RCB, DC dead rubber face-off allow them to iron out minor chinks

IPL 2021 tweaked its schedule a few days. They moved the first match of the last double header to the evening shift, ensuring the last two matches of the league stage are played simultaneously. This was done to deprive the teams playing the final game from taking advantage of any prior knowledge. 

While the intention was right, the purpose is far from getting accomplished. The two teams in Match 56 - Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals - have already qualified. In fact, Delhi have sealed the top position in the points table. Bangalore have what you call only a mathematical chance to get into the Top 2. The other teams will be aware of their fortune well ahead of the coin toss here. Hence, this contest is equivalent to a closing ceremony for the league stage, to be played between two of the top three teams of the season. 

For the two teams, it is an opportunity to fine tune a few things before the all-important playoffs. 

Shaw’s chance to hit form

Prithvi Shaw’s numbers this season in India and in UAE are so different, you would refuse to believe they belong to the same player. His average has dropped below one-third of what it was in India.

It is a perfect case study of his technique. A batsman who likes to hit through the line, he has suffered on the languid tracks of UAE. The ball has not come on to his bat while he has tried to force his way through. In India, he averaged 56 against full length from pacers at a strike-rate of 233. The figures have fallen to 9 and 164 in the gulf nation. He has been dismissed within the Powerplay in all the four games.  

Bangalore, however, provide him an opportunity to find his touch back. One of the better bowling sides overall this season, Bangalore have looked rather clueless in the first six overs. They have only one wicket which came their way in their previous game. Their economy is 9.1, the highest amongst all sides. 

Shaw has a mediocre record against the Indian personnel of Bangalore bowlers, averaging 12.5 against Mohammad Siraj (2 dismissals), 20 against Yuzvendra Chahal (1 dismissal) and 0 against Harshal Patel (1 dismissal). He will face Siraj first up who himself has not picked a wicket with the new ball due to absence of lateral movement. Hence, this is probably the best match-up for Shaw to get going. 

Need to get de Villiers in early

A major reason why Bangalore botched their run chase against Sunrisers Hyderabad was the fact that AB de Villiers faced only 13 balls. Moreover, he faced only five balls in the last two overs. Overall, de Villiers is short of time in the middle in the UAE leg, having faced only 50 balls for his 69 runs spread across six innings. Most of these balls are consumed in getting his eye in without getting much chance to loosen himself up. 

Even for a maverick like de Villiers, asking him to pull off steep tasks with the bat again and again is a bit of a stretch. The run chase against Hyderabad was a good enough evidence. Hence, Bangalore will do better by promoting de Villiers in the batting order, just to give him a better feel of the conditions. The right-hander also boasts of an excellent record against Delhi. He averages 61 at a strike-rate of 165.9 against his former franchise. 

The gaps in RCB

In an otherwise perfect season, Bangalore have two spots still vacant. They are playing musical chairs around number three alongside uncertainty around their extra seam bowling option. Currently, they are trying to fill both slots with the all-round expertise of Daniel Christian. It is a failed experiment with the bat (scores of 1*, 1, 1, 1, 1 and 0). With the ball, he has done just enough and picked a 2/14 against Hyderabad to ensure a longer rope in the XI. 

Christian is the fourth seam option. The spot of the third seamer is still up for grabs. The parcel has moved among Kyle Jamieson, Navdeep Saini and George Garton. Garton, the latest candidate, has not taken his opportunity either. He has a wicket each in his three games but has leaked at 9.6 runs per over. Will the southpaw get another chance or Bangalore will have a look at Dushmantha Chameera? They also have the option of going back to Kyle Jamieson or play another spinner in Wanindu Hasaranga.

The Contest

Except Devdutt Padikkal and Shahbaz Ahmed, who bats down the order, Bangalore is a right-handed heavy batting line-up. In addition, they possess Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell, two batsmen with excellent record against Ravichandran Ashwin. Both of them have lost their wicket to Ashwin only once each. Kohli has scored 160 runs in 19 innings against him while Maxwell has 91 runs in seven innings. Among the batters who have over 50 runs versus Ashwin, Maxwell’s strike-rate of 222 is the second highest. 

Given Maxwell’s impact this season, ‘Ashwin versus Maxwell’ could be the make-or-break contest of the match. It has been an indifferent season for Ashwin, bringing only five wickets in 10 games but the off-spinner has laid his impact with an economy of 7.2. Maxwell, on the other hand, hardly stays in the cage. 

Probable XIs

Royal Challengers Bangalore

Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Daniel Christian, KS Bharat (wk), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, George Garton, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal

Delhi Capitals

Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Ripal Patel, Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Avesh Khan