The race to the top in IPL 2022 is already looking very crowded, with six teams tied on four points. Royal Challengers Bangalore are in the mix, having inflicted their first defeat on the Rajasthan Royals in this tournament. They have won two out of their three games, so they have ample reason to celebrate. But, if they do, they are being lulled into a false sense of security. The two wins have all been due to one key factor. That is Dinesh Karthik.
In both of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s win in IPL 2022, Karthik has played a massive role in guiding the team over the line. Take away DK’s contribution, Royal Challengers Bangalore have not had much to celebrate. They are in this position due to Karthik.
After their bowling was ripped to shreds by Punjab Kings in their opening game, Royal Challengers Bangalore almost messed up a chase of 130 against Kolkata Knight Riders. Needing seven runs off six balls, the RCB teams of the past would have found ways to get botch up this equation. But, Karthik had other ideas.
Aiming to put one over his former team, Karthik calmly hit a six and four to seal the deal with four balls to spare. However, in the game against Rajasthan Royals, the situation was different. It needed the DK of the 2018 Nidahas Trophy zone to get his team over the line. He duly did it.
RCB shoot themselves in the foot in chase
The prime reason as to why RCB cannot celebrate in a big way is due to the numbers presented. Apart from Faf du Plessis, no other Royal Challengers Bangalore batter has hit a fifty. The bowling economy rates of the bowlers is no better, with only Wanindu Hasaranga and Harshal Patel contributing consistently. The rest of the bowling, especially Mohammed Siraj is struggling. The problems are compounded by the fact that Virat Kohli has not yet gotten into his groove. With Glenn Maxwell coming back only on April 9 and Josh Hazlewood on April 12, the batting and bowling need a lot of work.
Add to the fact that Royal Challengers Bangalore almost shot themselves in the foot in the chase of 170. Kohli was run-out cheaply, du Plessis was undone by some brilliance from Yuzvendra Chahal, also out to prove a point against his former ‘home’. To make matters worse, they got two left-handers in when R Ashwin and Chahal were in operation. Ashwin’s record against left-handers is brilliant and the asking rate just mounted. At 87/5 in the 13th over, the game looked to be up. In stepped Karthik. What followed was THAT avatar of Karthik which the world saw during the 2018 Nidahas Trophy.
DK, Shahbaz Ahmed Guide RCB Home
The 14th over bowled by Ashwin changed the course of the match. The bowler bowled a no-ball on the pads that was duly dispatched for a four by Karthik. Just like the 2016 ICC World T20 no-ball against the West Indies, Ashwin’s no-ball changed the entire course of the match. Karthik went on to hammer a six and two fours as Ashwin’s multiple efforts at variation failed.
The 21 runs in the 14th over set the stage for even greater carnage. Rajasthan Royals, bogged down by the lack of a potent fifth bowling option, conceded 16 and 13 runs. Karthik hammered two fours off Saini to race to 31 off 13 balls. That gave Shahbaz Ahmed the confidence to go after the bowling. Shahbaz hammered a six and four off Prasidh Krishna as 50 runs were hit in three overs. The momentum was with RCB.
Just like in the game against KKR, Karthik was there till the end. His two fours off Krishna sealed the deal and RCB had won with five balls to spare. It was almost a repeat of the 2018 Nidahas Trophy final against Bangladesh. In that match, Karthik was in the zone right from the first ball that he faced. He found the gaps to perfection and hit the big shots well. Karthik knew when to go for it. When he is in that zone, no bowler can stop him. In many ways, this knock is a continuation of how brilliant a finisher he has been in the past couple of years.
The mantra for this kind of knock was revealed by Karthik after the end of the match. He said, “I'm making a conscious effort to tell myself that I'm not done yet. When I went in, we needed 12 rpo and had to keep going. I train for these situations. To stay calm and know whom you can take down. I've tried to play as much white-ball cricket as possible, and prepare as many scenarios as possible,” Karthik said.
RCB may have won two out of three games, but they still have plenty of work to do. Karthik cannot come to their rescue every single time.
