Highlights IPL 2017 RCB vs DD, cricket scores and result: Shane Watson and Co win by 15 runs

Did you know?

157 is the joint second lowest total defended by a team at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore in IPL. The lowest is 156 twice by RCB against DC (in 2008) and MI (in 2013).

Shane Watson: It was a great win. Kedar batted beautifully. Chahal is very skillful. They (the RCB stars) will be back next game.

Kedar: I feel on the top of my game and improving my fitness so that I can go with this form for the longer period. When two of the top players are not playing, you have to take responsibility. Want to do that for the rest of the tournament and take the team across the line.

Kedar Jadhav adjudged the Man of the Match for the game-changing 69 off 37 balls.

Guts, glory and respect.
Well played #DIlliBoy @RishabPant777.#RCBvDD#DDTweets#DilDilliHai pic.twitter.com/IXewfgtg19

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) April 8, 2017

A great match indeed. Our hearts go out to the #DilliBoys. Congratulations @RCBTweets on a great game. #DilDilliHai

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) April 8, 2017

Zaheer Khan: Eight out of ten times we would have got this total. Just couldn’t get the partnerships going today. The wicket was very good for batting. Rishabh Pant played really well. He needed some support at the other end. It takes a lot of courage to let go of personal trauma. The ball was setting up nicely and that’s why 157 was gettable. We have a good balance of fat bowlers and spinners and Jayant is sitting on the sidelines. Looking at the bowling, we are happy with the processes. Once the batting gets going, it would be happy days for Delhi Daredevils.

When u lack cricketing sense no matter what u do u won't win a game Mishra had brain fade

— Makarand Waingankar (@wmakarand) April 8, 2017

RCB’s faith in spin paid off gloriously. Chahal led the way with probing spin and a wicket. Abdulla picked up Billings and Morris, two key batsmen while Negi bowled the crucial last over and accounted for the very impressive and dangerous Pant. He got another wicket to bowl RCB to 15 run win. Jadhav’s brilliant batting fetched deservedly Man of match award. Wonderfully plotted win for RCB.

Did you know:

157 is the joint second lowest total defended by a team at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore in IPL. The lowest is 156 twice by RCB against DC (in 2008) and MI (in 2013).

Win or Loss, The Young Boy Rishabh Pant won The lot of hearts & your real winning today Rishabh. Respect For You Rishabh #IPL

— Rajesh Khilare (@Cricrajeshpk) April 8, 2017

Rishabh Pant played only 7 balls between overs 15-19.
That cost DD the game#RCBvDD

— Sarang Bhalerao (@bhaleraosarang) April 8, 2017

After 20 overs,Delhi Daredevils 142/9 ( Amit Mishra 8 , Zaheer Khan (C) 1)

Pawan Negi comes to bowl his first over of the match in the what is the last over of the match and gets Pant bowled. It may be all over for Delhi now. Nadeem is the new man in. Huge appeal for stumping against him, but replays show he had his foot grounded behind the crease. Safe. 19 runs off the last four balls. Nadeem skies the third ball and Negi takes the catch off his own bowling. Zaheer is the new man in. Not much happens in the last three balls. RCB win by 15 runs and get back to winning ways after a loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad in the season opener.

OUT! Nadeem caught by Negi off his own bowling. He goes without scoring. Delhi 139/9 in the last over.

Nadeem c and b Negi 0(2)

Zaheer is the new man in.

OUT! Pant is bowled. Delhi 139/8 in the last over.

Pant b Negi 57(36)

Nadeem the new man in.

After 19 overs,Delhi Daredevils 139/7 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 57 , Amit Mishra 6)

Shane Watson for his last over – the penultimate over of the Delhi innings. Delhi’s hopes rest on solely on Pant. A big shout for LBW against Mishra. Not out given. Mishra takes a single and gives Pant the strike. Pant is off the strike on the next ball. Mishra wastes two deliveries. He is swinging his bat and missing. Doesn’t need to do this though. All he needs to do is to give Pant the strike. Goes outside the off stump to play a scoop to fine leg. Misses again. Poor strategy from Mishra this. Delhi need 19 off the last over. Surely, advantage RCB now.

What an outstanding innings young Rishabh Pant has played. He’s been aggressive right through backing strokes he’s comfortable with. The pull fetched him most runs. He’s unafraid to launch into shots. Blessed with good timing and temperament. He has been the thorn in the rcb flesh. Great start to his career. Will be a tremendous impact player.

Youngest WKs to score a fifty in IPL:

18y 169d – Sanju Samson

19y 1d – Shreevats Goswami 

19y 160d – Sanju Samson

19y 186d – RISHABH PANT*

19y 195d – Sanju Samson

What an outstanding innings young Rishabh Pant has played. He’s been aggressive right through backing strokes he’s comfortable with. The pull fetched him most runs. He’s unafraid to launch into shots. Blessed with good timing and temperament. He has been the thorn in the rcb flesh. Great start to his career. Will be a tremendous impact player.

Performs last rites of father. Flies to Blore. Hits 1st ball for 6. Scores 50. 19-yr-old. He is Rishabh Pant https://t.co/2HgVE6ZBgx pic.twitter.com/178uCk0JRm

— Jigar Mehta (@jigsactin) April 8, 2017

After 18 overs,Delhi Daredevils 137/7 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 56 , Amit Mishra 5)

Mills for his last over. An upper cut by Mishra and Delhi get two at third man. Good change of pace from Mills in the third ball. Pant doesn’t time it at all and gone straight to the bowler’s hand. But it doesn’t and Pant gets a single  which takes him to his fifty. No celebration from Pant. He knows the job is still not done. Mills to Mishra and he surprises the batsman with a beautiful slower bouncer. The ball hits the batsman’s raised hand. Pant goes big on the last ball and gets a maximum over fine leg. Delhi need 21 off the last two overs.

He's 20,been performing the last rites for his father & he's come to play a special innings for #DD. Rishabh Pant is going to be some player

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

Youngest WKs to score a fifty in IPL:

18y 169d – Sanju Samson
19y 1d – Shreevats Goswami 
19y 160d – Sanju Samson
19y 186d – RISHABH PANT*
19y 195d – Sanju Samson

After 17 overs,Delhi Daredevils 126/7 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 49 , Amit Mishra 1)

Watson back for his third over and the first ball is giveaway. It slides down the leg side and Cummins helps himself with a four. Watson hits back and has Cummins bowled with the next ball. A straight ball on good length. Cummins gets an inside edge and the ball hits the top of the stumps. Amit Mishra is the new man in. Someone needs to stay with Pant. this  is Mishra’s chance to make amends for the runs he conceded. Pant approaching a fifty, but plays and misses the last ball of that Watson over. Delhi need 32 runs in the final three overs.

Young Pant really the glue that’s holding this DD innings together. Powerful hits at slightest opportunity have kept the runs flowing despite loss of wickets. DD’s saviour really. Watson has no faith in Negi it seems. So right to say RCB’s 2-pronged spin attack rather than the three it was made out to be. But Watson still needs to keep Pant off strike to pull this off.

Young Pant really the glue that’s holding this DD innings together. Powerful hits at slightest opportunity have kept the runs flowing despite loss of wickets. DD’s saviour really. Watson has no faith in Negi it seems. So right to say RCB’s 2-pronged spin attack rather than the three it was made out to be. But Watson still needs to keep Pant off strike to pull this off.

OUT! Cummins bowled by Watson. Delhi 125/7 in the 17th over.

Pat Cummins b Watson 6(6)

Amit Mishra is the new man in.

After 16 overs,Delhi Daredevils 121/6 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 49 , Pat Cummins 2)

Mills back in the attack. Pant plays another bold shot and gets a boundary at midwicket. He is unfazed even with wickets falling around him. Can he pull it off for Delhi. What a story that will be, especially with all the troubles in his personal life recently. Eight runs from that over. And that’s the strategic timeout.

Whatever happens in this match, Pant's effort is just incredible. It must be so difficult for him. Really feel for the guy.

— Melinda Farrell (@melindafarrell) April 8, 2017

19 year old Rishabh Pant playing like a 10-year experienced cricketer while others in team are playing like 10 year olds. #IPL

— Jigar Mehta (@jigsactin) April 8, 2017

Most wickets by leg-spinners in IPL:

124 – Amit Mishra 

121 – Piyush Chawla 

58 – YUZVENDRA CHAHAL*

57 – Shane Warne 

45 – Anil Kumble

After 15 overs,Delhi Daredevils 113/6 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 43 , Pat Cummins 0)

Chahal back for his last over. Chahal to Pant. A mouth-watering contest. Pant hammers a full delivery straight at the bowler, which catches Chahal on the leg. That would hurt. Would go down as the dropped chance, but a very difficult chance. 

There is a howler from the umpire in the meantime. Chahal raps Brathwaite on the pads. It is as plumb as it can get, but the umpire says not out. Replays show no inside edge. Chahal can’t believe it, nor can his RCB mates. Boos are heard all around the ground. But what a poetic justice for Chahal. Clean bowls Brathwaite. There is another shout off the last ball of the over. Not out given again. A right call this time around as the batsman got an inside edge.

Pat Cummins meanwhile comes in to join Pant in the middle.

Tough time for Risabh Pant. Quite amazing he's out there. Can guarantee that everyone in the cricket family is willing him to win this

— Isa Guha (@isaguha) April 8, 2017

Most wickets by leg-spinners in IPL:

124 – Amit Mishra 
121 – Piyush Chawla 
58 – YUZVENDRA CHAHAL*
57 – Shane Warne 
45 – Anil Kumble

OUT! Brathwaite clean bowled by Chahal. Delhi 113/6 in the 15th over.

Brathwaite b Chahal 1(5)

Pat Cummins is the new man in.

After 14 overs,Delhi Daredevils 112/5 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 42 , Carlos Brathwaite 1)

Watson bowls the 14th over. Bowling with good changes of pace. Brathwaite ducks underneath a slow bouncer. Five runs from that over. A good one for RCB in the context of the match.

After 13 overs,Delhi Daredevils 107/5 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 38 , )

Rishabh Pant cuts a wide one from Abdullah to the backward point fence and goes big on the next ball. Goes down on one knee and sends the ball soaring over the long on boundary. The next delivery is wide outside off and the then Abdullah bowls a leg side wide. Pant is forcing the bowler to get his line all messed up. Abdullah gets it right with the last ball of the over and catches Morris plumb in front of the stumps with one that did not spin. A costly over though with 13 runs coming from that over. 

That brings Carlos Brathwaite of the ‘Remember the name’ fame to the crease.

OUT! Morris caught plumb infront of the stumps. Delhi 107/5 after 13 overs.

Morris lbw b I Abdulla 4(5)

Carlos Brathwaite is the new batsman.

After 12 overs,Delhi Daredevils 94/4 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 27 , Chris Morris 3)

Shane Watson takes up the bowling, Pant goes after him and gets a six over backward square leg off the third ball. Binny gets his hand to the ball, but can’t stop it from going over the boundary. The fifth ball is a really wide one. Pant throws his bat at it and gets a single. Another single off the last ball. Nine runs off that over.

After 11 overs,Delhi Daredevils 85/4 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 20 , Chris Morris 1)

Stanlake to Pany and a single is taken off the first ball. In the next ball, Samson plays a shot to third man and Mills lets the ball through his legs and to the boundary. That a comical error. Stanlake comes back to send back Samson. Poor shot selection from Samson though as he holes out to Binny at long on. Chris Morris is the new man in.

OUT! Another wicket goes down. Samson holes out at long on off Stanlake. Delhi 84/4 in the 11th over.

Samson c Binny b Stanlake 13(12)

After 10 overs,Delhi Daredevils 79/3 ( Sanju Samson 9 , Rishabh Pant (W) 19)

Mills back into the attack. Rishabh Pant showing why he is rated so highly. Turns one to the backward square leg fence and follows it up with a wristy shot through midwicket for a two. Nine runs off that over. Delhi need 79 runs at the midway stage.

After 9 overs,Delhi Daredevils 70/3 ( Sanju Samson 8 , Rishabh Pant (W) 11)

Chahal in for his third over, and bowls a tidy one. Just five runs off that over and the players take a strategic timeout.

Rishabh Pant comes back after a personal tragedy and what does he do first ball? Whack one for six. Bravo #RCBvDD

— Arun Venugopal (@scarletrun) April 8, 2017

Sam Billings was a huge wicket. He was the one capable of top class innovative strokes that could have demoralised bowlers. 3 quick wickets have pegged back DD. But RCB need to do a lot more. dd still have some aggressive batsmen in their ranks. Rookie Pant, Brathwaite & Morris precisely

After 8 overs,Delhi Daredevils 65/3 ( Sanju Samson 8 , Rishabh Pant (W) 7)

Abdullah to Billings, who slashes hard at a wide one from Abdullah, gets an outside edge and Stanlake takes an easy catch at short third man. The hard-hitting Rishabh Pant comes in. He has had a tough time, dealing with bereavement, but shows a lot of character to turn out for his team. He immediately announces his presence by coming down the track and depositing that ball into the stands at deep midwicket.

Sam Billings was a huge wicket. He was the one capable of top class innovative strokes that could have demoralised bowlers. Three quick wickets have pegged back DD. But RCB need to do a lot more. dd still have some aggressive batsmen in their ranks. Rookie Pant, Brathwaite & Morris precisely

Mishra would be without an IPL contract if he had to bowl as much as Chahal has done at Chinnaswamy. And Chahal hs excelled at it.

— Alagappan Vijayakumar (@IndianMourinho) January 26, 2017

OUT! Abdullah gives RCB the third breakthrough as Billings is caught by Stanlake at short third man. Delhi 55/3 in the 8th over.   

Billings c Stanlake b I Abdulla 25(19)

Rishabh Pant comes in.

After 7 overs,Delhi Daredevils 53/2 ( Sam Billings 24 , Sanju Samson 6)

Chahal back into the attack. One leg-spinner, Mishra, went the distance. Can Chahal do better? Chahal is getting some turn. But Billings improvises and reverse sweeps Chahal for a six over backward point. Talk about the game having revolutionised!

Karun Nair since his triple century v England across formats:
14, 12, 28, 7, 14, 12, 4, 26, 0, 23, 5, 4 (Today)

Karun Nair since his triple century v England across formats:

14, 12, 28, 7, 14, 12, 4, 26, 0, 23, 5, 4 (Today)

After 6 overs,Delhi Daredevils 43/2 ( Sam Billings 16 , Sanju Samson 4)

Billy Stanlake disturbs Karun Nair’s furniture. He is clean bowled for 4. There was movement off the pitch that beat the outside edge of Karun’s bat and he was beaten also for pace. Not a lot of time for hime to move his feet. Samson is the new batsman and gets underway with a good-looking shot to square leg, but is denied a boundary by another great piece of fielding by Chahal. Stanlake is creating some difficulties though. RCB have kept nthe lid on the scoring in the first six overs.

OUT! Karun Nair beaten for pace and is bowled. Stanlake gets the wicket. Delhi 38/2 in the sixth over.   

Nair b Stanlake 4(3)

Sanju Samson is the new man in.

After 5 overs,Delhi Daredevils 37/1 ( Sam Billings 14 , Karun Nair 4)

Tymal Mills into the attack for the first time. Bowling it a bit short to Tare and bowls Tare with an incoming delivery. Karun Nair walks in to join Billings. Mills induces an outside edge of fNair’s bat off the last delivery. Nair has trouble getting on top of that ball with extra bounce, but gets a fortuitous boundary.

Ball pitched up on leg stump is bread and butter to most batsmen. Yet Stanlake bowled twice there to Tare. Flicked through square leg & midwicket region to fence. Rest of deliveries he was like a cat on a hot tin roof. RCB need to get smart pretty soon. Not wait for ball to get old and soft. Don’t have cushion of big total

OUT! Tare bowled by Mills. RCB draws first blood. Delhi are 33/1 in the 5th over.   

Tare b Mills 18(17)

Karun Nair is the new man in.

Ball pitched up on leg stump is bread and butter to most batsmen. Yet Stanlake bowled twice there to Tare. Flicked through square leg & midwicket region to fence. Rest of deliveries he was like a cat on a hot tin roof. RCB need to get smart pretty soon. Not wait for ball to get old and soft. Don’t have cushion of big total

After 4 overs,Delhi Daredevils 32/0 ( Aditya Tare 18 , Sam Billings 13)

Left arm orthodox bowler Iqbal Abdullah into the attack now. Tare gets a healthy edge and it goes between the keeper and Gayle at first slip and runs away to the fence. It went a bit btoo fast for Gayle it seemed. Meanwhile there ois a direct hit from Negi, but no cause for alarm for Delhi. A fine fielding by Binny at the wide long on fence denies Billings a boundary. A great one-handed and athletic stop. Delhi going at 8 runs per over after 4.

After 3 overs,Delhi Daredevils 21/0 ( Aditya Tare 11 , Sam Billings 9)

Stanlake for his second over. Bowls a full one on leg and Tare takes full toll, sending it to the fence. Tare drives the fourth ball. A good-looking shot but goes straight to the cover fielder. Stanlake is getting a bit wayward with his line and length. The last ball of the over is again full and on the pads. Tare sends it to the square leg fence.

After 2 overs,Delhi Daredevils 13/0 ( Aditya Tare 3 , Sam Billings 9)

Leg-spinner Chahal comes in to bowl in the second over itself. Chahal, if one remembers, had destroyed England in the third T20I of the series with a six-for on this ground. Tidy over.

After 1 overs,Delhi Daredevils 9/0 ( Aditya Tare 1 , Sam Billings 7)

Stanlake bowling fast. Billings gets Delhi’s first boundary with a shot on the leg side behind the keeper. He plays the next ball to deep midwicket. Superb fieldig by Chahal saves a run for his side. The commentators and Gayle are having some fun and laughs in the meanwhile.

Few years ago a guy called @RobWalter17 told me that this @JadhavKedar guy can play.. Not that I didn't believe him, but oh my, this is good

— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) April 8, 2017

Play starts after the break. Billy Stanlake begins the bowling for RCB. Aditya Tare and Sam Billings opens for Delhi.

Not enough for #RCB. Not at all. But #DD not the strongest batting line-up either. Need a good start

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

Did you know?

The lowest total defended by team who batted 20 overs in the first innings at Bangalore in IPL is 156. In 2008, RCB defended 156 v DC and in 2013, they defended 156 v MI.

The last time when a team won the match after scoring less than 200 runs in the first innings at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore was in 2015 when CSK beat RCB after scoring 181 runs in their first innings. Since then five matches have been played at this venue.

Have RCB got enough runs on the board? Indications are they are 20 runs short. But can never be certain when it comes to pressures of chasing a target. Especially as DD batsmen not hugely experienced. Would be very interesting to see how rcb spinners fare. Only Jadhav of the rcb batsmen got the timing of strokes right on slow track. Over to DD batsmen.

After 20 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 157/8 ( Iqbal Abdulla 5 , )

Morris bowls the last over. Negi finally connects one sweetly and sends one over long off into the stands. Morris comes back with a fuller one and uproots Negi’s middle stump. Tymal Mills comes in as the new batsman. The last ball produces another wicket as Mills is bowled. Delhi end strongly, restricting RCB to a manageable 157/8. The Delhi batters will surely fancy pulling this chase off, but you never know in T20 cricket. Chahal and Co may have something to say about that.

Have RCB got enough runs on the board? Indications are they are 20 runs short. But can never be certain when it comes to pressures of chasing a target. Especially as DD batsmen not hugely experienced. Would be very interesting to see how rcb spinners fare. Only Jadhav of the RCB batsmen got the timing of strokes right on slow track. Over to DD batsmen.

Not enough for #RCB. Not at all. But #DD not the strongest batting line-up either. Need a good start

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

OUT! Mills bowled off the last ball. RCB end innings at 157/8

Mills b Morris  0(3)

A decade ago Chandu Borde had told me Kedar Jadhav will bat at 5 for India in Tests At 31 he is an established ODI player Didn't play Test

— Makarand Waingankar (@wmakarand) April 8, 2017

OUT! Negi is cleaned up by Morris. The middle stump uprooted.  

Negi b Morris 10(8)

Tymal Mills is the new man in.

After 19 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 150/6 ( Pawan Negi 4 , Iqbal Abdulla 4)

Cummins bowls the penultimate over. Things have really quietened after Kedar’s departure. Some short-pitched stuff from Cummins. The RCB batsmen pull but don’t time at all. The difference of quality in batsmanship is evident after Kedar’s departure as the batsmen are late on their puls.

Zak mein abhi bhi dam hai! Superb spell and astute captaincy. Bangalore under big pressure

— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) April 8, 2017

After 18 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 144/6 ( Pawan Negi 1 , Iqbal Abdulla 1)

Iqbal Abdullah and Pawan Negi the two new batsmen. Chris Morris comes back into the attack and the RCB batters are finding it hard to get him away. Only two runs from the 18th over. Kedar’s wicket may have made a difference of at least 20 runs to the RCB score.

pawan negi batting against the team that paid him 8.5 crores but couldn't find a regular place for him in the XI #RCBvDD

— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) April 8, 2017

28 – The no. of wickets taken by Zaheer Khan at Bangalore which is the second most by any bowler in IPL at the mentioned venue. 

Pawan Negi in IPL-9:

Innings-6
Runs-57
Average-28.50
HS-19*

After 17 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 142/6 ( Pawan Negi 0 , )

Zaheer to bowl his last over. Gets hit over long on by Vishnu Vinod for a six. A good piece of fielding by Nadeem has Vinod short of the crease. And then a huge blow for RCB as Kedar skies one off Zaheer and is caught at mid off. A greatr innings by Kedar, but the crafty Zaheer doing the job in the end for his team.

OUT! Zaheer removes Kedar. Huge wicket for Delhi

Kedar c Chris Morris b Zaheer 69(37)

Kedar Jadhav’s first 26 balls in this innings:

First 17 balls – 15 runs
Next 9 balls – 36 runs

OUT! Good fielding from Nadeem and Vinod is run out. RCB 142/5

Vishnu Vinod run out 9(5)

After 16 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 134/4 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 68 , Vishnu Vinod 2)

Brathwaite to Kedar and the batsman goes over the bowler’s head and gets a boundary. The last ball produces an audacious shot. Brathwaite was trying to bowl a yorker, Kedar was deep in the crease and launched that ball into orbit. Another one for the Delhi bowlers to collect from the stands.

Most wickets at Bangalore in IPL:

30 – Yuzvendra Chahal 

27 – R Vinay Kumar 

27 – ZAHEER KHAN*

22 – Sreenath Arvind

Kedar Jadhav’s first 26 balls in this innings:

First 17 balls – 15 runs

Next 9 balls – 36 runs

After 15 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 121/4 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 57 , )

Zaheer back into the attack. Can the crafty Delhi captain pull things back? Kedar goes after him though. The pint-sized batsman is not overwhelmed by big names. He pulls Zaheer and gets a boundary at sqaure leg. Zaheer comes back to dent the RCB though off the last ball as Binny holes out to Billings at deep midwicket. The good thing for RCB though is that Kedar is still there. Vishnu Vinod joins Kedar at the centre.

OUT! Binny departs, caught at deep midwicket off Zaheer. RCB 12/4 after 15 overs

Binny c Billings b Zaheer 16 (18)

Vishnu Vinod out in the middle to join Kedar.

Kedar Carnage at Chinnaswamy! 50 off 26b for the dangerous fella! #RCBvDD #PlayBold

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 8, 2017

What a special player Kedar Jadhav has become. Or maybe he always was and we didn't find him!

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

After 14 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 114/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 52 , Stuart Binny 15)

Brathwaite into the attack. Binny gives Kedar the strike and Kedar goes on the offensive again. Goes deep inside the crease and whips the ball away to the midwicket fence. The next ball produces an unbelievable insude out shit for six. Kedar takes a couple on the next ball and that’s fifty for Kedar. What a player he is, and he has brought the RCB innings right back on track.

Wow! That’s some punch from the pint-sized Jadhav. He lined up leggie Mishra and clobbered him for 24. Crowd gone berserk in Chinnaswamy stadium. RJ  Rakesh playing the crowd like the pro he is. RCB race to 100. Jadhav single-handedly taking the fight to opposition. 51 off 26 balls!

After 13 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 99/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 39 , Stuart Binny 13)

Mishra replaces Nadeem and Kedar gets stuck into the leggie. He has decided Mishra has got to travel the distance. A well tossed up delivery and Kedar sends the ball sailing over long on for a six. The next ball is driven hard down the  ground for a four. There’s no stopping that. The next ball is dismissed again. Kedar goes over the bowler’s head and almost collects a six. Two runs off the next ball. This is already a very expensive over. What can Mishra do? The last ball goes the distance again though as goes down on his knees and deposits that one into the stands at long on. That’s the 50thb six for Kedar in IPL. A massive over for RCB. Strategic timeout taken. A much needed after a breathless over.

After 12 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 74/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 15 , Stuart Binny 13)

Cummins back into the attack. Cummins to Binny and the batsman plays hits one hard towards wide long on. It looked like a certain two, but in fact goes for a four. A desperate dive by the fielder in the deep, but to no avail. Great timing on that shot. Some sloppy cricket from Delhi on the next ball, and it is, would you believe, Nadeem as his wayward throw at the bowler’s end gives away an overthrow. A leg bye behind the keeper on the last ball.

Most times dismissed by slow left-arm orthodox bowlers in IPL:
20 – Brendon McCullum
17 – SHANE WATSON*
16 – Robin Uthappa

Most times dismissed by slow left-arm orthodox bowlers in IPL:

20 – Brendon McCullum

17 – SHANE WATSON*

16 – Robin Uthappa 

At Bangalore in IPL before this match:

Leg-spin: Wickets-74, Average-28.01, SR-19.30, Eco.-8.71

Slow left-arm orthodox: Wickets-47, Average-31.17, SR-23.98, Eco.-7.80

Off-spin: Wickets-43, Average-37.60, SR-28.37, Eco.-7.95

Rcb in a spin. Didn’t have too many batsmen to start with. Just Gayle and Watson the heavyweights. Lost both in a jiffy. Spin working for Delhi after Cummins gets his scalp. Rcb desperately need jadav & Binny to fire. Pitch not the usual chinnaswamy one so far. Half way stage and just 61 On the board. Not encouraging at all.

After 11 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 66/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 14 , Stuart Binny 7)

Nadeem to Binny, who takes a single. Nadeem to Kedar and the batsman is beaten. Smart work from Pant behind the stumps. A huge appeal for stumping. Pant is very confident, and the umpire goes upstairs. Replays show however that Kedar had his foot behind the crease. Not out. But another fine over by Nadeem. Sanjay Manjrekar rechristens him on air as “Shabash” Nadeem.

After 10 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 61/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 12 , Stuart Binny 4)

Zaheer back into the attack and bowls a tidy over. Gives away just six runs. At the halfway stage, it must be said, Delhi have kept RCB under the leash.

RCB in a spin. Didn’t have too many batsmen to start with. Just Gayle and Watson the heavyweights. Lost both in a jiffy. Spin working for Delhi after Cummins gets his scalp. RCB desperately need Jadhav & Binny to fire. Pitch not the usual Chinnaswamy one so far. Half way stage and just 61 On the board. Not encouraging at all.

After 9 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 55/3 ( Kedar Jadhav (W) 10 , Stuart Binny 0)

Nadeem is really bowling well and now he gets the wicket of Watson. He extracted extra bounce there which beat the batsman. A massive blow for RCB. They look under the cosh a bit, having lost Gayle, Mandeep and Watson.

Really feel for young Rishabh Pant. Losing your father is a terrible blow and cricket is only a weak balm. But at least it is a balm

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

At Bangalore in IPL before this match:
Leg-spin: Wickets-74, Average-28.01, SR-19.30, Eco.-8.71
Slow left-arm orthodox: Wickets-47, Average-31.17, SR-23.98, Eco.-7.80
Off-spin: Wickets-43, Average-37.60, SR-28.37, Eco.-7.95

Watson struggled against left arm spin (Nadeem) last season, scoring 9 runs in 21 balls with three dismissals. #IPL

— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) April 8, 2017

OUT! Watson is stumped by Rishabh Pant off Nadeem. Another big blow for RCB. They are 55/3 in the 9th over. Stuart Binny is the new man in.

Watson st Pant b Nadeem 24 (24)

Delhi bowling has depth and fine variety. Not easy for Bangalore, with batting already so weakened. Need about 180 to be competitive

— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) April 8, 2017

After 8 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 53/2 ( Shane Watson (C) 23 , Kedar Jadhav (W) 9)

Amit Mishra into the attack now. Cummins is off. Mishra to Kedar and both look very similar. Kedar comes down the track on the fourth ball and plays Mishra inside out over cover and deposits the ball into the stands. Kedar had been in great form during the England ODI series. He is a dimunitive batsman but is a dynamite

After 7 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 45/2 ( Shane Watson (C) 22 , Kedar Jadhav (W) 2)

Nadeem resumes after the strategic break and bowls another tidy over. Just four runs coming off that over.

After 6 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 41/2 ( Shane Watson (C) 20 , Kedar Jadhav (W) 0)

Cummins back in the attack. Delhi captain Zaheer is rotating his bowlers, but Mandeep shows his class. First he punches a back of a length delivery in front of square and on the very next ball plays a magnificent cover drive. But Cummins has the last laugh as the batsman chops one onto his stumps. Mandeep went hard at the ball and there was hardly any movement of the feet. He looked good but would be cursing himself for not going on to make a big score. Kedar is the new man in and he is beaten all ends up on the first ball he faces.

And that’s the strategic timeout. RCB has not been allowed to run away in the first six overs.

OUT! Mandeep chops that delivery from Cummins onto his stumps. RCB lose their second wicket for 41.  

Mandeep b Cummins 12 (10)

After 5 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 32/1 ( Shane Watson (C) 19 , Mandeep Singh 4)

A bowling change again. Left arm orthodox bowler Shahbaz Nadeem into the attack. Nadeem is a great talent and has been doing well in the Ranji Trophy. Cummins taken off after only one over. Only two runs from that Nadeem over.

After 4 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 30/1 ( Shane Watson (C) 18 , Mandeep Singh 4)

A huge blow for RCB, losing Gayle so early. The young and vastly talented Mandeep walks out to join his captain Watson in the middle and gets a boundary of the last ball. Loose delivery that, a full toss and Mandeep helps himself.

From clearing Chinnaswamy to not being able to clear its infield, Gayle's life has come a full circle indeed.

— Alagappan Vijayakumar (@IndianMourinho) April 8, 2017

OUT! Disaster for RCB. Gayle slices a full toss from Morris, the ball goes way up in the air and Sanju Samson takes a blinder at mid off. Gayle goes for 6, RCB 26/1

Gayle c Samson b Morris 6 (8)

Mandeep Singh is the new amn at the centre.

After 3 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 26/0 ( Chris Gayle 6 , Shane Watson (C) 18)

Change in bowling. Zaheer off, Cummins on. Cummins had a fine Test series against India. Can he continue the good work in the IPL? He is bowling to his fellow Australian Watson and he cuts ferociously towards third man, but why is Varun Aaron so far inside from the fence at third man? Gayle defends the first ball he faces from Cummins. It was short of a good length and Gayle gets behind the line and plays it down quitely. 

Watson gets room on the last delivery of that over and goes after that and picks up a boundary at point. A good over for RCB with seven runs coming.

RCB has opted for 3 spinners and a specialist wicket keeper to back them. Chinnaswamy stadium has 2 pitches. One supporting spin ..like in the test vs Australia and the other which is a flat batsman’s pitch. Watson opting to bat first suggests he expects batting second to be tougher. Delhi team has gone quite the opposite. Question is, who knows the pitch better? Rcb’s Kiwi ex- player & current coach Daniel Vettori or DD’s mentor – ex Karnataka cricketer Rahul Dravid! We’ll know

After 2 overs,Royal Challengers Bangalore 19/0 ( Chris Gayle 5 , Shane Watson (C) 13)

Chris Morris into    the attack now. Watson drives and gets a thick outside edge. The ball races towards the backward point boundary and Pat Cummins messes it up on the fence. Four for RCB. 

Fourth ball of the over and Gayle plays it wonderfully through cover. He just leans on it and the ball runs to the fence. Great timing on that. Morris gets back at Gayle though on the last ball as the big West Indian swings and misses.

can't even imagine how tough this is for young rishabh pant. has just cremated his father and flown in to bangalore #RCBvDD

— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) April 8, 2017

After 1 over,Royal Challengers Bangalore 10/0 ( Chris Gayle 1 , Shane Watson (C) 9)

Zaheer bowls the first over and the second ball goes for a four, as Watson hits one in front of square. The fourth ball is cover driven beautifully by the RCB captain to the boundary.  Bangalore starts well and it looks a good pitch.

Can see where things are headed. Play two overseas quicks, Indian spinners and batsmen, overseas seam bowling all-rounder and big batsman

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 8, 2017

Shane Watson and Chris Gayle walk out to open the batting for #RCB, Zaheer Khan has the ball for #DD! #RCBvDD #PlayBold pic.twitter.com/wBN6bAGr8u

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 8, 2017

The Delhi players are out in the middle and here comes the gladiator Chris Gayle, along with the stand-in RCB captain Shane Watson. RCB will rely on their opening duo to give them a brisk start. Gayle showed glimpses of form in the last match and if he gets going, it will be a long night for the Delhi bowlers.

Royal Challengers Bangalore have lost only one match against Delhi Daredevils since 2011 in IPL. They won nine matches during the same period.

Did you know?

Royal Challengers Bangalore have lost only one match against Delhi Daredevils since 2011 in IPL. They won nine matches during the same period.

The Bengaluru pitch did quite a lot during the recent Test match between India and Australia. There were a lot of uneven bounce. Hopefully, the one this evening allows more strokeplay.

At Bangalore in IPL:

Highest run-scorer: Virat Kohli (1763 runs from 53 innings)

Highest wicket-taker: Yuzvendra Chahal (30 wickets from 21 matches)

Highest total: 263/5 (by RCB v PW in 2013)

Lowest total: 82 (by RCB v KKR in 2011)

The @RCBTweets are warming-up for their first home game this #IPL season #RCBvDD pic.twitter.com/VPVCLK60Qs

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 8, 2017

#IPL Match 5 - Here are the Playing XIs of @RCBTweets & @DelhiDaredevils #RCBvDD pic.twitter.com/uprOin8m1B

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 8, 2017

There are four changes in teh RCB side. Billy Stanlake, Vishnu Vinod, Pawan Negi and Iqbal Abdullah come in.

Sam Billings, Pat Cummins, Chris Morris and Carlos Brathwaite are the four overseas players for Delhi Daredevils.

Royal Challengers Bangalore v Delhi Daredevils in IPL:

Matches – 17

RCB won – 10

DD won – 6

No result – 1

Royal Challangers Bangalore v Delhi Daredvils at Bangalore in IPL:

Matches – 7

RCB won – 3

DD won – 3

No result – 1 

RCB captain Shane Watson wins the toss and elects to bat.

The Royal Challengers take on Dravid's Daredevils. Buy your tickets to our #VIVOIPL opener at home: https://t.co/yPlOrQKcFc #PlayBold pic.twitter.com/IW5E7rWGHv

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 7, 2017

Any team winning the toss will chase at this venue. Point is: are rival bowling units good enough to defend a target at M Chinnaswamy Stadium?  The pitch is usually firm and true for IPL and the boundary too is short. DD are marginally ahead in bowling quality only because of experience and variety. But are they all match-fit after being out of the game with injuries, retirement and lack of opportunities? RCB’s probem is not really the bowling. That looked adequate against SRH. It’s their fielding that needs serious attention.

Problem for RCB is too few hiding places on the field. Gayle, Watson, Chaudhary, Arvind,  Mills, Sachin Baby all need to be tucked away into some safe corner. Just that there aren’t enough such places. Would be good idea to auction those fielding spots among the players! Goes with the territory.

Take butter off menu: That’s first thing RCB coach Vettori has to ensure. No Butter Chicken, no Dal Makhani, no Butter Nan, etc till his butter-fingered fielders come up with a cracking performance. Small mercy Amul is not RCB sponsor. RCB lost to SRH because of fielding. Delhi Daredevils, after drop outs, are not as potent as SRH but without good fielding any batsman can take game away on M Chinnaswamy Stadium’s true pitch and short boundaries. DD’s key bowlers, Shami, Misra, et al are fresh out of rehabilitation. Batting is depleted too.  Opponents RCB batsmen Gayle, Watson, Head, Jadhav and bowlers Mills, Chaudhary, Chahal will be overjoyed if home team fielding too lifts itself.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the fifth match of IPL 2017. RCB take on Delhi Daredevils at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore. RCB lost their first match to the defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad in the season opener and will want to get back to winning ways, while Delhi who have been the underachievers in the IPL will also look to start well. Both teams will however be hamstrung by the absence of some of their star performers