IPL 2018: Gopal's four-for keeps Rajasthan alive, sends RCB packing

Rajasthan Royals won the match by 30 runs but they will have to wait for Mumbai to lose for their qualification

In the 53rd match of the VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL 2018), Rajasthan Royals beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 30 runs to jump to fourth position on the VIVO IPL points table. With this win, RR stay alive in the tournament, while RCB are knocked out. Chasing a par total of 165, RCB were all out for 134. Only A B de Villiers showed some resistance by scoring a 50. No other batsmen could handle the spin attack of RR. Earlier, Rajasthan Royals were off to a slow start as the run rate did not cross 8 for the most part of the innings. The gamble to send Jofra Archer to open the innings did not pay off. However, The other opener Rahul Tripathi scored an unbeaten 80 runs. Rahane and Klaasen chipped handy runs to take RR score to 164-5.

IPL Match 53 RR vs RCB SCOREBOARD

Here are the squads for both the teams:




Royal Challengers Bangalore innings update: Over by over

Royal Challengers Bangalore playing XI for today's match: Parthiv Patel(w), Virat Kohli(c), AB de Villiers, Moeen Ali, Colin de Grandhomme, Mandeep Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal

Over 1: Krishnappa Gowtham to Virat Kohli, beaten outside off, no run. DOT ball. Another DOT ball. Kohli punched the 2nd ball for a single. Parthiv took a single off the 5th ball. No run to end the over. RCB: 2/0

Over 2: Jofra Archer to Parthiv Patel, bouncer runs off the face of the bat for a six. Inside edge for no run. DOt ball. Parthiv pulled the 3rd ball for one run. A single taken by Kohli.  Another bouncer and Parthiv glide the last ball for six. RCB: 16/0

Over 3: Krishnappa Gowtham to Virat Kohli, one run taken. Parthiv took a single. Another single taken by Kohli. Bye taken by Parthiv. Kohli clean bowled OUT while playing across the line. ABD took a single to end the over. RCB: 21/1

Over 4: Jofra Archer to de Villiers, 2 runs taken. ABD hit a four off the second ball. DOT ball. Another DOT ball. Two consecutive fours by ABD to end the over. RCB: 35/1

Over 5: Ben Laughlin comes to the attack, One run. Brilliant four by de Villiers. Dot ball, no run. One run to AB. Slashed by Parthiv for four over third man. RCB: 45-1

Over 6: Unadkat comes to the attack, Dot ball. ABD pulls for one. Parthiv pulls, Samson tries but drops the catch. Goes for four. 50 up for RCB. Dot ball. Four, brilliant cover drive by Parthiv. Good fielding. RCB: 55-1

Over 7: Gopal comes in, ABD cuts for one. Under edge, three runs for ABD. Single to finish. RCB: 63-1

Over 8: Ish Sodhi, Reverse swept for four. ABD pulls for four. Single. Leading edge, no man's land. Single to ABD. RCB: 74-1

Over 9: Gopal continues, one run. Parthiv stumped. He goes for 33. Moeen Ali is the new man in. Single to him. Driven for one. Soft dismissal of Moeen Ali. He goes for one. RCB: 77-3

Over 10: Sodhi continues, one run to ABD. Leading edge, just one. Another single. Two to end the over. RCB: 84-3

Over 11: Gopal continues, one run. Mandeep is gone. STUMPED. He goes for 3. Colin de Grandhomme, one run. RCB: 87-4

Over 12: Sodhi continues, two runs to ABD. Pulled for four, ABD gets his fifty. One run. Outside edge for one. One run to ABD. Colin de Grandhomme edges one outside the off stump for and he is gone. RCB: 96-5

Over 13: Sarfaraz Khan comes to the crease, one run to ABD. Quick single. Stumped, is ABD stumped? Yes he is. ABD gone for 53. Southee comes in. RCB: 98-6

Over 14: Sodhi continues, just one. Two runs. Edge, just one. RCB: 102-6

Over 15: Unadkat comes to bowl. Over the top for four. Missed the slower ball. Just one. Another slow ball for dot. Dot. RCB: 108-6

Over 16: Laughlin to continues is back, scalps Sarfaraz and Umesh on back to back balls. RCB staring defeat. RCB: 114-8

Over 17: Archer is back, Swing and a miss. Just one. WIDE. Four runs. RCB: 121-8

Over 18: Jaydev comes back, Lovely shot for four. Dot. Southee is gone. RCB: 128-9

Over 19: Chahal comes to the crease. One run. Dot. 

Royal Challengers Bangalore innings analysis after end of innings

Chasing the modest target of 165 runs, Virat Kohli and Parthiv Patel opened the innings for Royal Challengers Bangalore while Krishnappa Gowtham bowled an economical first over for 2 runs. Jofra Archer went for 14 runs as Parthiv Patel glides the ball two sixes using the Archer's pace. Virat Kohli gets perished while trying to hit across the line which resulted in AB de Villiers arrival on the crease. ABD smashed Jofra for 3 fours as he collected 14 runs of the 4th over. Ben Laughlin bowled the 5th over and conceded 10 runs as ABD, Parthiv looked to finish the game under 16 over to go ahead of Mumbai Indians in the Vivo IPL points table. Jaydev Unadkat came to bowl the 6th over and nearly got the wicket of Parthiv of the short ball but Samson dropped the catch while trying to do Trent Boult. Unadkat conceded 9 runs in his first over as RCB need 110 runs in 14 overs with a required run rate of 7.82 rpo

Shreyas Gopal bowled the over and conceded 8 runs as he didn't allow ABD to free his arm. ABD smashed the first two ball of the Ish Sodhi's 1st over for 4 as RCB collected 11 runs in the 8th over. Gopal continued from the other end and gave Rajasthan Royals second breakthrough as Parthiv got stumped at the score of 31 runs. Moeen Ali replaced Parthiv Patel in the middle. But his stay was not long as Gopal deceived him in the air and took a brilliant caught and bowled to gave RCB 3rd blow. After 9 RCB were 77/3Shreyas Gopal bowled the over and conceded 8 runs as he didn't allow ABD to free his arm. ABD smashed the first two ball of the Ish Sodhi's 1st over for 4 as RCB collected 11 runs in the 8th over. Gopal continued from the other end and gave Rajasthan Royals second breakthrough as Parthiv got stumped at the score of 31 runs. Moeen Ali replaced Parthiv Patel in the middle. But his stay was not long as Gopal deceived him in the air and took a brilliant caught and bowled to gave RCB 3rd blow. After 9 RCB were 77/3

AB de Villiers curbed his natural instinct and played ground shots for singles and doubles as Sodhi conceded only 7 runs in the 10th over. On the other side, Shreyas Gopal was on fire as he got Mandeep Singh stumped making the things harder for other RCB batsmen especially ABD. Colin de Grandhomme came to the crease after the Mandeep Singh departure thanks to his mindless shot selection. AB de Villiers completed his 28th IPL fifty with a four in deep square leg region. While Grandhomme got out and Royal Challengers Bangalore were half down. Rajasthan Royals needed the crucial wicket of ABD to seal the game but it seems ABD was playing at a different surface as he manoeuvred the ball easily for single and hitting a boundary when needed. But Shreyas Gopal the pick of the bowlers in RR deceived AB de Villiers by a googly and Klassen did the rest. This might be the nail in the RCB coffin. Shreyas Gopal finished his spell with a figure of 4-0-16-4

Ish Sodi came to bowl the 14th over and conceded only 4 runs as he completed his full quota of overs with the figure of 4-0-31-1. Sarfaraz Khan the only recognised batsmen on the crease did hit the 2nd ball of Unadkat's 2nd over for four but failed to play a match-winning innings for RCB as he got out in the 16th over of Ben Laughlin's over. Umesh Yadav has castled off the first ball he faced and Royal Challengers Bangalore needed a miracle to win the match. After 16 RCB were 113/8 with Southee and Siraj on the crease. Jofra Archer bowled the 17th over and conceded only 8 runs. The task left onto RCB tailenders was quite huge and Southee to get dismissed while trying to hit a six. Krishnappa Gowtham took a relay catch to dismiss Siraj as RCB kicked out of the IPL 2018 and the dream of Virat Kohli to win IPL remains a dream. 

Rajasthan Royals innings update: Over by over

Rajasthan Royals playing XI for today's match: Rahul Tripathi, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Sanju Samson, Heinrich Klaasen(w), Stuart Binny, Krishnappa Gowtham, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Ish Sodhi, Jaydev Unadkat, Ben Laughlin

Over 1: Yuzvendra Chahal to start it off for RCB. Jofra Archer and Rahul Tripathi to open for RR. Tirpathi hits it for a double. back to back dots. RR: 2-0

Over 2: Umesh Yadav comes to the attack. Just one. Archer hooks and he is gone. Umesh strikes in first over. Rahane comes to the crease. Dots to end the over. Wicket maiden for Umesh. RR: 2-0

Over 3: Moeen Ali comes to the attack, One run. One run. SIX, well swept by Tripathi. Dot. RR: 12-1

Over 4: Umesh Yadav to Rahane, no run. Rahane cut the second ball for four. DOT ball. Rahane hit the 4th ball over the mid-on fielder for four. A single taken by Rahane. Tripathi pulled the last ball over the mid-wicket fielder for four. RR:25-1

Over 5: Southee comes to the attack, four by Rahane. Single to Rahane. Dot ball. Good ball.Quick Single. Straight drive, brilliant effort to stop this. RR: 35-1

Over 6: Chahal continues, Tripathi hits him or a four over covers. And another one. One run. Just one. RR: 45-1

Over 7: Southee continues, Single to Tripathi. Rahane flicks for one. One run. Another single. RR: 50-1

Over 8: Siraj comes to the attack, one run to Rahane. Tripathi swings and misses. Almost drags the ball onto this stump. One run. One run. In the air, just short. RR: 54-1

Over 9: Umesh is back, Just one. Another single. One run. Flicked for one. In the air, over covers for four. Cut for single. RR: 63-1

Over 10: Colin de Grandhomme comes to the attack, WIDE. Another WIDE. Good straight drive for one. Big wide. Single. Single to end the over. RR: 74-1

Over 11: Siraj is back, one run. Another single. Another single. One run again. Single to end the over. RR: 80-1

Over 12: Colin continues, one run. 50 fo Rahul Tripathi. 10 runs from the over. RR: 90-1

Over 13: Chahal comes to the attack, four runs. 

Over 14: Umesh continues, LBW appeal, given. Reviewed. OUT given, umpire's call. Rahane gone for 33. Sanju Samson comes in. Soft dismissal. Heinrich Klaasen comes to the crease. LBW appeal. Gone. Turned down, there was inside edge. One to end. RR: 104-3

Over 15: Moeen is back, Three runs. Tripathi hits a huge six. RR: 113-3

Over 16: Siraj is back, swing and a miss. Swing and inside edge, misses the stumps. Brilliant cover drive for four. 11 runs from the over. RR: 124-3 

Over 18: Southee comes back, just one. Another single. Wide. Swing and a miss. 7 runs from the over. RR: 136-3

Over 19:  Siraj continues, Nicely bowled, just one. SIX, over third man. Scoop, four runs. High in the air, gone. Klaasen goes for 31. RR: 149-4

Over 20: Southee to finish, just one. SIX. Gwotham does well. Back to back sixes. Double. Dot ball. 

Rajasthan Royals innings analysis after 20 overs

Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat first while Jofra Archer and Rahul Tripathi opened the innings while Yuzuvendra Chahal came to bowl the first over and conceded only 2 runs. Umesh Yadav gave Royal Challengers Bangalore first breakthrough as the experiment to send Jofra to open the innings failed. Jofra got out without disturbing the scorers and Ajinkya Rahane replaced him at the middle. Umesh Yadav bowled a wicket maiden as RCB bowlers were on top. Moeen Ali came to bowl the 3rd over and conceded 10 runs. After 3 RR were tottering at 12/1

Umesh Yadav continued from the other end and get a banter from Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi as they scored 3 fours off Yadav's 2nd over who bowled a wicket maiden in his first. After sliding in the first 3 overs Rajasthan Royals batsmen were successful to up the ante as they scored 12 runs in 4th while in Southee's first over went for 10 runs. Yuzuvendra Chahal bowled the last over of the powerplay and Rahul Tripathi hit the first two balls for four but Chahal came back to concede only 2 in last 4 balls.

Southee bowled the 7th over and didn't allow Rahane, Tripathi to hit any bigshot as he conceded only 5 runs. Mohammed Siraj who bowled brilliantly in the previous game against Sunrisers Hyderabad asked to bowl the 8th over. Siraj conceded only 4 runs as kept the lid on run flow. The RCB bowlers were keeping the things tight as Rahane and Tripathi score most of the runs in singles with only boundary in 9th over. After 9 RR were 63-1

Colin de Grandhomme bowled a 9 ball over and conceded 11 runs which included 3 wides. Rajasthan Royals batsmen were looking to had a strong foundation to launch an onslaught in the death overs. Mohammed Siraj's 2nd over went for only 6 runs as RR batsmen failed to score any bigshot despite many improvisations. Grandhomme continued from the other end and conceded 12 runs as Tripathi after completing his fifty hit a six to end the 12th over. 

Chahal bowled the 13th over and went for 9 runs as Tripathi the aggressor managed to hit a four. In a desperate need of a wicket, Kohli asked his lead bowler Umesh Yadav to bowl the 14th over and Umesh didn't disappoint as removed Rahane, Samson of the two consecutive deliveries. After a good partnership in the middle overs, Rajasthan Royals lost crucial wickets when they need to accelerate and this would affect their final score. Moeen Ali continued some good balls but Tripathi played a classic six straight down the ground to collect 9 runs in the 15th over. To make full use of reverse swing Mohammed Siraj was asked to bowl the 16th over and he nearly got the wicket of Klassen as he got the inside age and the went for four. Klassen known for hitting big shot in the death overs played a classic extra cover drive for a boundary. After losing two consecutive wickets Tripathi and Klassen scored in excess of 9 runs in last over to switch the momentum back to Rajasthan Royals. After 16 RR were 124/3

Yuzuvendra Chahal bowled the 17th over and Tripathi and Klassen managed to take singles despite making efforts to score big shots. Chahal conceded only 5 in his last over. Southee bowled a magnificent over conceding only 7 runs in the 18th over. Siraj came to bowl the 19th over and smashed by Klassen for a six and a four before getting out while trying to hit another big shot. Krishnappa Gowtham replaced Klassen at the middle and walloped Southee for two gigantic sixes to bring the momentum in Rajasthan Royals favour at the end of the innings. Gowtham got runout off the last ball while trying to steal a bye. Royal Challengers Bangalore needed 165 runs to win the match. 

Here are a few things to know about the Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals (RCB vs RR) match to be played at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, the two teams' players who could prove handy, and who has said what before the clash:
 
Test discard Moeen says IPL stint will make him better ODI player: Axed from the England squad for the Tests against Pakistan, all-rounder Moeen Ali says his IPL stint will make him a better one-day player and improve his game. "I have really worked on my game and I feel going further in the future for RCB and for England, hopefully it will help me become a better one-day player. Hopefully, it is going to improve my game," Ali told reporters. Ali has been instrumental in keeping Royal Challengers Bangalore's chances of qualifying for playoffs intact. He picked up two wickets and in the company of AB de Villiers then, smashed a match-winning half century against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The English player hammered a 34-ball 65, which was studded with two boundaries and six sixes, to guide RCB to 218 for 6. He credited RCB support staff, including Gary Kirsten and Trent Woodhill, for his improved batting. "Yeah Gary and Trent Woodhill. I have worked the most with them on my batting. I am trying to hit the ball and be consistent in hitting boundaries. They have really opened my game and I feel going further for England, it will help me become a better ODI player and improve my game," he said.
 
Tim Southee reprimanded for breaching code of conduct: Royal Challengers Bangalore bowler Tim Southee has received an official reprimand for breaching Indian Premier League (IPL) Code of Conduct during his team's clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium last evening. "Tim Southee, the Royal Challengers Bangalore bowler, was issued a reprimand during his team's Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 encounter against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday 17th May, 2018," the IPL release said. Southee admitted to the Level 1 offence under 2.1.8 of the IPL Code of Conduct for Players and Team Officials and accepted the sanction. For Level 1 breaches of the IPL Code of Conduct, the Match Referee's decision is final and binding.
 
Awestruck Kohli dubs de Villiers' catch as 'Spiderman Stuff': Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli was completely in awe of his team-mate AB de Villiers' performance during his side's 14-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in their Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Though the match was studded with many sparkling individual performances, the South African batsman's gravity-defying boundary catch stole the show of the cricket world. Sunrisers Hyderabad was chasing a huge target of 219 runs and was into its eighth over when England opener Alex Hales lofted Moeen Ali towards the midwicket for what appeared to be his fourth six. However, De Villiers displayed superb athleticism by jumping high, instinctively stretching out his right hand to catch the ball which was quiet away from him. Mesmerised by his team-mate's performance, Kohli dubbed De Villiers' catch as 'spiderman stuff' and said that normal human beings don't do such things. "That was Spiderman stuff! You don't do that as normal human beings. I thought it was going for a six, but he pulls it out, then the jump and then the balance. I mean, he can do freakish things, but I am used to it now. His shots still leave me in awe but his fielding I am pretty used to and that was fun to watch," the International Cricket Council (ICC) quoted Kohli, as saying.
 
Virat Kohli praises bowlers for victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad: With Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) keping their play-off chances alive, skipper Virat Kohli has credited the bowlers for a handing vital two points to his side in a must-win game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). After putting up a massive 218-run total, the Kohli-led side managed a nail-biting 14-run win over Hyderabad, thanks to Mohammed Siraj who held his nerve to bowl a fine last over, conceding just five runs besides packing off a well-settled Hyderabad skipper Kane Williamson (81 off 42). While the defeat wouldn't have bothered Hyderabad much as they have already made to the play-offs, the win has definately rejuvenated Kohli's men with the road to the final still not closed for Bangalore. "I have seen many of these games before. Just had to stay calm at the end of it. After a point of time, you need to understand that the bowlers are in control of what they want to do," Kohli said after the match. "The wicket was very good and in the second innings, there was a lot of dew. Hats off to the bowlers for maintaining the composure and giving us two points," the 29-year-old added.
 
I like my beard, won't get rid of it, says Virat Kohli: India Captain Virat Kohli today said he does not want to get rid of his beard as it suits him. "I really like it. I think it suits me. So I don't want to get rid of it," the dynamic batsman, who is currently captaining IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, said replying to a query at a promotional event. The Indian players have been sporting beards throughout the home season, but Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja shaved off theirs recently. Earlier too, Kohli had refused to shave off his beard in response to Jadeja's #breakingthebeard challenge on Instagram. Posting the picture on Instagram, Kohli had said, "Sorry boys, but I am not ready to break the beard yet. Great job on makeovers though. Kudos."  To this, his actress wife Anushka Sharma had replied: "You cannot!"
 
The head to head ahead of today’s IPL match (RCB vs RR)
 
Overall:
Matches – 18, Rajasthan Royals won – 9, Royal Challengers Bangalore won – 8, No Result – 1
 
In Jaipur:
Matches – 6, Rajasthan Royals won – 3, Royal Challengers Bangalore won – 3
 
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