IPL 2021, RCB vs SRH: Hyderabad hands Bangalore 4-run defeat to virtually end its 2nd spot hopes

It was a premium effort from former champion SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH), as it defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by four runs in Match 52 of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sheikh Zayd Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday. With this loss, RCB's hopes of finishing in the second spot have implicitly ended.

Winning the toss, RCB skipper Virat Kohli elected to bowl, as both sides moved in with unchanged XI. SRH was off to a shaky start, losing Abhishek Sharma (13) in the second over to pacer George Garton.

However, it was followed by a 70-run stand between fellow opener Jason Roy (44) and skipper Kane Williamson (31) before pacer Harshal Patel knocked over the latter in the 12th. At 105, Priyam Garg (1) was sent back by pacer Daniel Christian in the 15th, followed by Roy in the same over a couple of runs later.

SRH struggled to build partnerships after the fall of Roy and Williamson, as, at 124, Wriddhiman Saha (10) departed to Harshal in the 18th, while 17 runs later, Jason Holder (16) was the final man to fall to the same man, with SRH finishing at 141/7. RCB utilised six bowlers, with Harshal having the most success, scalping three, while Christian was the most economical.

As RCB came out for the chase, it was off to a rocky start, losing Kohli (5) and Christian (1) within the Powerplay, with 18 runs on the board. Srikar Bharat (12) could not do much either and departed to pacer Umran Malik, 20 runs later, in the seventh over.

Although the pair of Devdutt Padikkal (41) and Glenn Maxwell (40) contributed 54 runs for the fourth wicket before the latter's unfortunate run out in the 15th and was soon followed by the former in the 17th off spinner Rashid Khan at 109. SRH bowlers kept bowling at tight lengths throughout the game, while the frequency increased at the closing stages.

A 19-run stand for the sixth wicket followed between AB de Villiers (19*) and Shahbaz Ahmed (14) before the latter fell to pacer Holder in the 19th. However, Bhuvneshwar bowled out a superb last over, despite de Villiers being on strike and handing SRH a four-run win.

SRH put five bowlers into the attack, with each claiming a wicket, while Malik was the most economical of all.
Brief scores: SRH 141/7 (Roy- 44, Williamson- 31; Harshal- 3/33) beats RCB 137/6 (Padikkal- 41, Maxwell- 40; Malik- 1/21) by four runs.