RCB to lock horns with table-toppers Delhi Capitals
Royal Challengers Bangalore will have their second showdown of the season against Delhi Capitals tonight. Both sides have already booked playoff berths.
The last time both sides clashed, Bangalore clinched a narrow one-run victory at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
Expected playing XI
RCB
Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Srikar Bharat (wk), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Daniel Christian, Shahbaz Ahmed, George Garton, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal and Mohammed Siraj.
DC
Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (c/wk), Sam Billings, Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Avesh Khan and Anrich Nortje.
Probable best performers
AB de Villiers
The former South African captain smashed an unbeaten 75* against Delhi when the sides clashed in India-leg of this season. He likes to take on Delhi’s pace cartel.
De Villiers has, however, not had ample opportunities to bat since coming over to the UAE. RCB may consider elevating him up the order to allow Mr.360 to face more balls. The more deliveries he gets, he is likely to dispatch more balls for boundaries.
Getting him out early in the innings will be Delhi Capital’s priority.
Glenn Maxwell
With consecutive top performances in the IPL 2021 and a history of spanking Ravi Ashwin for boundaries, Maxwell will be a major threat to Delhi Capitals. The Australian all-rounder has scored 91 runs in 41 balls and has been dismissed by Ashwin just once.
The power-hitter has consistently helped Bangalore grab big totals in the UAE. His firepower has allowed bowlers to have some score to defend.
Avesh Khan
Avesh Khan has made taking wickets too easy in this edition. He has already claimed 22 scalps in 13 games, being the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament behind Harshal Patel (29).
His 7.14 economy shows that the right-hander has a knack for keeping the opposition batters at bay. Avesh has been in the IPL for a while, but he got into the groove only this season.
His opening spells have helped Rishabh Pant and co restrict the oppositions to low scores.
Match prediction
A loss against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the game has made it hard for Bangalore to clinch the second spot in the points table. RCB have 16 points in the bag with a game to go, whereas Chennai Super Kings are ranked second with 18 points.
Just a win tonight won’t do the trick for Virat Kohli and co. The team will need to beat last season’s runner-up with a huge margin to dethrone CSK from the second spot.
Bangalore and Delhi have been in sublime form this season, but Rishabh Pant’s men have been a tad better than Kohli and co. Delhi have been far more consistent with the bat than RCB, which makes them the favourite team to win Friday’s clash.
