Coming off heart-breaking last-ball defeats in their respective previous matches and perched in the bottom half of the ten-team table, the heat is on, in every sense of the phrase, on Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals. Adding to their predicament is the prospect of the first day game of the season at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, with mercury levels in the mid-30s.
Delhi need a win more than the home side, of that there is little doubt. After four matches, they prop up the table, the only franchise without a victory, and while the league phase is a marathon rather than a sprint, David Warner’s men are gradually running out of time. Their cause hasn’t been helped by the captain’s batting; the left-handed Aussie is a strong contender for the Orange Cap, but his runs (209) have come far too slowly (strike rate 114.83) to have a meaningful impact.
Axar, the lone ranger
It has hurt them further that the batting has yet to hit its straps, with no one else apart from Axar Patel stacking up even 50 runs. As versatile and potent as their bowling group is, spearheaded by South African Anrich Nortje, the lack of runs has been a major stumbling block in their bid to overturn their awful run.
RCB’s Virat Kohli
A return to the venue where he led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their only title in 2016 could see the return of Warner to his attacking best, because the conditions at the Chinnaswamy facilitate unhindered stroke-making, as evidenced by the last game when RCB and Lucknow Super Giants together made 425 runs in 40 overs.
Du Plessis, Kohli in top form
RCB’s batting has traversed the other end of the spectrum to Delhi’s, their top three of skipper Faf du Plessis, his predecessor Virat Kohli and the explosive Glenn Maxwell all in prime touch. That has meant the middle order hasn’t had too much to do, but RCB have always been a top-heavy batting unit and once again, all eyes will be on du Plessis and Kohli, who have strung together stands of 148 and 96 in their two home games thus far.
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The availability for selection of Wanindu Hasaranga, the Sri Lankan leg-spinner who was their leading wicket-taker last season, will come as a shot in the arm for RCB, who have struggled in all three games to build on the early strikes provided at different times in the Powerplay by pacers Mohammed Siraj, David Willey and Wayne Parnell. The lack of potency of Harshal Patel hasn’t helped either; Mahipal Lomror was echoing the sentiments of the team when he said on Friday evening that he hoped Hasaranga would continue from where he left last season, otherwise RCB will be playing catch-up from very early in the piece.
It’s in our hands to turn it around: Agarkar
Ahead of their clash with RCB here on Saturday, Delhi Capitals assistant coach Ajit Agarkar admitted that their fate is in their own hands. DC are winless in four games so far. “It’s in our hands to turn it around. We’ve got another opportunity in our next match. If we play our best cricket then that should be enough to get us some points. We are trying to help the players rectify their mistakes and also keep the group together,” Agarkar was quoted as saying in a release.
