In a thrilling IPL 2023 match, Maxwell and Harshal lead Royal Challengers Bangalore over Rajasthan Royals.
At M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday, Royal Challengers Bangalore defeated Rajasthan Royals by a score of 7 runs. Harshal Patel, a specialist in death overs, maintained composure in the last over and held off 20 runs. Harshal's start was less than ideal as 10 runs came off the first three deliveries, but the RCB seamer recovered in the next three balls to aid his team in securing two significant points.
For Rajasthan, Dhruv Jurel battled valiantly to the very finish, going undefeated for 34 runs off of 16 balls. Ravichandran Ashwin also hit 12 runs off of 6 balls, but the Rajasthan Royals were unable to cross the finish line.
In order to attain the 190-run mark, Mohammed Siraj got through Jos Buttler's line of defence in the first over itself. Buttler was impressive as the ball passed through the space between his bat and pads to knock the middle stump loose on a jaffa from Siraj. Devdutt Padikkal, who was playing against his old squad, got back into form and scored 52 points off of 34 balls to help RR recover. Together, he and Yashasvi Jaiswal made a critical 98 runs for the second wicket, with Yashasvi scoring a crucial 47 runs off 37 balls.
David Willey struck out Padikkal, ending his time in the middle as Virat Kohli took the catch. At his home field, the southpaw smacked seven fours and a six. Yashasvi quickly followed him in the locker room as Kohli once more claimed his catch, despite the fact that the bowler was Harshal Patel.
Sanju Samson made a few strong strokes, but Harshal outshot him for 22 and stopped RR's pursuit.
Shimron Hetmyer, RR's designated finisher, also fell short on this occasion and was disqualified for three.
With three wickets, Harshal was the best bowler, with Mohammed Siraj and David Willey each taking one.
Prior to that, Samson won the toss and chose to bowl against the RCB. Trent Boult immediately demonstrated the wisdom of his choice by removing the in-form Kohli for a golden duck. Boult sent it up for Kohli, who utterly mishandled it and landed square in front of the wicket.
Shahbaz Ahmed was moved up the batting order by RCB, but it didn't work out as Boult bowled a short ball to bowl him out for only two runs in the third over of the game.
But Faf du Plessis (62) and Glenn Maxwell (77) took over, reviving Bangalore's innings and aiding in their pursuit of a difficult score.
It took just 66 balls for Maxwell and du Plessis to score 127 runs for the third wicket, the pair's third 100-run partnership in as many games this season.
However, after the impetus was lost following du Plessis' demise in the 14th over, run out off a stunning direct throw from Yashasvi Jaiswal, RCB faltered. At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, the host team lost seven wickets for a total of 50 runs, falling from 139/2 to 189/9.
As RCB continues to rely on its top 3 of Kohli, Faf, and Maxwell to score the majority of their runs, Mahipal Lomror (#8), Dinesh Karthik (16), and Suyash Prabhudesai (#0), they once again fell short of expectations.
With 1/28 in four overs, Yuzvendra Chahal was the most outstanding bowler. Trent Boult and Sandeep Sharma each claimed two wickets, however they both had economies of over ten.