Royal Challengers Bangalore Defeat Lucknow Super Giants In Eliminator

Rajat Patidar, a little-known local stalwart, literally controlled the biggest stage of his young career with a brilliant century that put Royal Challengers Bangalore within a whisker of winning the IPL Eliminator after out-batting Lucknow Super Giants by 14 runs on Wednesday.

On Friday, RCB will face Rajasthan Royals in the second Qualifier, determining Gujarat Titans’ opponent for the final on Sunday.

RCB virtually took the stuffing out of LSG’s attack, accumulating an intimidating 207 for 4 in 20 overs, thanks to Patidar’s 54-ball-112 not out, which included 12 fours and seven big sixes.

The one saving grace for LSG was Mohsin Khan’s superior numbers of 1 for 25.

In response, KL Rahul’s 78 off 59 balls didn’t have much influence other than boosting his run total, as LSG were reduced to 193 for 6 after 20 overs.

READ MORE: David Miller, Hardik Pandya Take Gujarat Titans Into IPL 2022 Final

Suppose Patidar’s century set the tone for RCB. In that case, there are no words to describe Harshal Patel’s (4-0-25-1), whose 18th over, consisting of wide yorkers and off-cutter variations, dramatically shifted the match in his team’s favour.

In spirit, the RCB players had already boarded the trip to Ahmedabad when Josh Hazlewood dismissed Rahul in the 19th over.

While Rahul hit three fours and five sixes, his 96-run partnership with Deepak Hooda (45) kept LSG in the game. However, a total of six boundaries vs 14 sixes painted a different picture.

Especially when, in addition to their nine maximums, RCB hit 21 fours throughout their innings.

There was a time when Rahul’s hitting appeared a little selfish as if he was content as long as he scored his season’s 600 runs.

On a day when their legendary batting partnership of Faf du Plessis (0), Glenn Maxwell (9) and Virat Kohli (25) failed to excite a sold-out Eden Park audience, RCB’s No. 3 batted his heart out, scoring 90 runs in fours and sixes off only 19 balls.

While most of the RCB’s great hitters battled with timing, the 28-year-old appeared at ease with his slices, jabs, counter-punches, and drives, towering above the competition.

Patidar’s tale is made even more fascinating because he went unsold at the auction this season and was brought in as a substitute when a player named Luvnith Sisodia got injured.

If Sisodia had been OK, RCB would not have needed Patidar’s help in getting 65,000 people at Eden Gardens to stand up.

As RCB scored 84 runs in the last five overs to prop up the total, he and Dinesh Karthik (37 not out from 23 balls) put up a match-turning unbroken partnership of 92 runs from 41 balls.

First, he showed flashes of his stroke-making abilities by slamming Krunal Pandya for three boundaries and one six within the power-play to outshine Kohli in a 66-run partnership from 46 balls.

After reaching his half-century in 28 balls, he needed another 21 balls to reach his first T20 century.

With a sweet-timing of the bat, he got to the benchmark of pulling Mohsin Khan over square leg, encapsulating his seamless stay at the crease.

In the middle overs, RCB lost three vital wickets: Kohli, Maxwell, and Mahipal Lomror, causing their run rate to decrease.

Dinesh Karthik, who has excelled as a finisher for RCB this season, too had some nervous moments against Ravi Bishnoi at the start of the game.

On the other hand, Patidar turned things around in the final over Bishnoi, slamming the ‘googly-man’ for three sixes and two fours in a row in an over that read 1, 6, 4, 6, 4, 6.

Patidar was also assisted by a careless LSG, who received reprieves on 59, 72, and 93. Lucknow got off to a flying start after a 40-minute delay owing to inclement weather as Mohsin dismissed RCB captain Faf du Plessis for a golden duck in the opening over.

After losing their captain early, Kohli and Patidar opted for a wait-and-see approach until the latter unleashed his fury on Krunal Pandya in the last over of the power-play.

Patidar smashed Krunal for three boundaries and a six in a 20-run over to compensate for their poor start and cruise to 52/1 in six overs.