After missing first two matches of the Indian Premier League for Royal Challengers Bangalore, AB de Villiers has been ruled out for the Virat Kohli-led unit’s sixth match against Gujarat Lions in Rajkot on Tuesday. RCB’s injury woes continue and it’s now getting very difficult for the team to make it to the play-offs. They have lost four matches out of their five and can’t afford any more losses. (Results | Fixtures | Points Table)
AB returned for the third, fourth and fifth game but he is the kind of player the team needs throughout the league. He showed why when he smashed a 46-ball 93 in the game, RCB’s third match, against Kings XI Punjab. Two ordinary outings followed but it’s difficult to dominate without a player like him in the ranks. With Chris Gayle not at his best, AB and Kohli were RCB’s last hopes but the former’s injury concerns are making the road a difficult one for bottom-placed Bangalore.
| Team | PL | W | D | L | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KKR | 14 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 20 |
| SRH | 14 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 17 |
| RR | 14 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 17 |
| RCB | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| CSK | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| DC | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| LSG | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| GT | 14 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 12 |
| PBKS | 14 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 10 |
| MI | 14 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 8 |
The dangerous right-hander took to Twitter to announce his exclusion from the game and wished skipper Virat Kohli and team all the best for the all-important clash.
https://twitter.com/ABdeVilliers17/status/854281030852915202
“Disappointed to be missing the match tonight for RCB, due to injury. Good luck to @imVkohli and the team. Lets go @RCBTweets !!” the South African wrote on Twitter. With AB out, it remains to be seen whether the team think tank includes Gayle. If RCB are to go all the way, the big man needs to return to scoring ways.
Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.
