Cricket

IPL 2020: RCB ended up 20-25 runs short because they held back AB de Villiers – Aakash Chopra

 

Former Indian opener and now a cricket commentator Aakash Chopra believes Royal Challengers Bangalore ended up 20-25 runs short of the par score against Kings XI Punjab at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Thursday as they held back AB de Villiers. Chopra feels it was a bizarre decision from Virat Kohli and Co. to demote AB de Villiers in the batting order.

It was surprising to note AB de Villiers batting at number six as he was in prime form in the previous match against Kolkata Knight Riders as he had smashed 73 runs from 33 balls, when everyone had struggled to get going.

Washington Sundar and Shivam Dube were sent ahead of AB de Villiers. Virat Kohli revealed in the post-match ceremony that the idea was to continue with the right and left-hand batting combination.

Furthermore, they didn’t want to expose AB de Villiers against the two KXIP leg-spinners – Ravi Bishnoi and Murugan Ashwin. AB doesn’t have a great record against the leg-spinners but still AB is RCB’s best batsman along with Virat Kohli.

The best batsman of the team should get the opportunity to face the maximum balls but it wasn’t the case. AB joined forces with Virat Kohli in the 17th over of the innings and he could only manage two runs from five balls. Thus, RCB posted 171 runs after electing to bat first at Sharjah and they were well below a par score.

Aakash Chopra said while talking on his YouTube Channel, “We didn’t see him probably because there were two leg-spinners. I mean this was bizarre. AB de Villiers has been dismissed by leg-spinners few times, he has an average of something like 6-6.5 against the googly and has been out 7 times, so just because of the numbers sending him so low down in the batting order meant that RCB ended up 20-25 runs short.” 

It was a poor call from Virat Kohli and the RCB’s think tank to hold back AB de Villiers in the batting order. Kohli also admitted the mistake and stated that the plan didn’t work out as they had hoped for.

RCB is at the third place in the points table after five wins from eight matches. The Virat Kohli-led team will next face Rajasthan Royals at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on 17th October.

 

 

About the Author


Written by DafaNews

DafaNews brings you the most highlighted news in the world of Sports. It serves you up-to-date matches, scores, live streams, fantasy games and quizzes. Our news covers India's prestigious leagues and events – Premier League, Pro Kabbadi League, Cricket World Cup and many more. Follow DafaNews on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,Telegram and Youtube for more updates.

Related Post
Share
Published by
DafaNews

Recent Posts

Anthony Amalraj Bats for League Systems to Propel Indian Table Tennis Forward

At the launch of the fourth edition of the Table Tennis Super League (TTSL) in… Read More

May 23, 2025

Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran Shine as LSG End IPL Campaign on High Note with Win Over GT

Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran delivered commanding performances to guide Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) to… Read More

May 23, 2025

Sandesh Jhingan Urges Team Unity Ahead of Crucial Asian Cup Qualifier

As India gears up for a decisive clash against Hong Kong in the AFC Asian… Read More

May 23, 2025

RCB vs SRH IPL 2025: Virat Kohli in focus as RCB aim top-two finish against SRH who have nothing to lose

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in what is there  first match,… Read More

May 23, 2025

IPL 2025: Vaibhav Suryavanshi reveals he received 500 missed calls after century against GT

Rajasthan Royals young prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi revealed he received 500 missed calls after he scored… Read More

May 23, 2025

IPL 2025: We conceded 15-20 runs extra, admits Shubman Gill after loss against LSG

Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill admitted they conceded 15-20 runs extra after suffering a 33-run… Read More

May 23, 2025