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The Delhi Capitals imploded, slumping to 13/6 at the end of six overs against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. RCB’s pace duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood caused havoc, running through the DC batting order.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar struck with the second ball of the innings, triggering a dramatic collapse. KL Rahul was dismissed for 1, followed by Sameer Rizvi departing for a first-ball duck.
For RCB, Bhuvneshwar starred with figures of 3 for 5 in his first three overs, while Hazlewood claimed 3 for 8 in his three-over spell.
Delhi will now hope to cross the 49-run mark to avoid the lowest total in IPL history. That unwanted record is held by Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who were bowled out for 49 against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Earlier, after winning the toss, Rajat Patidar opted to bowl first, citing the venue’s high-scoring nature and preference to chase.
“We will bowl first. This venue is a high-scoring ground; it will not make much difference. We will try to put them under pressure in the second innings. The most important thing is that different players are stepping up and delivering in different matches. We have played some good cricket and will look to carry that momentum forward. The past is behind us; we are focused on playing good cricket,” Patidar said.
Axar Patel, meanwhile, said he would also have chosen to field first and expressed hope of bouncing back after the loss to Punjab.
“I would have fielded if I had won the toss. The ground dimensions are small and the pitch gets better, so we would have preferred to chase. In the IPL, even a score of 264 can end in defeat, but it is a long tournament. We had a good game with both bat and ball. If we had taken our chances, the result could have been different,” Axar Patel said.
Confirmed Playing XI for both teams:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (Playing XI): Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar
Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): Sahil Parakh, KL Rahul(w), Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel(c), Dushmantha Chameera, Kyle Jamieson, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan
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