IPL 8: AB-Mandeep stand, RCB deliver

Real AB gets into gear

IT’S not often that you associate the word ungainly with anything that AB de Villiers does or even attempts to do on a cricket field. And especially not when he’s holding a bat in hand. Maybe we just can’t fathom the fact that even he could have an off day, or not look his glorious best, if only temporarily. Or maybe we don’t want to accept that AB’s human too and prone to have a bad-hair day like everyone else.

But for the first 10 or so minutes the South African batting virtuoso spent at the crease in Pune, he looked out of sorts. If he wasn’t getting cramped and inside-edging deliveries, he was swatting at them outside his off-stump and missing. To the astonishment of the 20,000 plus who had braved the long drive and the unrelenting traffic from Pune to Gahunje and Shane Watson the bowler, AB even messed up an attempted lap-sweep. It wasn’t easy after all.

The pitch at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) stadium had a generous tinge of green on it. There was bounce on offer – loopy than searing mostly – and there was some zip off it was well. To boot, Dhawal Kulkarni had gotten rid of Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli in the space of four deliveries.

By the time Ankit Sharma started the 15th over of RCB’s innings, AB had stuttered his way to 17 off 21 with Bangalore barely scoring over 6-an-over. Then it was time for the real AB to stand up. He would smash 49 runs off the next 17 deliveries Rajasthan bowled at him. It started with a slog-sweep off a flat Sharma delivery that was darted into his pads. Two balls later, he dished out an encore though this time the ball didn’t miss Ajinkya Rahane’s outstretched hands by much. Then he bent down on one knee again and carved one through the covers for four. This was vintage AB de Villiers.

Two more fours and another six would follow. But somehow the ball still didn’t seem to be leaving his bat with the same speed as it usually does. Till he launched an air missile almost on to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway off a length delivery from Chris Morris. For once, however, AB wasn’t dishing out a solo concert. There was support from the other end too. Having come together with the score reading 46/2 in 7.3 overs, he and Mandeep Singh would take the score to 159/3 in 18.4 overs, adding 113 to propel RCB towards an above-par score at the MCA stadium. The Royals did see his back via run-out, but his 38-ball 66 had by then made the stranglehold they’d maintained on RCB look like a rumour.

Mandeep finds his mojo

Mandeep wasn’t to be left behind. He would finish unbeaten on 54 off 34 deliveries, a knock leaden with seven fours and two sixes, each hit with power and precision, and each a reminder of the eye-catching skills that the Punjab right-hander’s always seemed to possess.

It’s difficult to figure how and when Mandeep really slipped off the radar, if not faded away. For, till as recently as a couple of years back, the diminutive right-hander was counted amongst the brightest talents with the bat in the country. He was a regular feature in India A and other representative outfits, and in many circles considered a sure-shot to make it to the highest grade. But somehow that’s not been the case. The 23-year-old’s blown hot and cold in IPL 8 as well, scoring an enterprising 45 to take his team home against KKR in a reduced-overs contest. But apart from that he’s hardly made his presence felt.

Mandeep started off gingerly yet again, facing five deliveries before getting off the mark. But then he produced two shots back-to-back that proved why his batting has always made for attractive viewing. The problem has always been that there hasn’t been enough of it.

On Wednesday, he looked keen on setting that right. The first was a front-foot pull. The second was even better, as he launched Kulkarni over the long-off fence without much fuss or angst, simply caressing the ball into the night sky. He followed them up with a bunch of equally striking boundaries before hitting a six and four off James Faulkner to bring up his 50 and also power RCB to a score of 180.

Support cast play lead role

It was a pitch that you would have thought was custom-made for Mitchell Starc. However, it was the support-cast that really delivered the KO to the Royals, sending them packing by a 71-run margin. Sreenath Aravind set it off by removing Shane Watson in his first over. Harshal Patel wasn’t to be left behind as he had Sanju Samson — with a sharp bouncer — and Karun Nair caught behind by Dinesh Karthik.

David Wiese then claimed the big scalp of Steve Smith, having him caught off an ugly hoick for just 12. Rajasthan’s hopes took a fatal beating with that dismissal, but Yuzvendra Chahal made sure there were no late dramas by sending Rahane on his way for a 39-ball 42.

That is before Aravind returned and had Faulkner caught and bowled off a ball that hit the inside-edge and ricocheted off the Aussie’s foot. Starc did get a wicket too, but by then RCB had all but booked themselves a date with CSK in the second Eliminator at Ranchi.