Our Correspondent
Royal Challengers Bangalore registered a massive 82-run victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on October 12.
RCB captain Virat Kohli had opted to bat, reasoning that the pitch will be slower in the second half.
Man of the match AB de Villiers and Kohli had a 100-run partnership that steered the side to 194 for two. The South African batsman played an aggressive 73 off 33 balls (five boundaries and six sixes) while Kohli hit 33 off 28 balls.
This was followed by RCB spinners tightening the chase. Washington Sundar (2/20) and Yuzvendra Chahal (1/12) gave KKR a hard time and they could never really score on a sluggish wicket. The success of the spinners was partly down to the tiring pitches and the absence of grass.
For KKR, Shubhman Gill topscored with 34 off 25 balls, and the team finished at 112 for nine.
Rahul Tripathi, who had played brilliant innings against Chennai and Delhi, was shuffled to the lower-middle order, this time to accommodate IPL debutant Tom Banton at the top. Banton could make only 8 off 12 balls. Tripathi batted at No. 7 and by the time he came in, the game was up for the Knight Riders.
