IPL 2023: All-round RCB dominate LSG by 18 runs in low-scoring one-sided authority
IPL 2023: Royal Challengers Bangalore gave an authoritative all-round performance to dominate Lucknow Super Giants by 18 runs. The conquest takes RCB to the fifth spot, keeping both sides well in the playoff race.
FollowIt was a one-sided yet overbearing performance by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to outperform Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by 18 runs in Match 43 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Monday. The win takes RCB to the fifth spot, as both sides stay firmly in contention for the playoff.
Winning the toss, Bangalore skipper Faf du Plessis, who was leading the side after missing out on captaincy in the last three matches, opted to bat on a slow-looking surface, curated out of the black soil. Openers Virat Kohli (31) and du Plessis (44) were off to a strong start, putting 62 on the board before leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi sent the former packing in the ninth.
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Thereon, the trouble began for the Royal Challengers as expected, as they could barely get any partnerships going and kept losing wickets at every 15-odd runs to finish on 126/9 eventually. The skipper was the top scorer and was the fifth wicket to fall at 109 to veteran leg-spinner Amit Mishra in the 17th.
There was a brief rain-break during the 15th over, but it hardly made a difference. For LSG, pacer Naveen-ul-Haq clasped three, whereas off-spinner Krishnappa Gowtham was decently economical. Before Lucknow began its chase, opener Ayush Badoni (4) became the Impact Player for the side and opened alongside Kyle Mayers (0).
However, the Super Giants were off to a horror start, losing four for 27 by the sixth over of the PowerPlay and struggling to get any partnership going. During the hosts' chase, pacer Harshal Patel came in for Anuj Rawat for the visitors, which did not help LSG, as it kept losing wickets every 15-20-odd runs.
The stand of 27 between Marcus Stoinis (13) and Gowtham (23) was the highest for Lucknow, as ultimately, it finished on 108, falling short of the target by 19 runs and resulting in its 18-run defeat. For Bangalore, pacer Josh Hazlewood and leg-spinner Karn Sharma claimed a couple each, whereas off-spinner Glenn Maxwell was quite economical. At the same time, it was also the joint-lowest total defended by the side.
