RCB, Daredevils look to outshine each other
Despite rivalry, no bad blood between IndiaOz players
Royal Challengers Bangalore would look to put behind the opening defeat and aim for their first win of the season when they lock horns with yet another injury-struck outfit Delhi Daredevils in an IPL match here on Saturday.
A depleted Bangalore is struggling without captain Virat Kohli, ruled out because of a shoulder injury, and AB de Villiers, who also missed the first tie due to a back problem.
De Villiers is once again a doubtful starter for Saturday’s match and in his absence Shane Watson would continue to lead the side as an interim captain.
Bangalore have also lost star batsman KL Rahul for the entire tournament owing to an injury and talented Sarfaraz Khan will most likely be unavailable for the season after hurting himself on the field during a practice match.
The absence of big names from the team has had an effect as RCB went down to defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad by 35 runs in the inaugural match.
On a belter of a pitch at Hyderabad, veteran Yuvraj Singh smashed 62 off 27 balls to steer the Sunrisers to 207 for four and in reply RCB, were bundled out for 172 in 19.4 overs. This was the first time in 23 matches that Bangalore were all out.
However, Bangalore would be Virat Kohli enjoys driving his team to success as captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
But while the national team skipper continues to recover from the shoulder injury sustained during India’s Test series against Australia, he appears to have taken the wheel — literally — in another role.
The RCB captain uploaded a video on Instagram on Friday which shows him and team- hoping that their destructive batsmen Chris Gayle and Watson -- both of whom are capable of destroying any opposition on their day -- come good against a depleted Delhi on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Daredevils, who have been the worst performing side in the nine previous IPL seasons, would be desperately looking to get a few wins early on to bolster their fragile confidence.
They have lost South Africans Quinton De Kock and Jean-Paul Duminy for the entire tournament, affecting their balance. While Duminy pulled out citing personal reasons, de Kock had suffered a tendon damage on his right index finger during the Test series against New Zealand.