Faf and Hazlewood put RCB second

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) defeated the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the thirty-first game of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL). The match was played in the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. Faf du Plessis was adjudged to be the Man of the Match.

Kohli makes an unwelcome century

Dushmantha Chameera was the evening's first seamer to discover the pleasures of a dynamic surface. Chameera was on a hat-trick at the end of the first over, thanks to the early scalps of Anuj Rawat and Virat Kohli... whose first-ball duck brought up possibly the most unwelcome century of his career.

Kohli has played exactly 100 matches without adding to his total of hundreds since hitting 136 against Bangladesh in November 2019 - 17 Tests, 21 ODIs, 25 T20Is, and 37 IPL games. Rawat had scuffed a fuller-length ball to a diving Kananur Lokesh Rahul at mid-off after five legal deliveries, in which he had lumped a drive through the line for four before scuffing a fuller-length ball to a diving Rahul at mid-off.

A startled silence fell over the stadium as Chameera pulled back a hard length, found a hint of away movement, and baited a loose glide to point as Kohli attempted to put bat through ball from the start, but only managed to take his tournament total to 119 runs at 19.83. With the score at 7 for 2, Faf du Plessis had yet to face a ball at the other end. He would make amends as quickly as possible.

du Plessis slams on gas pedal

Aside from falling agonizingly short of his century, du Plessis' knock could not have been more precisely timed. He remained composed throughout the pandemonium of an otherwise failing powerplay and moved easily into his evening's work, notably after launching an off-colour Ravi Bishnoi for six over long-on in the 14th over to move to the edge of his half-century. He had glided to 43 from 38 balls, with six cherry-picked boundaries - all but one of them eased through the off-side as he feasted in particular on the over-pitched delivery - up until that point.

After that, du Plessis smashed another 53 from 26 balls, including five more fours and a thudding drive for six off Krunal Pandya, for an overall strike-rate of exactly 150, as RCB turned a shaky 62 for 4 into a manageable target of 182.

Glenn Maxwell, who counterattacked following the two first-over wickets with 23 off 11, and Shahbaz Ahmed, who struck 26 from 22 in a fifth-wicket stand of 70, supported him in his rebuilding efforts, while Dinesh Karthik increased his tournament total to 210 runs from 102 balls with 13 not out from 8. Marcus Stoinis made amends after spilling a low chance at backward square to reprieve Karthik off the deserved Jason Holder.

du Plessis couldn't get a grip on another rising delivery from Jason Holder, whose 6'8" stature made excellent use of a springy surface all evening for figures of 2 for 25 in four overs. It meant that du Plessis had matched his IPL-best score of 96 against the Kings XI Punjab in 2019, but he was still on the hunt for his first IPL century.

Hazlewood is master of lengths

Bring out the Test-match players on a Test-match wicket. This was a surface suited for a bowler of Josh Hazlewood's caliber, with plenty of pace and bounce. Quinton de Kock snicked a beautiful length slanted across his left-handed bows for Maxwell at slip to pouch a sharp chance with the keeper, Karthik, threatening to dive across him in the third over of the reply, and he struck with his fifth ball.

Manish Pandey followed with a weak pull to midwicket in his next over, and when Hazlewood came at the death for the 17th over, Ayush Badoni was bowled by a knuckle ball on a wide line. The ultimate nail in Lucknow's coffin, though, came in a moment of little controversy, when Hazlewood had Marcus Stoinis, another Australian, in his sights.

With 34 runs still needed, Stoinis feinted to the off-side with the first ball of the 19th over, and Hazlewood spotted him coming and speared his delivery farther out wide. To the batter's gritted teeth's chagrin, umpire Chris Gaffaney granted the bowler the benefit of the doubt. Stoinis, on the other hand, burst after one ball and the pursuit was over. He moved over to the off side once more, but due to the prior call, he over-compensated and was bowled round the legs to a massive, pointed expletive.

It was, however, a dismissal in line with Lucknow's chase, in which RCB's ability to winkle out important wickets at crucial stages was demonstrated by a top partnership of 36. Few things were more important than Harshal Patel's stroke of luck at the end of a sloppy first over.

Harshal Patel induced a leg-side strangle to see off the dangerous KL Rahul for 30, via a belated review, moments after a reckless bouncer had flown away for five wides. Krunal Pandya kept the chase alive for a while with a pair of sixes off spinners Shabhaz and Wanindu Hasaranga in consecutive overs, the last a vicious extension of the arms through long-off. However, when Maxwell returned for his second over, a hole-out to deep midwicket left Pandya's side with too much ground to make up.