Indian Premier League 2021
IPL 2021: MI vs RCB – How de Villiers turned the game Bangalore's way
After losing both Virat Kohli and Maxwell, RCB were struggling.
After Trent Boult cleaned up debutant Rajat Patidar, the scoreboard read 46/2.
Skipper Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell then took charge of the run chase and with laughs aplenty, appeared to be well in control of the run chase.
Virat Kohli was then sent back by his IPL nemesis Jasprit Bumrah.
Two overs later, Maxwell failed to clear short fine leg and was heading back after scoring 39.
RCB stilled needed 56 runs to beat the defending champions in this opening fixture of IPL 2021.
Remember Royal Challengers Bangalore were chasing 159/9 thanks to a stellar bowling display by seamer Harshal Patel (5/27).
But now, with a task at hand, RCB turned to their old warhorse – AB de Villiers.
How de Villiers turned the game in RCB's favour
The South African legend, not having played competitive cricket, since the IPL back in the UAE, started cautiously.
Slowly but surely, his stroke play kicked in.
He drove, cut, flicked, milked his way around Chepauk and then took the aerial route
With four boundaries and two sixes, de Villiers brought RCB back from the brink of defeat yet again.
At 48 from 27 deliveries and well on his way to taking RCB home, the batting wizard was undone by a precise throw from the deep by Krunal Pandya.
Harshal Patel, however, ensured that RCB, crossed the finish line with a single off the final ball.
In his own words…
In the post-match interview, de Villiers acknowledged that scoring wasn't quite easy on the wicket.
"Coming into the game we knew it wasn't going to be easy. I knew it was going to be tough towards the end. The wicket got slow and it was difficult to score boundaries," he said.
"They are going for three in a row. There's a lot of aura around them. They've got a lot of fighters in their team. Definitely, it's a bit of a confidence booster for us."
When quizzed about his run-out, the legend broke into a rise smile while saying - "I spent the offseason on the treadmill but it wasn't the same,"
AB de Villiers, thus, continues to stamp his influence on RCB and the IPL.
