CSK was having a disastrous season having multiple losses and problems aplenty with their batting and bowling. But they were firmly placed on top of the Fair Play Award, good stuff (sarcasm intended). RR on the other hand looked good with some exceptional wins with all their units clicking, not always in unison but they were putting up formidable performances still sitting at the bottom and CSK one notch above them. Whoever wins this encounter would secure 2 points and leapfrog and get 8 points at 5 and still have chances for a playoff berth.

CSK won the toss and decided to bat first. Faf du Plessis and Sam Curran walked out in the middle to open fit CSK. Faf du Plessis couldn’t continue his magical run as he was dismissed for 10 by Jofra Archer.

Shane Watson joined Curran and was off to a good start with two classic 4s but couldn’t capitalize getting out for 8 dismissed by Kartik Tyagi, the find of the season for RR. CSK lost these two major wickets in their powerplay.

Sam Curran was dismissed in a short while later for 22 and Rayadu with this short stint at the crease with 13 was also dismissed. CSK was yet again in a major batting collapse. At the end of 10 overs, CSK were at 56/4.

Dhoni looked not his usual attacking self but brought up another milestone in his illustrious career, 4000 runs in IPL. He was run out by a whisker of a margin for 28. With Jadeja providing some last minute respite with a knock of 35, he took CSK to a very disappointing 125.

This was a poor batting performance by this champion side and had to bowl out of their skins if they had to put even a fighting chance against this dominant RR outfit.

RR was off to a flyer and Stokes was hitting the boundaries at ease. Uthappa was complementing him well. CSK struck back dismissing Stokes for 19 and Chahar was responsible for this 1st very crucial breakthrough.

Wickets continued to tumble as Samson and Uthappa, the Indian batting powerhouses were out with the latter still struggling to find his feet after his brilliance at the start of the tournament. At the end of the powerplay, CSK managed to get these 3 crucial wickets and the game was certainly far from over.

With Smith and Buttler batting, it didn’t seem tough to chase this. At the halfway stage, RR was poised at 59/3. Buttler didn’t seem fazed by the quick fall of wickets but Smith was talking excruciatingly long to settle in and it was justified as a set Buttler was pretty much covering the trail for this tricky chase.

Buttler was batting well and brought his 50. Now it seemed easy for RR to script a win. Butler with a clinical knock of 70 and Smith ably supporting him with 26 sealed the deal edging CSK by 7 wickets.

Credits to CSK for the quick succession of wickets they got and getting some excitement but RR’s batting specially Buttler stole the show.

With the excitement of the 1st match of today’s double header grabbing our attention with the super over, this match was the next best match of today and I was personally looking forward to it. MI won the toss here and decided to bat first.

Rohit Sharma was dismissed early on for a 9 and de Kock was joined in at the crease by Suryakumar Yadav. He too was dismissed for 0. Was a batting collapse on cards?

Shami and Arshdeep Singh were responsible for these crucial wickets. Ishan Kishan’s stay was also shortlived as he looked off colour and was out for 7. This seemed like a brilliant Kings 11 Punjab’s powerplay and MI was at 43/3.

De Kock looked solid while wickets around him were tumbling. Krunal Pandya joined him at the crease. We got to see some fine shots, good running and they sealed a fluent 50 runs partnership.

Krunal Pandya departed for a 34 soon after and wasn’t able to capitalize. Ravi Bishnoi got this crucial breakthrough for KXIP. De Kock got another 50 in this IPL and was a pleasant sight to see.

Hardik Pandya’s cameo also came to an end early as he was dismissed by Shami and MI was 5 wickets down. Quinton de Kock was accelerating but was out for 53 and now it all depended on Pollard to get MI to a respectable albeit defendable total on board.

Back to back sixes of Arshdeep Singh, Pollard was attacking. With clinical knocks of 34(12) and Coulter Nile with 24(12) drove MI to a competitive 176/6. Shami and Arshdeep were really good with the ball but this last minute flourish ensured MI had a good total to defend.

KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal at the crease. The 1st over saw Rahul giving a faint edge to a Trent Boult delivery that was vociferously appealed by Boult and Agarwal almost getting caught but dropped.

Sitting right at the top of the charts in the orange were these two and a good one from today would further solidify their position. It was a welcome sight to see Virat Kohli at 5 in the orange cap reckoning as well.

Also as the commentators rightly pointed out, there was an interesting match up between Bumrah and the openers. It certainly lived up to that when Bumrah bowled Mayank Agarwal and was troubling Gayle with those splendid length balls. At the end of the powerplay, KXIP was at 51/1.

Gayle and Rahul were building a partnership but had an uneventful stay as he was dismissed by Chahar for 24. Pooran was the new man and was off to a flyer.

Bumrah had the last laugh dismissing Pooran and it was a brilliant over for MI. KL Rahul continued flourishing in his purple patch bringing up a marvelous 50 off 35 balls. MI Leaving no stone unturned, Chahar got his 2nd wicket dismissing Maxwell clocking in his 50 wickets in IPL almost instantaneously after Pooran’s dismissal.

KL Rahul was holding fort at the other end batting extremely well. At the end of 15 overs, KXIP was 125/4 requiring another 52 off 30.

KL Rahul was displaying some fine batting and was bringing the required rate under control. He was complemented well by Deepak Hooda.

It looked like he almost sealed the deal and this was a sure shot win for KXIP but twist in the tale was when Bumrah got the better of him and the disappointment on Priety Zinta’s face reflected that with their match winner dismissed who would guide KXIP home?

Bumrah’s delivery was brilliant and could be seen on repeat for the sheer tenacity and the accuracy of that yorker. He ended his spell with those 3 brilliant wickets.

With Deepak Hooda and Jordan still getting those boundaries, all didn’t seem over for KXIP. The last over now demanded KXIP to get 9 more. Would we be witnessing a 2nd super over in this double header Sunday?

Boult was handed over the reins for the last over who had had a mediocre match today. Perhaps he could curtail the runs. The 1st ball started with a catch dropped by Coulter Nile that was certainly a tough one but saved runs for MI. 8 off 5 was still needed and MI was still changing fielding positions. Jordan got a brilliant boundary off a Boult yorker and now 4 off 4 was the equation.

A single was taken and Hooda was on strike. Boult bowled another yorker on the leg side that wasn’t called a wide. Another single taken and like the previous match 2 off 1 was needed.

Jordan ran for a miraculous 2 runs sprinting his way across when the 2nd run didn’t count and he was run out by a whisker. Brilliant over by Boult.

Another match tied in the same day. History being created with 2 super overs being witnessed in the same day. WOW. This league certainly doesn’t fail to impress and leave all of us in awe.

Super over was here. KXIP sent in KL and Pooran to bat. Rahul took a single and Pooran was out the next ball with a brilliant catch by Anukul. Bumrah bowled this brilliant over and dismissed Rahul as well. What a spell. KXIP made 5 runs off this super over. MI now had to chase 6 to seal this match.

MI sent in Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock (which was maybe not the best call as someone like the Pandya brothers or Kieran Pollard was better to start the proceedings). Shami will be bowling this super over.

De Kock started with a single and Rohit Sharma also took a single. 4 off 4 was needed. Another single and 3 off 3. A dot now for MI as Shami bowled a fabulous yorker. Sharma takes a single and now there’s again a likewise 2 needed off 1. De Kock wasn’t able convert into a 2 and a run out was seen. The match was tied again. MI’s batting was very average. Superb stumping by KL Rahul.

Super over again. Drama doesn’t seem to end here. Shami bowled out of his skin to curtail the runs.

MI was in to bat again and made 11 in their innings bolstered by a brilliant 8 off 5 by Kieran Pollard and Agarwal also complemented him well. Jordan was relatively good in this over.

KXIP comfortably sealed the match when Gayle hit a six and Agarwal with 2 boundaries really left all of us mesmerized and KXIP won the match scoring 15/0. Trent Boult was not his usual self but that’s cricket. Superb visuals. WHAT A MATCH.

The previous encounter featuring the two teams saw KKR emerge victors by a good 7 wickets. What would be the outcome this time around? Good news in the KKR set up was that Narine’s suspect action wasn’t problematic and he was in the clear. The teams placed at 4 and 5 would certainly be looking to get this win under their belt to progress higher in the teams standings.

SRH won the toss and decided to bowl first in this afternoon encounter. Lockie Ferguson and Kuldeep Yadav were in for KKR and Basil Thampi getting go ahead in the SRH camp.

Rahul Tripathi and Shubman Gill started off the proceedings for KKR. Off to a good-ish start, Tripathi was dismissed early on for 23 and at the end of the powerplay, KKR were at 48/1. T Natarajan bowled a beautiful delivery to dismiss Tripathi who completely mistimed the ball and the ball knocked off the bails.

Shubman Gill was batting precariously with Nitish Rana in as the new batsman who looked in fine form hitting 3 boundaries and 1 six when Shubman Gill was dismissed for a below par 36 off 37 where we got to witness Priyam Garg take a fantastic catch to dismiss this young turk. KKR was 87/2.

Soon after Nitish Rana was dismissed for yet another 29 which good start but he wasn’t able to capitalize and convert it to a big one. Vijay Shankar was the man in charge for this wicket and his economical spell really bolstered SRH’s ability to take control and dominate this innings.

Andre Russell, the MVP of 2019 season was still having an abysmal and indifferent IPL was again dismissed for 9 and now KKR was reeling with having lost a major chunk of their batting.

Karthik and Morgan with clinical knocks of 29 and 34 stringing a 58 runs partnership propelled KKR to a competitive and par score on this surface of 163/5.

SRH’s batting saw a rejig with Williamson and Bairstow opening and Warner, the skipper demoting himself to number 3 or maybe even 4. They form the crux of SRH’s batting and with them firing, success is guaranteed for SRH.

Off to a quieter start, Bairstow and Williamson made the most of a Varun Chakravarthy and Russell over making up for the deficit. Williamson seemed to have a little niggle and was hitting some exceptional shots.

At the end of the powerplay, SRH was at 58/0 and the moment they returned from the strategic timeout, Lockie Ferguson struck dismissing Williamson who was well set for a big one for 29.

Lockie Ferguson was having a dream match as he dismissed the impactful Priyam Garg for a lowly 4 and now SRH was 2 wickets down. Finally, Warner walked in. Wickets continued to tumble as Varun Chakravarthy got the big wicket of Bairstow, a set batsman at the crease. At the halfway mark, the score read 74/3.

Kuldeep Yadav’s return was a good 1st over giving away just 5 and SRH fans needn’t lose hope as there was still hope with Pandey and Warner at the crease.

Ferguson’s brilliance continued as he dismissed Pandey for 6 and Vijay Shankar walked in the middle to provide some respite to this SRH batting that was falling like a pack of cards. Shankar and Warner were trying to bat and steady the ship and with Shankar getting dismissed for 7 by Cummims and Warner still at a slow 19 off 21, it was getting tougher for SRH.

The equation now read 47 off 24 balls with Warner and Samad at the crease. They were trying to hit as many boundaries as possible and rotating strike. Requiring another 30 off the final 2, SRH had a big task in board.

The penultimate over by Mavi was very productive for SRH getting a good 12 runs but KKR fought back with a wicket of Samad complemented well by a brilliant catch taken by Ferguson and completed by Gill at the boundary and now slowly the equation was titlting to their KKR’s favour but with Warner still at the crease and pinch hitter Rashid Khan joining in, one couldn’t write off SRH.

The last over was handed over to Dre Russ who started with a wide which later was even a no ball gifting SRH a free hit that wasn’t muscled to the boundary but gave them 2 runs and the next Warner got a boundary. 12 off 4 needed still and Warner got another 4.

8 off 3, would we witness another super over? Warner looked his best attacking self hitting another 4 and that was 3 consecutive boundaries. Now another 4 runs would seal the match for SRH. The skipper took a brilliant 2 and now 2 off 1 was needed. He took a single and the match was tied. Dre Russ really controlled the situation and this was going to be an exciting super over.

The super over saw SRH sending in Warner and Bairstow walking in. Ferguson dismissed Warner in the very first ball and Abdul Samad sas the new man on strike who got 2 runs and was out the next ball by a beautiful yorker that finished it all for SRH. KKR needed just 3 to win and close the match.

KKR sent in the duo of DK and Morgan. Off to a reverse sweep which was a dot, the skipper got a single and gave strike to DK. With a dot, they ran 2 and KKR scripted a legendary victory.

If CSK has to make it to the Playoffs, every game from this stage onwards was going to be crucial to win and cementing a dominating victory would propel their NRR which was the need of the hour. They were having a RCB’sque IPL.

DC on the other hand were having a dream IPL sitting at 2 and CSK languishing at 6 was an interesting match on cards on this double header Saturday.

CSK won the toss and decided to bat first. Off to a disastrous start losing Sam Curran for a duck, 0/1 was the scorecard when Shane Watson walked in. Tushar Deshpande has really been a revelation and DC will be looking for him to keep performing.

They both were batting well, rotating strike and getting those consistent boundaries. At the end of the powerplay, 39/1 was the score on board which even the commentators lamented on being the least in this time span.

Watson looked in fine touch hitting consistent boundaries of Axar Patel and Ravi Ashwin with Faf playing an excellent second fiddle. At the halfway mark, CSK was 71/1 with a lot more to do.

Faf du Plessis with that consistent batting brought in his 50 off 39 balls and before they could now go after the bowling Watson was dismissed for 36 by Nortje further breaking a solid 87 run partnership between the two.

Soon after Faf was dismissed for 58 by Rabada in this milestone day celebrating his 50th scalp and became the fastest to achieve this feat in 27 matches. CSK was reeling under pressure. Rayadu was the new man in and clocked 3500 runs in IPL. Dhoni at the other end wasn’t able to strike it as well as he could and was dismissed for 3 by Nortje again.

Rayadu’s 45 off 25 and Jadeja’s 33 off 13, this fantastic flourish ensured CSK posted a competitive 179 and this would be a tricky chase for DC. Nortje, Rabada and Deshpande were the pick of the bowlers.

In a day of disappointing starts, DC suffered a setback when the young Prithvi Shaw was dismissed for 0 off 2 balls. This was a beautiful wicket maiden over by Deepak Chahar.

Dhawan looked in fine form hitting some exceptional boundaries but Rahane’s unrelenting stay came to an end when he was dismissed by Deepak Chahar for 8.

The new man in was Shreyas Iyer who was almost run out and had an injury scare but with the physios looking in, he seemed to continue. CSK was really putting pressure on DC. At the end of the powerplay, DC was at 41/2.

Dhawan was in solid form and brought in his 40th IPL 50 off 29 balls striking at 172. This was one of his best knocks and as rightly said by him he was peaking at the right time.

At the end of the 11th over, DC was 88/2 getting 12 of the previous Curran over. They now needed 92 off 54 balls and this was still within their reach.

But another jolt when Iyer was dismissed by Bravo for a run a ball 23 and now they were 3 wickets down. Marcus Stoinis was the new man in and was off to a brilliant start getting the consistent boundaries off Karn Sharma.

With the way Dhawan was batting, a 100 seemed very much cards. Stoinis was batting well and they needed 51 off 30 balls. Dhawan was dropped the 3rd time in the night on separate occasions by Thakur, Watson and Rayadu and I think he was primed for a big one now.

Stoonis was dismissed by Thakur for 24 and this was a crucial breakthrough when a strategic timeout was called for. For Alex Carrey, this was the moment to make the most of this crunch opportunity and get a big one partnering Dhawan.

Dhawan with a glorious 4 and a 6 off this Sam Curram over reduced the equation to 30 off 18. All Carey had to do was play second fiddle to Dhawan and he was dismissed for 4 and DC was 5 wickets down. Dhawan needed a stable partner at the other end so he could hit the big ones and Axar Patel was in.

It was almost heartbreaking to see Dhawan getting dismissed caught behind amidst a loud appeal by Dhoni but it was clearly a poor umpiring decision and with Dhawan at 99. He finally brought in his maiden sublime 100 off 57 balls but the task at hand was to chase the total successfully and he would feel satisfied only if they did so.

Requiring 17 off the final over, Jadeja was handed the reins for the final over. He started with a wide and then a single was taken. 15 needed still and Axar Patel hit a delightful 6. 9 off 4, a masterclass chase still on cards?

Another 6 by Axar and now DC needed 3 off 3. These were some unbelievable visuals. Now, they ran for a 2 and 1 run needed. Axar Patel sealed this match with a cracking six and finishing it off in style handing CSK a 5 wickets loss. Again, what a match. DC moves to the top of the table with this win.

Axar Patel’s 21 off 5 balls was a masterpiece knock but Dhawan was something else today with that 100.

Another 3.30 PM (IST) encounter for these two teams who’ve put up some commendable performances this IPL with RCB sitting at 3 and RR at a dismal 7. There were even talks of Buttler being handed over captaincy but the talk didn’t bear any fruit as Smith was the man walking out to the middle for toss.

The last time the teams had taken on each other, we saw RCB thumping RR and riding on a easy 8 wicket win. Will the outcome be different this time around?

RR won the toss and decided to bat first. RR was again experimenting with their openers and sent in Robin Uthappa and Ben Stokes to open the innings for them. It certainly was a welcome sight seeing the RR management giving another straw to this beleaguered veteran of sorts.

In a sense, Uthappa repaying the faith gave RR a brilliant start with those cracking boundaries. He clocked in 4500 runs in IPL and this was a magnanimous feat.

Stokes was also striking really well but a mistimed shot off Morris and he was walking back to the pavilion. RR was at 50/1 when he was dismissed for 15. At the end of the powerplay, RR was at 52/1.

Sanju Samson was the new man in and Uthappa looked in fine touch hitting 4 boundaries off Sundar. He war then dismissed by Chahal for 41 and he struck again dismissing Samson for 9. RR lost 2 crucial wickets in this over and were 69/3.

Jos Buttler and Steve Smith were new at the crease and had to shift gears now to get RR to a competitive total in this game. They were batting slowly and steadily bringing up a very good 50 runs partnership.

This bliss didn’t last long as Buttler was soon after dismissed for 24 and RR was 4 wickets. Steve Smith was batting really well and made the most of Chahal’s spell which was exceptional except this one that was a costly 19 runs over. He brought up his 50, his 3rd of the season and took RR beyond the 150 mark. This was turning out to be a good knock for the skipper.

Trust RCB’s bowling to really give it away as Tewatia was hitting some good boundaries and now at the end of 19 overs, RR was at 173/4. Last over by Morris. Can he restrict them to under 185?

Morris’ over had a good start with a dot ball and the wicket of Smith caught to perfection by Shahbaz Ahmed and this was a magical spell by Morris giving away just a wide, a 2 and a magnificent yorker that LBW’d Archer and brought a close to RR’s innings ending at a competitive 177. This over really restricted RR and what a fantastic last over finish.

RCB was off to a decent start and they were getting some good boundaries. But Finch’s bid for more boundaries wasn’t fruitful as he was dismissed for 14. Skipper Kohli was the new man at the crease and another whirlwind innings from him was needed and ideally AB should be the man if a wicket were to fall.

RCB was going steady with skipper Kohli and Padikkal stringing a good partnership. There was a close dismissal call for Padikkal but Uthappa dropped it, Tewatia was furious and at the end of 10 overs, RCB was at 77/1 with Kohli striking a massive one ending this 10th over.

The required rate was steeply climbing to 10+ and RCB had to accelerate now. Nearing another 86 off 48, both the batsmen were in their 30s had to take risks. It was critical that they did. Devdutt Padikkal was dismissed for a lackluster 35 off 37 balls which was disappointing to see but this would make room for AB which was delightful.

But again this trend of the next wicket falling right after one dismissal continued as Kohli was out for 43 after Padikkal was dismissed in the previous ball and RCB was 3 wickets down.

Tewatia’s moment of brilliance was when he took that exceptional catch at the boundary. It was impressive to see Kartik Tyagi bowling so well and getting these crucial RCB wickets. This over also witnessed a close run out call for Gurkeerat making playing his 1st match of the season, but luckily he survived it.

de Villiers and Gurkeerat were taking time to settle in and de Villiers hit a timely 6 but they still needed a lot more. Requiring 54 off the final 4 overs, this was going to be a very challenging chase but with AB anything was possible.

After the strategic timeout, Gurkeerat was on strike and with 3 dots against Unadkat and a single, the gap was simply increasing. De Villiers hit a glorious six and the next ball was against a close one where he could’ve been caught out and later run out, but he survived that.

RCB now needed 45 off 3 overs and Gurkeerat was doing the smart thing rotating the strike. De Villiers hit a boundary but Gurkeerat was unable to cleanly strike the ball adding to a dubious tally of dots.

De Villiers started off Unadkat’s over with 3 brilliant sixes and suddenly bringing joy to the RCB camp and reducing the equation to 17 off 9. A single and a wide. Gurkeerat finally struck hitting a 4 off Unadkat and this was the over that RCB desperately needed. Now the final over needed 10 and would RCB be able to script this legendary total.

The final over started with a 2 and a single. AB was on strike and he ran hard and they got a 2. Now, the equation read 5 off 3. AB de Villiers, the superman finished it off in style with a fabulous 6 and AB ended with a glorious 55 off 22. What a match and what an innings.

Big news for KKR before the match started that Dinesh Karthik has stepped down ‘gracefully’ from captaincy and the skipper of the English cricket team in limited overs taking over the reins for KKR for the rest of the season was buzzing everywhere.

This was certainly the best thing as KKR needed a turnaround and with the experienced Morgan coming in, things would hopefully change for the better. This would also accommodate Karthik as a keeper batsman and help him solely focus on his batting. Maybe this was a welcome release for him. Time will tell.

KKR won the toss and decided to bat first. Tripathi and Gill were the batsman opening and this is a duo who deserves proper opportunities to prove their mettle, eventually cementing their place in the side at the top and not be subjected to chopping and changing their positioning the batting order especially Tripathi.

Tripathi’s stay at the crease was shortlived as he was dismissed early on for 7. Trent Boult got the wicket of this in form batsman clocking in 50 wickets in the IPL and in was Nitish Rana.

Nitish Rana was out for 5 and has been off colour in the past few matches. The KKR management would really be hoping he gets back in form as he is formidable number 3 whose contributions are crucial. At the end of the powerplay, KKR was at 33/2.

Shubman Gill was again playing the role of an anchor but couldn’t convert it into a big one as he was dismissed by Rahul Chahar with a brilliant one that clearly fixed him. He struck in the very next ball dismissing Karthik for 4. 2 wickets on a single over. Mindblowing stuff. KKR was 4 wickets down and this was turning out to be a very average batting display with the batsman looking listless.

Andre Russell lit up the deflated hopes with a cameo of 12 off 9 but was dismissed soon after by Bumrah in a mistimed lofted shot which landed in the safe gloves of de Kock. KKR was 5 wickets down and there wasn’t really much batting left besides the captain Morgan and pinch hitter Cummins at the crease.

Cummins was hitting those boundaries and certainly helping KKR put a respectable front. Morgan was having a quiet stay at the crease not inspiring any confidence.

KKR scripted a good comeback with Cummins scoring a brilliant 53 off just 36 balls and ably supported by Morgan who scored a 39 off 29.

Scoring a massive 49 runs in the 17 to 20 overs slot, they drove KKR to 148/5 which was a decent effort and a fantastic outing with the bat for Cummins but the rest of the batting will have a lot to reflect on.

MI was off to a flyer with their openers Quinton de Kock and Rohit Sharma batting at ease considering there wasn’t a lot on the board to chase and were effortlessly hitting some really good boundaries.

This brilliant start ensured that at the end of the powerplay, MI was at a comfortable 51/0. Quinton de Kock was in full flow and scored his 3rd 50 in this IPL.

The KKR bowling was finding it really difficult to crack open this and get a breakthrough. However, Shivam Mavi dismissed Rohit Sharma for 35 and Dinesh Karthik was almost about to have a slip up but caught it well enough.

Suryakumar Yadav was the new man in and he was dismissed for 10 where we got to witness a brilliant delivery by Varun Chakravarthy that was suddenly shaking this stable MI batting.

Hardik Pandya joined Quinton de Kock at the crease and batted brilliantly with de Kock bringing in a well crafted 78 off 44 and Pandya scoring a 21 which guided MI to a comprehensive 8 wickets win and 2 crucial points from this game.

2nd installment of these two teams taking on each other was certainly a match to watch out for. KXIP has had a below par and lackluster IPL with them coming close in many matches but eventually losing it. They registered their solitary win vs RCB handing them a 97 runs early on in the season.

RCB on the other hand were having a good season with them putting up an all team performance and losing just 2 encounters sitting comfortably at 3 with 10 points. This was a decisive match for both teams, for RCB to carry on the momentum and for KXIP to move past their 1 win and make the most of the remaining matches.

RCB won the toss and no surprises here, decided to bat 1st in this old Chinnaswamy-sque Sharjah stadium. Virat Kohli’s 200th match for this decorated side (yes read that again, for one side ever since IPL started) and it was a special moment for the skipper undoubtedly.

RCB were off to a decent start with the openers providing the platform for the same. Padikkal was dismissed for 18 getting dismissed by Arshdeep Singh.

Virat Kohli was the new man in and was looking in good touch hitting 3 solid boundaries right at the start. But RCB faced another setback when Finch was dismissed for 20 and Murugan Ashwin was the wicket taker.

Washington Sundar was the new man in fastracked ahead of AB, but this experiment didn’t work out as he was dismissed for 13 soon after RCB was at 83/2 at the halfway mark dismissed by his state teammate M Ashwin.

Kohli was batting well and now Shivam Dube joined him at the crease and it was still quite intriguing as to why AB was being made to wait in the dugout and he’s certainly a gamechanger. Maybe they were preserving him for a late flourish or Kohli wanted a right-left combo to bat in the middle?

But Dube’s rise in order saw him hit a massive six even when the commentators were clueless as to why he came ahead of AB.

His cameo of 23 off 19 came to an end when a lofted shot of Jordan landed comfortably in the hands of a pacing KL Rahul. RCB sending in de Villiers so late clearly defied logic on all grounds and was disappointing as he was dismissed for 2 and RCB was 5 wickets down.

Shami struck again dismissing the set Kohli for 48 and RCB was now in deep trouble. This was clever bowling from Shami. Quite unfortunately this was an unprecedented batting collapse for RCB.

Morris and Udana were still providing some last minute respite with good boundaries and got 24 runs of the last over. Morris provided this cracking finish for RCB and they ended with 171/6.

Morris was effortlessly striking the ball and this cameo would help RCB defend but KXIP’s batting firepower isn’t unknown so we’d have to wait and see how the match pans out.

KXIP was in to bat sending Mayank Agarwal and Rahul in, clearly they didn’t want to interfere with this exceptional opening pair by getting Gayle in the equation. Morris had a good start giving away just 1 run in this 1st over.

And Saini giving away just 4 in the 2nd. Dream start for RCB but this didn’t last long as the openers capitalized on Chahal’s over and with a cracking 6, KXIP brought in 50 on the board in 5.5 overs. Good powerplay.

Chahal finally struck this flourishing partnership for KXIP dismissing this unstoppable Mayank Agarwal for 45 and clocked in his 200th wicket for RCB. Gayle was the new man in at 3 and was taking an awful long to settle in. He had a very slow start and it was a quiet couple of overs for KXIP.

RCB was having a brilliant set of overs till Siraj came in the attack and KXIP needed another 68 off 47 balls and it didn’t look challenging. Gayle’s lukewarm stay at the crease almost came to an end when Morris’ excellent yorker LBW’d him and but the umpire eventually had to overturn his decision.

KL Rahul brought up his 50 off 37, his 20th IPL 50. He could guide the team home comfortably.

With some exceptional shots witnessed in Siraj’s over, KXIP needed just 26 off 24 balls and the equation seemed simple. Gayle regained form thanks to RCB’s bowling and a miss from cricket didn’t cause harm as he brought up his 50 off 36 balls.

Chahal bowled a mindblowing last over with dots but Gayle took a single and Rahul was on strike needing 1 off 3 still. Then twist in the tale, a run out of Gayle by Padikkal. 1 needed off 1. Whose way would it go? The match was an exhilarating one going down to the wire but eventually one team emerges winner and it was KXIP.

Pooran was the new man in. He sealed the deal with a delightful six which couldn’t be caught by Morris. Relief in the KXIP vamp and Preity Zinta was celebrating.

KXIP beat RCB by 8 wickets and they’ve unfortunately been at the last place in the table but their performances haven’t been that bad. But this win certainly did ignite the confidence for their deflated hopes and maybe we could see a turnaround.

Match 30 of Dream 11 IPL was here. It’s almost like yesterday when the IPL started (as cliche as that sounds) and boom, we’re halfway down with the season. This match features DC having an unprecedented albeit excellent season and RR having a very mediocre season.

DC won the toss and decided to bat first. Off to a very poor start, DC lost their opener Prithvi Shaw for 0, a golden duck.

They faced another setback when Ajinkya Rahane was dismissed for 2 by Jofra Archer and they were 2 wickets down. It was a disappointing start most certainly. Dhawan was joined by Shreyas Iyer at the crease.

Dhawan looked in fine touch hitting those good boundaries. At the end of the powerplay, DC was at 47/2. After thr loss of those two early wickets, the skipper and Dhawan were stabilizing the ship and also brought in their 50 runs partnership.

Shikhar Dhawan’s purple patch continued as he brought in his 39th IPL 50. But was dismissed soon after for 57. Shreyas Iyer was also making the most of the loose balls hitting them beautifully and brought his 50 but was dismissed by Kartik Tyagi.

The rest of DC’s batting didn’t last as with Stoinis and Carey contributing 18 and 14 respectively, they took DC to a 161/7.

Archer with his 3 wickets, Unadkar with his 2 wickets and Tyagi for his supreme bowling performance in the 18th over with those crushing Yorkers also returning with a wicket were exceptional with their spells. Their bowling really restricted DC and put them in a good position in the match.

RR was in to bat and sent in Buttler and Stokes, the Englishmen to bat. Off to a brilliant start, they were 10/0 at the end of the 1st over. Deshpande and Nortje’s over were also very fruitful for RR. This was a dream start for RR.

Nortje struck back dismissing Buttler for 22 and RR was 37/1 at the end of 3 overs. He was bowling at 150+ which was really impressive.

It was a good length ball and enough to clean bowl Buttler. Steve Smith’s stay at the crease was uneventful as Ashwin struck dismissing him for 1 and RR was at 40/2.

Stokes was certainly a revelation ag the top of the order. At the end of 10 overs, RR was at 85/2 and Samson was batting well. Stokes’ stay ended when Tushar Deshpande dismissed him for 41 and RR still needed 76 runs. Uthappa was the new man in.

Sanju Samson’s abysmal performance continued as he was out for 25 off 18 again not prolonging his stay and contributing. Axar Patel struck and was celebrating this dismissal.

RR was now engaging in sloppy cricket and were losing plot. Riyan Parag was run our for 1 in something that was clearly not a run and RR was 5 wickets down. DC was really bowling out of their skin and so well that was helping them defend this total.

Tewatia was the new man in and with Uthappa and Tewatia, this was a golden opportunity to prove their mettle and get their team across. Tewatia had a close golden duck dismissal call but Nortje dropped it and DC would be hoping this wouldn’t cost them the match.

With 37 needed off the final 4, it wasn’t impossible for RR but Nortje struck again dismissing Uthappa for a dismal 32 off 27 balls with a speed of 155 kmph. Unbelievable, raw pace and the wickets. He was certainly the find of the season for DC. This over was excellent for DC and Nortje who gave away just 4 runs and a wicket.

RR now needed 25 off the final 2 overs. Archer was one man who could get them past this hurdle but with his dismissal, it was getting tougher for RR. Rahane displayed a brilliant piece of fielding for DC saving a six and this over was already getting dramatic. 20 off 5 was the equation and Tewatia was the man on strike and he mistimed the ball and didn’t take a single. This was a defining moment for debutant Tushar Deshpande being handed the ball for the final over.

Tewatia hit one lofted shot and was almost going to be caught by the bowler had Gopal not intercepted it. Gopal’s wicket was sealed by Deshpande and DC edged out RR by 13 runs. Fabulous match.

Shreyas Iyer’s absence in the latter half was missed and it was made up well by Shikhar Dhawan and the bowlers really stood up and took responsibility which was a fresh sight. DC is certainly a side to reckonf with after a magnificent performance like this and defending the total. Archer’s Bihu dance also grabbed eyeballs, what’s your take on it?

CSK having lot of woes with their batting, really needed a win under their belt to silence critics and SRH on the other hand were having a relatively better IPL with some crucial wins. CSK won the toss and decided to bat first.

CSK sprung a major surprise sending in Sam Curran and Faf du Plessis to open. They received a major setback when du Plessis was dismissed for a golden duck. This was certainly not the start that CSK were hoping for considering the mammoth contributions that he’s been making everytime he steps on to the crease.

Sam Curran making most of his golden opportunity at the top and was hitting some glorious boundaries. His fluent shots made mincemeat of Khaleel’s He was finally dismissed by principle wrecker in charge Sandeep Sharma.

Rayadu was the new man in and was sticking a partnership with Watson. At the end of 10 overs, CSK had 69/2 on the board.

They brought in a 60 odd runs partnership when Rayadu was dismissed by Khaleel Ahmed. It was a well crafted knock again by Rayadu after the fall of the openers, but a crucial breakthrough for SRH. The scoreboard now read 116/3.

In an over later, Watson was dismissed for 42 and now CSK lost their two main batsmen in this innings.

Dhoni and Jadeja were the new men in and we got to see some Dhoni classic shots before he departed for 21 and faced a close dismissal call when Sandeep Sharma who almost grabbed a hold of the ball diving but couldn’t execute the catch to its end. But credits to him for still continuing the over and it takes character.

Jadeja with his 25 and some other loss of wickets, CSK ended with a decent albeit defendable 167/6. Khaleel, Sandeep Sharma and T Natarajan were the pick of the bowlers for SRH whilst SRH had a relatively quiet night and went wicketless.

SRH was in to bat and were off to a splendid start getting 21 off the first 3 overs. Warner’s stay at the crease when Sam Curran took a splendid catch with a ball that struck his pad, glove and bat so a caught and bowled dismissal and Pandey was the new man in ahead of Williamson.

His 2 ball stay at the crease ended with a brilliant 4 only to be run out the next ball and SRH were 2 wickets down. Williamson was the new man in.

Williamson and Bairstow were building on a partnership and at the end of 9 overs were at 57/2. The required rate was at a attainable 10 and getting through these overs would be crucial. Dhoni maneuvering his troop bringing in the right bowling option got in Jadeja who dismissed Bairstow for 23.

Williamson was striking the ball really well and was bridging the gap while chasing and young Priyam Garg was complementing well. At the end of 14 overs, they were 93/3. Karn Sharma’s wicket of Priyam Garg was a crucial one as SRH was 4 wickets down. The pressure was slowly building on SRH who now needed 59 off the last 4 overs.

Vijay Shankar started off Bravo’s over with a big six and he couldn’t pull off the heroics as he was dismissed for 12 and SRH were slowly sliding down this uphill of a total to chase.

Williamson got to his 50, his 13th IPL 50 with a brilliant 4 off 36 balls and was a well deserved one. But in a bid to get many more boundaries, he was dismissed by Karn for 57. As Gavaskar rightly pointed out hitting 6s wasn’t really his forte but this was still a good knock.

Nadeem and Rashid were the new batsman in and were striking so well. They needed 27 off 12 and significantly brought down the asking rate which was commendable. Thakur’s over easily one of the best and he gave away just 5 runs and took the wicket of Rashid Khan which meant done and dusted for SRH.

DJ Bravo closed the equation with a brilliant last over and an awesome last over finish finally ending the loss drought for CSK with this comprehensive win.

RCB were coming of a big ‘South Indian’ derby win and KKR winning a close match by 2 runs vs KXIP were at 3 and 4 at the table. It will be an interesting match on cards as the win would propel either team to a higher position on the table.

RCB were off to an excellent start. Devdutt Padikkal and Aaron Finch were hitting those consistent boundaries and rotating strike. At the end of the powerplay, RCB were at 47/0.

This bliss didn’t last long as Devdutt Padikkal was dismissed for 32 by a screamer of a yorker by Andre Russell. Virat Kohli was the new batsman in and Finch was still in. At the end of 9 overs, RCB had 72/1 on the board.

At the end of 10 overs, RCB were at 78/1. Nagarkoti had bowled a brilliant previous over giving away just 6 singles, KKR was putting pressure on the RCB batsmen.

RCB received a jolt when the settled Finch was out. It was a beauty of a yorker by Prasidh Krishna and RCB was 2 wickets down.

de Villiers was the new batsman in and getting the runs was getting slightly difficult. At the end of 15 overs, 111/2 was the score on the board. Scoring at a little more than 7, RCB had a lot more to do in terms of making the most of this pitch here at Sharjah.

De Villiers made the most of Nagarkoti’s over getting 18 runs with two massive sixes going out of the stadium. Both of them were building a partnership and RCB really needed that.

AB’s powerhitting prowess continued as he was striking at more than 200 and hitting boundaries of Cummins making mincemeat of the KKR attack in these death overs. Getting 19 runs of this Cummins over, RCB was at 148/2 at the end of the 17th over.

His hitting continued to Russell’s over and he brought his 50 with a magnificent six off 23 balls off a length ball with a brilliant follow through. He’s clearly Mr.360 for a reason. Kohli on the other hand hadn’t got a boundary as yet and was struggling to time it, but AB was making up for it.

They also brought in their 3000 partnership playing for RCB and this over yielded 17 runs. RCB were at 165/2 at the end of 18 overs.Virat finally found his touch when he got a 4 off Prasidh Krishna. Getting 12 off the over, RCB had one more over left.

de Villiers gave a fine start to RCB in the final over getting a brilliant 6 and a 4 off the 1st two balls and 200 looked possible. With a no ball, the free hit didn’t reach a boundary and fortunately there was no run out call. Again, the running between the wickets was exceptional and what were clear singles were being converted to 2s by these brilliant athletes.

Kohli was to face the final ball of the innings and it was a single. RCB ended up with 194/2 on board. And credits to Russell for really controlling the last over well. De Villiers and Kohli also remained unbeaten on a brilliant 100 runs partnership.

Tom Banton was the new man in fort KKR and was sent in to bat with Gill. Off to a good start, Saini struck dismissing Banton who looked listless in his debut for 8 and it was an exceptional pick. At the end of 4 overs, they were 23/1.

Nitish Rana was the new batsman in and was off the mark with a boundary. At the end of 6 overs, KKR was at 43/1.

Washington Sundar struck dismissing Nitish Rana bowling him out and KKR was 2 wickets down and the pressure was certainly building on them. Morgan, the danger man was in now.

But KKR suddenly faced a collapse when Shubman Gill was run out and Dinesh Karthik was out by a brilliant ball bowled by Chahal.

Sundar’s golden run continued as he dismissed Morgan and KKR was staring down the barrel now. The asking rate was steeply rising and there was still a lot to be done. But KKR’s repertoire of batting still had Russell and Tripathi who could changed things around. Chahal and Sundar were brilliant today with the latter picking 2 crucial wickets.

With 71/5 at the end of 13 overs, KKR still had the stomach for a fightback provided Dre Russ put a big match performance. Devdutt Padikkal always manages to amaze us with that exceptional fielding effort but still it didn’t go in RCB’s favour and superb effort.

He was making the most of this Udana over getting 4, 6, 4 in the first half. Udana struck back in style dismissing Russell caught so well by Siraj and now it was game on and maybe even the game for RCB.

Morris struck dismissing Cummins and now KKR was having a full blown collapse. Chahal had another brilliant night giving away just 12 runs off his 4 overs.

Tripathi was still trying to stage a comeback but Morris took a fantastic catch and finally Siraj could celebrate this great wicket. It was done and dusted now with KKR’s tail batting and it was a matter of time before RCB closes this match.

RCB finally won the match by a whopping 82 runs. An anti climatic finish and great win for namma RCB team. This was a complete team effort and RCB was slowly finding themselves. Morris has been a great find and with everyone contributing, could RCB be real title contenders was a question and with such dominant performances, nothing could stop them.