over 2 | Score 9/0 | Rahane 5 (6) ; Tripathi 3 (6)
Sharing the new ball is Samuel Badree. Four runs off the first three deliveries and then the over sums up to just
Over 1 | Score 4/0 | Rahane 1 (2) ; Tripathi 2 (4)
A must, must won for the Bengaluru side as they take on Pune Supergiant. Opener Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi are out on the field as Kiwi pacer Adam Milne is with the new ball.
Off the first three deliveries, the do have picked up three runs- dot, single, two. So it sums up to just four off the over. Good start by the Bengaluru side.
15:49 IST: Lockie Ferguson, in playing XI today, is a new Zealand international who can also bowl. Adam Milne, on the other hand is also a Kiwi international who is primarily a fast bowler and can also bat.
15:42 IST: RPS XI: A Rahane, R Tripathi, S Smith, MS Dhoni, M Tiwary, D Christian, W Sundar, L Ferguson, J Unadkat, D Chahar, I Tahir.
RCB XI: V Kohli, TM Head, AB de Villiers, K Jadhav, S Baby, S Binny, P Negi, A Milne, S Badree, Y Chahal, S Arvind
#IPL Match 34: Here are the Playing XIs for @RPSupergiants & @RCBTweets #RPSvRCB pic.twitter.com/Hkp4mxsuZe
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 29, 2017
15:32 IST: It's TOSS time! Virat Kohli wins the toss and opts to bowl first. Stokes still out of RPS squad. For RCB, Chris Gayle is not a part of playing XI.
15:18 IST: Ben Stokes availability is still under question and Pune don't really have a perfect replacement for the star all rounder. How Faf du Plesis is utilised by Steve Smith and on which position, remains to be seen.
15:09 IST: We are less than half an hour away from the toss. Stay tuned for latest updates!
The Indian Premier League 2017 season has reached mid-way and teams have already started permutations and combinations of their chances of making it to the play-offs. Rising Pune Supergiant, presently sitting 4th in the standings, will look to consolidate their position in the table with a victory over struggling Royal Challengers Bangalore who sit second from bottom of the table and all but out of play-offs.
The biggest headache for the Supergiant think tank will be replacing talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes, who injured his shoulder in the game against Mumbai Indians on Monday and is likely to miss next couple of matches. It was his absence that came out to haunt Steve Smith-led squad in their previous tie against Kolkata Knight Riders. (IPL 2017 - Full Coverage)
Although Faf de Plesis was named as Stokes' replacement, he didn't get the opportunity to bat in match where Pune bowlers were taken apart by Robin Uthappa and Gautam Gambhir.
Despite having some of the biggest names in their batting line-up, RCB have the poorest scoring rate of all teams, and surprisingly, their batsmen have passed the half-century mark on only five occasions in eight matches so far. They not just need their batsmen – Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli – to fire but also their bowlers to take up responsibility and clinch wickets in a campaign which is all but over for them. (Full Preview - RPS vs RCB)
Here's everything you need to know about the Indian Premier League Match 34:-
Predicted Playing XIs:
Rising Pune Supergiant: Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Tripathi, Steven Smith (captain), Faf du Plessis, MS Dhoni (wk), Manoj Tiwary, Dan Christian, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Imran Tahir, Jaydev Unadkat
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli (captain), AB de Villiers, Kedar Jadhav (wk), Mandeep Singh, Pawan Negi, Samuel Badree, Tymal Mills, S Aravind, Aniket Choudhary, Yuzvendra Chahal
When and where to watch the match:
Date & Time: April 29 (Saturday) at 16:00 IST
Venue: Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune
TV Listing: Sony Six, Sony Six HD, Sony ESPN, Sony ESPN HD and SET MAX.
Online Streaming: Sony LIV, Hotstar
As far as head to head record is concerned, RCB hold a 2-1 edge, having won both their matche against Rising Pune last year but were defeated in the reverse fixture this season.
