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RCB Triumph Over CSK to Clinch Playoff Berth

It’s the fourth time RCB entered the IPL playoffs in the last five seasons and they will now play the Eliminator on May 23 …reports Asian Lite News

Left-arm pacer Yash Dayal starred with 2-42, including taking out MS Dhoni in a seven-run final over, as Royal Challengers Bengaluru held their nerve to enter the IPL 2024 playoffs with a stunning 27-run win over Chennai Super Kings in front of their faithful fans at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

After captain Faf du Plessis (54), Virat Kohli (47), Rajat Patidar (41), and Cameron Green (38 not out) excelled in a collective batting show to post a challenging 218/5, with a 40-minute rain interval in between, RCB then had CSK in trouble right from the start of the chase.

Though Rachin Ravindra made 61 which Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni shared a 61-run stand off 27 balls, it wasn’t enough as CSK were restricted to 191/7 to bow out of the competition, as RCB got their sixth consecutive win of the competition to grab the last remaining playoffs spot.

It’s the fourth time RCB entered the IPL playoffs in the last five seasons and they will now play the Eliminator on May 23 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. RCB have also become the first team to qualify for the playoffs with seven wins in a 10-team competition.

Kohli and du Plessis set the platform for the big total through the 78-run opening stand. It was followed by Patidar and Green having a 71-run association for the third wicket, with Dinesh Karthik and Glenn Maxwell firing in late cameos to get a massive total on board for RCB.

Tournament’s leading run-getter Kohli began in stunning fashion with a square drive off Shardul Thakur for four, before skipper Faf du Plessis drove the all-rounder for four more and thumped a six over the bowler’s head.

Kohli used his supple wrists to flick Tushar Deshpande for six, before pulling him for another maximum in the third over, while also completing 3000 runs at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Just as Maheesh Theekshana was to bowl the fourth over, heavy showers lashed the venue and forced players as well as on-field umpires to get off the field, with covers quickly covering the field of play.

After 40 minutes of interruption, with moisture caused by rain seeping into the pitch, Theekshana and Mitchell Santner found turn, grip, and bounce. It meant RCB didn’t get many runs and ended their power-play at 42/0. Despite Kohli striking some lovely boundaries off Santner and Ravindra Jadeja, he fell three runs short of his fifty when he whipped uppishly to wide long-on off the former.

Du Plessis continued the attack by hitting Jadeja for four and back-to-back sixes in his third over before reaching his fifty. But his knock ended when Santner got a finger off a straight drive from Patidar before the ball hit the stumps at the bowler’s end, catching the batter short of the crease. After several replays, umpire Michael Gough confirmed du Plessis’ bat was in the air and adjudged him out for 54 off 39 balls.

Patidar and Green hit three boundaries collectively off Simarjeet Singh, before giving the same treatment to Shardul Thakur. Patidar then smashed Deshpande for a brace of sixes, before Green hit consecutive maximums off Thakur.

But Patidar fell for a 23-ball 41 after holing out to long-on off Thakur. Karthik and Maxwell hit quickfire boundaries in the last three overs of the innings as RCB slammed 80 runs in the last five overs to post their highest total against CSK in the IPL.

In reply, CSK were never in the hunt to chase down 219 from the word go. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad fell for a golden duck after top-edging a short ball straight to short fine leg off Maxwell. Daryl Mitchell couldn’t do much, lasting just six balls before miscuing a loft to mid-off against Dayal.

Ravindra, with his cuts and pulls, along with Ajinkya Rahane steadied CSK’s ship after the early blows by hitting seven boundaries between themselves in a 66-run stand off 41 balls for the third wicket. But pressure built by RCB spinners meant Rahane looked to take on Lockie Ferguson’s first ball, but top-edged to wide mid-off to fall for 33 off 22 balls.

Ravindra marched forward to get a 31-ball fifty, his first in the IPL, by heaving Ferguson over deep mid-wicket for six. Luck was going CSK’s way when Siraj dropped Shivam Dube’s catch at long-on. But in the same over, a massive mix-up resulted in Ravindra being run out for 61 off 37 balls.

Though Jadeja was dropped by Karthik off Green, RCB continued to strike as Dube holed out to long-on off Ferguson, while du Plessis took a leaping one-handed catch at mid-off to dismiss Santner cheaply.

Jadeja and Dhoni hit nine stunning boundaries between themselves to valiantly take CSK close to 200, but once the latter fell to Dayal in the final over, the match turned in RCB’s favour.

CSK needed 10 runs to qualify off the last two balls, but Dayal got his redemption by not giving a single run to spark frenzied celebrations in the venue.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 218/5 in 20 overs (Faf du Plessis 54, Virat Kohli 47; Shardul Thakur 2-61, Mitchell Santner 1-23) beat Chennai Super Kings 191/7 in 20 overs (Rachin Ravindra 61, Ravindra Jadeja 42 not out; Yash Dayal 2-42, Cameron Green 1-18) by 27 runs

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RCB Revives Playoff Chances, PBKS Out

RCB’s Playoff Hopes Stay Afloat with Fourth Straight Victory, PBKS Join Mumbai Indians in Tournament Exit…reports Asian Lite News

Virat Kohli’s majestic 92 off 47 balls, coupled with a collective bowling effort helped Royal Challengers Bengaluru get a 60-run win over Punjab Kings in Match 58 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the HPCA Stadium here on Thursday. The result means RCB keep their Playoff hopes alive with their fourth win on the trot, while PBKS become the second team after Mumbai Indians to be eliminated from the tournament.

Kohli hit seven fours and six maximums at a strike rate of 195.74 in his vintage knock which also took him past the 600-run mark in the IPL 2024. He was ably supported by Rajat Patidar’s 55, his fourth fifty of this season as RCB posted 241/7, their fourth-highest total in the tournament.

For PBKS, pacer Harshal Patel took 3-38, taking his IPL 2024 wickets tally to 20, while debutant fast-bowler Vidwath Kaverappa took 2-36, including a terrific Power-play spell, though the hosts were sloppy in their fielding. PBKS had a glimmer of hope to overhaul the total via a 65-run partnership between Jonny Bairstow and Rilee Rossouw. Though Rossouw made 61, none of PBKS’s batters stood up as they were bowled out for 181 in 17 overs.

Kohli could have been out on the third ball of the innings if Ashutosh Sharma had not dropped a difficult catch at point off Kaverappa. Faf du Plessis got going with back-to-back fours through extra-cover off Kaverappa, who had the last laugh by having the RCB skipper hole out to deep point in the third over. In the same over of Kaverappa, Kohli got another life on 10 when Rilee Rossouw dropped another difficult catch at extra cover. Kohli and Will Jacks hit three boundaries collectively to take 16 runs off Sam Curran in the fourth over before Kaverappa had the latter sweeping to short fine leg.

But Kaverappa had to see the third catch dropped by PBKS off his bowling, as Patidar’s chance was shelled by Harshal Patel at deep fine leg while on zero. Patidar smacked Harshal for three boundaries in a 12-run sixth over, before he and Kohli took a six each in Kaverappa’s final over. Patidar stepped up the attack against spinners by smacking Rahul Chahar for three sixes in his first over and was given another life when Jonny Bairstow was late to react to a catch behind. He would get his fifty in 21 balls when he pulled Sam Curran over short fine-leg for six, before nicking behind to keeper off the left-arm pacer.

Following a 33-minute rain and hail interruption, Kohli got his fifty in 32 balls with a vintage flick through mid-wicket for four off Liam Livingstone. He continued to nail authoritative boundaries mixed with nonchalance and vintage stroke-play to the delight of fans chanting ‘Kohli, Kohli’. But Kohli fell eight runs short of his second century this season when he sliced an Arshdeep Singh delivery to deep third man in the 18th over. Dinesh Karthik hit three quick boundaries before holing out to long-on off Harshal, who castled Mahipal Lomror and had Cameron Green miscuing in the deep on the last ball of the innings.

RCB had a superb start to their defence as Swapnil Singh trapped Prabhsimran Singh lbw on the fourth ball. Bairstow hit four boundaries and a six in his 16-ball 27, before falling to Lockie Ferguson on the second last ball of the powerplay. Rossouw kept PBKS in the hunt by smashing boundaries at will to hit his first fifty of the competition, which he reached by thumping a six over Green’s head. After getting some attention from the physio for an injury, Rossouw holed out to long off against Karn Sharma, who went on to castle Jitesh Sharma.

Though Shashank Singh was smashing boundaries, it wasn’t enough for PBKS as Liam Livingstone was caught at cover for a duck, off a leading edge against Swapnil. Shashank himself needed attention from the physio for a shoulder injury and was run out by a direct hit fired by Kohli from deep mid-wicket on the very next ball, falling for 19-ball 37. After that, PBKS never recovered as Ashutosh was trapped lbw by Siraj, followed by Ferguson knocking over Sam Curran. Siraj came back to take out the remaining two wickets and finish with 3-43 as RCB managed another clinical win.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 241/7 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 92, Rajat Patidar 55; Harshal Patel 3-38, Vidwath Kaverappa 2-36) beat Punjab Kings 181 in 17 overs (Rilee Rossouw 61, Shashank Singh 37; Mohammed Siraj 3-43, Swapnil Singh 2-280 by 60 runs

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RCB Finds Redemption

Kohli, Patidar fifties and Green’s all-round brilliance lead to 35-run victory over SRH after six losses…reports Asian Lite News

At the toss, Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper Faf du Plessis said they wanted to put the in-form Sunrisers Hyderabad under scoreboard pressure in Match 41 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Thursday. His team did just that by posting a big total and taking early wickets to win the match.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru rode on contrasting half-centuries by Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar and a brilliant all-round performance by Cameron Green, who scored an unbeaten 37 and claimed 2-12, to hand Sunrisers Hyderabad a 35-run defeat and registered their first win after six successive defeats in IPL 2024.

Leg-spinner Karn Sharma (2-29) and Swapnil Singh (2-40) too claimed a double each on top of a superb bowling effort as SRH were restricted to 171/8 in 20 overs after a 37-ball fifty by Kohli and a blazing 19-ball half-century by Patidar propelled them to a challenging 206/7 after du Plessis chose to bat first on winning the toss.

Considering that SRH has scored two of the biggest totals this season, it was a chasable target for them but they failed to gain any momentum and slumped to their third defeat of IPL and remain in third position. RCB have now won their second match but remain at the bottom.

Sunrisers Hyderabad virtually lost the match in the Power-play as they suffered four setbacks — none more debilitating than the wicket of opener Travis Head for one run in the first over.

Du Plessis, who had boldly decided to bat first against an in-form SRH, continued with his fearless approach by opening the bowling with off-spinner Will Jacks. The move paid off as the 25-year-old Englishman struck gold on the last ball of the opening over when Head, who came in as an Impact Substitute, tried to hit him out of the park only to see the ball spin away and the top edge going straight to Karn Sharma on the off-side.

Fellow opener Abhishek Sharma, who has a strike rate of 200-plus just like Travis Head, hammered a 13-ball 31 studded with three boundaries and two sixes before he fell to Yash Dayal, attempting a pull but mishitting it and lobbing a slice in the air for keeper Dinesh Karthik to pouch a skier.

It became 41/3 in the fifth over when Markram completely missed a Swapnil Singh delivery to be trapped LBW for seven. And when a few deliveries later Klassen, after hitting Swapnil for a six, was out for seven off 3 balls, SRH slumped to 56/4 in the fifth over and their chase of 207 was in disarray. They ended the Power-play at 62/4, as compared to RCB’s 61/1 but the three extra wickets proved a huge stumbling block.

The dangerous Nitish Kumar Reddy was castled by Karn Sharma playing an ugly switch hit despite the difficult situation his team was in as SRH slumped to 69/5. Abdul Samad (10), who greeted Lockie Ferguson with a swat over long-on off his first delivery, chipped back to Karn, totally foxed by the leg spinner as he jumped out even before the ball was released.

Pat Cummins raised SRH hopes by hammering Swapnil Singh for back-to-back sixes in the 11th over and blasted Karn Sharma for a four and six off successive deliveries in the next over, fell to fellow Aussie Cameron Green, trying to hit a short, wide delivery to Mohd Siraj at short third man, beaten by lack of pace in the delivery.

He blazed to 31 off 15 balls, hitting one four and three sixes. SRH were 124/7 and the writing was clear on the wall. Green claimed one more wicket, sending back Bhuvneshwar Singh (13) as the run rate kept rising and SRH kept losing wickets.

Earlier, Patidar hammered a blazing fifty, his second in successive matches and Kohli scored his fourth half-century at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium as RCB recovered from a decelerating scoring rate after the Power-play to post a big total.

Kohli scored his fifty off 37 balls while Patidar hammered his half-century off just 19 balls as RCB posted another 200-plus score after skipper Faf du Plessis opted to bat first on a dual-paced pitch on which the slower one was quite effective.

Patidar blasted four sixes in an over off Mayank Markande to shore up the RCB scoring rate after Kohli struggled to break free. Jaydev Unadkat applied the brakes on the free-scoring RCB innings by claiming the key wickets of Patidar, Kohli and Mahipal Lomror for a fine haul of 3-30 off four overs in his 100th outing in IPL.

Earlier, skipper du Plessis (25) struck Bhuvneshwar Kumar for three boundaries in the second over, the pick of them being a four crashed through the covers off a fullish delivery outside the off stump. In the next over, he welcomed Pat Cummins with a superb six, scooping behind a delivery picked from around off-stump and planting him over the leg-side for the first six of the match. But the introduction of T. Natarajan brought his downfall when he holed out near the deep cover boundary trying to maintain the RCB scoring tempo in Power-play.

RCB raced to 61/1 in Power-play, Will Jacks was out for six after he played all over a slower one from spinner Mayank Markande to make it 65/2. Though Kohli’s strike rate went down, Patidar made for that with some brilliant strokes. Kohli, who started with a four off Abhishek Sharma’s first delivery, struck back-to-back fours off Pat Cummins and struck a four and six off Natarajan in between singles. He went on to complete a slow half-century off 37 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and one six. This was his fourth successive half-century at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.

Patidar more than made up for the slow going from Kohli with a blazing half-century off 19 deliveries. The highlight of Patidar’s sensational knock was the four sixes he blasted off successive deliveries against Markande, lofting, clobbering and pulling the leg-spinner as the over cost SRH 27 runs.

Kohli and Patidar raised 65 runs for the third wicket partnership with the latter doing the bulk of scoring. The half-century of their partnership came in 23 balls with Patidar scoring 45 off them.

However, SRH pulled things back a bit after Patidar fell by the sword, trying to play another big one but managed to flick the slow full toss from Jaydev Unadkat into the hands of Abdul Samad at deep square leg. Patidar’s 20-ball 50 was studded with two boundaries and five maximums.

Kohli completed his half-century off 37 balls, but Unadkat got him in the next over, getting him to hole out to Samad as the former RCB skipper failed to break free from the shackles. Mahipal Lomror was out cheaply but Cameron Green played a fine cameo and with the help of Dinesh Karthik (11 off 6) helped RCB reach a defendable total. Swapnil Singh struck a boundary and a six off the first two balls of the final over to help them cross the 200-run mark.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 206/7 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 51, Rajat Patidar 50, Cameron Green 37 not out; Jaydev Unadkat 3-30, T.Natarajan 2-39) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 171/8 in 20 overs (Shahbaz Ahmed 40 not out, Abhishek Sharma 31, Pat Cummins 31; Cameron Green 2-12, Karn Sharma 2-29, Swapnil Singh 2-40) by 35 runs

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Buttler Shines in his 100th IPL Match as Royals Beat RCB

Jaipur: Rajasthan Rajasthan Royals' Jos Buttler celebrates scoring a century and also the win over Royal Challengers Bangaluru during the IPL cricket match between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, in Jaipur, Saturday, April 6, 2024. (Photo: IANS/BCCI)

Through his brilliant knock, Buttler has also become only the second batter to score a 100 in his 100th IPL match…reports Asian Lite News

Opener Jos Buttler announced his return to form in his 100th IPL match with a magnificent 58-ball century as he outshined Virat Kohli’s ton to help Rajasthan Royals make it four wins from four matches at IPL 2024 after beating Royal Challengers Bengaluru by six wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

After Kohli brought out his vintage self to slam his eighth IPL century and ninth overall in T20 cricket via 113 not out off 72 balls to lift RCB to a competitive 183/3, Buttler weathered the early storm and then brought out the attacking play to perfection to hit exactly 100 runs off 58 balls, laced with nine fours and four sixes, in what was his sixth IPL century.

Through his brilliant knock, Buttler has also become only the second batter to score a 100 in his 100th IPL match, after K.L. Rahul. On a pitch where stroke play got better as the game progressed, Buttler was also well-supported by captain Sanju Samson making 69 off 42 balls as RR completed the chase with five balls to spare and was now on top of the points table.

It was the same old story for RCB, who lacked penetration with the ball and barring Reece Topley, the rest failed to put up a performance of note for the visitors. RR didn’t have an ideal start to the chase of 184 as Yashasvi Jaiswal pulled a short ball from Reece Topley to mid-off, falling for a two-ball duck.

Samson got going with three boundaries, before Buttler scooped a four over Dinesh Karthik’s head, followed by surviving a tough chance and surviving a run-out attempt in the fourth over bowled by Mohammed Siraj.

Buttler followed it up by hitting two off-side boundaries off Yash Dayal and proceeded to smack left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar for three fours and a six in an 18-run over as RR made 54/1 in six overs at the end of power-play.

Samson pulled leg-spinner Himanshu Sharma twice for fours, one of which Kohli couldn’t catch at mid-wicket. Buttler drove one on the up off Cameron Green, before reaching his fifty in 30 balls. Samson wowed everyone with an upper cut six off Siraj, before hitting two fours and a maximum off Dagar to reach his second fifty of the season in 33 balls.

Whenever RCB’s spinners missed their lengths, along with dew coming into play, Buttler and Samson were quick to dispatch it for boundaries. Buttler was impeccable with his timing -– seen from him flat-batting a slower short ball from Dayal over leaping long-off and then using the width from Topley to steer using his wrists for piercing the gap between backward point and deep cover point.

The 148-run partnership fell when Samson couldn’t time the pull well off Siraj and was caught at deep backward square leg. Though Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel fell in quick succession, Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer knocked off the remaining runs, with the former swivelling a six to the left of deep square leg to get his century and give RR a thrilling win in front of its faithful home fans.

Earlier, Kohli was pristine in hitting 12 fours and four sixes in his unbeaten 113, which is also his third century in his last seven IPL innings to level his highest score in the competition. He went hard in scoring against pace, making 67 off 39 balls while accumulating 46 off 33 balls against spin.

Kohli hit almost 62% runs of RCB’s total, while the rest of the batters made 59 runs from 48 balls. Interestingly, Kohli’s 67-ball ton is the joint-slowest century in IPL, levelling with a hundred made by Manish Pandey in same number of balls against DC in 2009.

Pushed into batting first, Kohli and Faf du Plessis hit four boundaries to help RCB amass 29/0 in three overs. Kohli hit the first six of the game by handsomely pulling Nandre Burger before du Plessis thumped a four over his head. The duo brought up the fifty of the opening stand in the sixth over to finish the powerplay at 53/0.

After Kohli became the first batter to breach the 7,500-run mark in IPL’s history, du Plessis launched a brace of sixes on short balls from Trent Boult to take 16 runs off the ninth over. Kohli whipped a Yuzvendra Chahal delivery for a six in the tenth over, followed by reaching his fifty when he hammered Riyan Parag for a six down the ground.

The century stand between Kohli and du Plessis was achieved in 11.2 overs, before the former got a life at 67 when Burger dropped a chance at point off Chahal. A few balls later, Boult dropped a regulation catch of du Plessis at cover to give the batter a second life on 42 off Chahal.

But du Plessis couldn’t capitalise on the reprieve as he holed out to long-on for 44 off 33 balls off the leg-spinner, followed by Burger rattling Glenn Maxwell’s stumps and Chahal taking out debutant Saurabh Chauhan.

Kohli signalled taking an acceleration route by smacking Avesh for three fours, before slog sweeping Chahal for six. He reached his century in 67 balls with a single to long-on off a low full toss from Burger. Kohli took three fours off Avesh in the final over and walked off to a standing ovation from his RCB teammates, as the visitors made 54 runs off the last five overs.

Brief scores:

Royal Challengers Bengaluru 183/3 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 113 not out, Faf du Plessis 44; Yuzvendra Chahal 2-34, Nandre Burger 1-33) lost to Rajasthan Royals 189/4 in 19.1 overs (Jos Buttler 100 not out, Sanju Samson 69; Reece Topley 2-27, Mohammed Siraj 1-35) by six wickets

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Mayank Yadav’s 3-14 Dismantles RCB’s Hopes

Despite RCB’s Strong Batting Lineup, Mayank Yadav’s 3-14 Crushed Their Hopes…reports Asian Lite News

Young tearaway pacer Mayank Yadav (3-14) bowled a sensational spell that included the fastest delivery of this edition at 156.7kmph after opener Quinton de Kock (81) and Nicholas Pooran (40 not out) set the platform to help Lucknow Super Giants defeat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 28 runs in Match 15 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Tuesday.

Quinton de Kock had set the ball rolling for LSG after RCB skipper Faf du Plessis had asked them to bat first by hammering a 56-ball 81, raising two half-century partnerships with captain K.L Rahul (20) and Marcus Stoinis (24). However, RCB pulled things back a bit by applying brakes on LSG, who were looking good to cross 200. Nicholas Pooran blasted five sixes in the last two overs in scoring a 21-ball 40 as LSG posted 181/5 in 20 overs.

The target of 182 looked gettable considering RCB has batters like Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green besides one of the top finishers in Dinesh Karthik. However, Mayank Yadav had other ideas as he rattled RCB with sheer pace and destroyed their innings and confidence in a superb spell of three overs. He eventually finished with 3-14 to put LSG on course to victory.

The 21-year-old Yadav, who had taken 3-27 in his debut match against Punjab Kings on Saturday, had breached the 150kmph mark nine times at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium and bowled an absolute scorcher captured by the speed gun at 155.8 kph — the fastest delivery in the ongoing season.

On Tuesday, he was at it again as the right-handed pacer raised the bar once again. Yadav, a product of Sonnet Club of Delhi, touched 156.7 kmph against Cameron Green in Tuesday’s clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

He got the wickets of Glenn Maxwell (0), Cameron Green (9) and Rajat Patidar (29) and with Naveen-Ul-Haq claiming 2-25, Lucknow Super Giants bowled out RCB for 153 in 19.4 overs to win their second win in three matches and moved up to fourth in the standings with four points, the same as Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, and Gujarat Titans. Rajasthan Royals lead the standings with six points from three matches. This was the 14th time in 16 matches that Lucknow have won the match after batting first in the IPL.

Yadav’s heroics came after opener Quinton de Kock had blasted a 59-ball 81 to lay the foundation while Nicholas Pooran hammered five sixes in the final two overs of the match in scoring a 21-ball 40 to propel LSG to 181/5 in 20 overs after RCB had applied the brakes in the middle overs.

RCB had got off a good start with Virat Kohli, who had struck back-to-back half-centuries in the tournament so far, striking two boundaries and a six in scoring a 16-ball 22. The former RCB and India captain fell to left-arm spinner Manimaran Siddharth in the fifth over as LSG skipper opened the bowling with left-arm spinners from both ends. Krunal Pandya conceded 10 runs in the only over he bowled but Siddharth finished with 1-21 in the three overs he bowled on Tuesday night.

LSG suffered another blow as skipper Faf du Plessis was run out to a superb piece of direct throw by Davdutt Padikkal for 19. Yadav then sent back Maxwell and Cameron Green in quick succession as RCB fell to 58/4 in the eighth over. Anuj Rawat (11) and Rajat Patidar (29, 21b, 2×4, 2×6) tried to revive the innings but both of them fell in quick succession and RCB were 103/6 and staring at defeat.

Mahipal Lomror raised their hopes with some lusty hitting, hammering three huge sixes and as many boundaries for a brilliant 13-ball 39 and towards the end of the innings Mohammed Siraj blasted back-to-back sixes off Ravi Bishnoi before he was caught sensationally by Nicholas Pooran off Naveen-Ul-Haq off the fourth ball of the final over as RCB ended on the losing note.

While Mayank Yadav hogged the limelight for his mesmerising pace bowling, LSG did well in the field too, catching and fielding superbly. Devdutt Padikkal took three catches and effected a run out while Nicholas Pooran also took three catches and got a run-out with a direct hit.

De Kock went berserk at the start of the innings, raising 53 runs for the opening wicket with skipper K.L Rahul (20) and 56 for the third wicket with Marcus Stoinis (24) after RCB skipper Faf du Plessis won the toss and opted to field first.

However, RCB pulled things back a bit, sending down some miserly overs towards the end of the innings before Nicholas Pooran hammered five sixes in the last two overs for 40 not out off 21 deliveries to help them to a defendable total. Glenn Maxwell was the best of the RCB bowlers with 2-23 off his four overs.

LSG were off to a good start, with Quinton de Kock and K.L Rahul raising 53 runs for the opening wicket partnership. De Kock started in whirlwind fashion hitting 32 runs in the fifty-run partnership. The South African wicketkeeper-batter hammered three boundaries off Reece Topley, who came in for fellow English pacer Alzarri Joseph, starting with a top-edge off the third delivery of the opening over and following that up with a loft over cover-point on a fullish delivery and a punch to deep backward point fence off the next delivery.

A drive to deep-point boundary off Yash Dayal in the second over by the left-handed opener was followed by back-to-back sixes off Mohammed Siraj — a superb pick-up off his pads into the first-tier followed by a blast over deep backward square leg on the next.

Quinton de Kock, who got a life when Maxwell put down a difficult chance while back-pedaling, found an able partner in Marcus Stoinis as they both raised 56 runs for the third-wicket partnership.

De Kock completed his half-century off 36 balls, hitting five boundaries and three maximums. LSG reached 100 off in the 12th over and they reached fifty off their partnership soon off 26 balls.

RCB applied the brakes with Yash Dayal bowling a two-run 15th over and Reece Topley and Mohd Siraj following that up with similar miserly overs, de Kock blasted Siraj for two boundaries in the 16th over to pull things back for LSG as they reached 141/3 in 16 overs.

With four overs to go and LSG looking to break free hoping to reach 200, Nicholas Pooran was dropped by keeper Anuj Rawat off Reece Topley but de Kock was not so lucky as he fell off the next ball, trying to hit a big one off a low and slow full-toss and Mayank Dagar pouched a well-judged catch at long-off to see the back of the South African for 81 off 56 balls, studded with eight boundaries and five maximums.

Pooran blasted a hat-trick of sixes off Topley — a flat six off a dipping full-toss, followed by a repeat of the shot over deep point and topped it by pulling a slow short one outside off and deposited into on the roof of the stadium for a 106m six. The over cost RCB 20 runs. Pooran hammered two back-to-back sixes off Siraj after the pacer had conceded only 1 run in three balls of the final over, as LSG crossed the 180-run mark.

LSG then defended the total easily with Mayank Yadav making all the difference for them.

Brief scores:

Lucknow Super Giants 181/5 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 81, Nicholas Pooran 40 not out; Glenn Maxwell 2-23) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 153 all out in 19.4 overs (Mahipal Lomror 33, Rajat Patidar 29; Mayank Yadav 3-14, Naveen-Ul-Haq 2-25) by 28 runs.

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RCB’s Triple Threat Secures WPL Triumph

After years of hoping with ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’, RCB’s dream turned reality as they clinched their inaugural WPL title, becoming only the second champions in the tournament’s history…reports Asian Lite News

Spinners Shreyanka Patil, Sophie Molineux, and Asha Sobhana took nine wickets between themselves while Ellyse Perry showed calmness with an unbeaten 35 to help Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) win the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024 title with an eight-wicket win over Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Sunday.

The long-used phrase of ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’, which translates to ‘this year the cup is ours’, and the ridicule around it came to an end as a far-fetched dream finally became a reality for RCB in winning their first-ever WPL title and become just the second winners in the history of the competition.

Shreyanka was the hero with the ball, taking 4-12 and becoming the leading wicket-taker of the tournament, while Sophie’s triple strike and Asha’s two scalps ensured DC were bowled out for 113 in 18.3 overs, after being 64/0 in seven overs. In the chase, Ellyse, who is the leading run-getter in the competition, stayed till the end to complete the chase in 19.3 overs.

Chasing just 114, Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine took their time to make 25 runs in the Power-play, including hitting three boundaries collectively off Marizanne Kapp.

RCB got the momentum they waited for in the seventh over when Sophie swept twice off Radha Yadav and then danced down the pitch to hit the left-arm spinner for a six in the 18-run over. But her knock ended on 32 in the ninth over when she played all around a nip-backer from Shikha Pandey to be trapped lbw.

Though the runs dried up for RCB, Smriti and Ellyse kept the chase in control by going slow and looking at a chance to up the ante. They got the opportunity when Ellyse pulled Arundhati Reddy for a boundary, while Smriti timed a drive exquisitely past the backward point for another four in the 13th over.

Ellyse then lofted Jess Jonassen over mid-off for four but lost Smriti to Minnu Mani, who was beaten in flight while going for the loft and holed out to mid-on. Ellyse and Richa Ghosh rotated strike briefly before the latter cut Minnu through point for four.

Ellyse pulled Jess through mid-wicket for four and then swept Alice Capsey past fine leg for another boundary to take RCB closer to victory. Richa sealed the deal for RCB when she lofted Arundhati over mid-off for four, sparking jubilant celebrations in the camp and in the entire Bengaluru city on winning the WPL 2024 trophy.

Earlier, Delhi Capitals had a blazing start by making 61 runs in the Power-play, also the joint-highest score in the first six overs of this season, and looked set to make a big total. But once the spinners came in, DC crumbled like nine pins, falling from 64/0 in seven overs to losing their all-ten wickets in just 49 runs.

Their shot selection, especially in facing straighter deliveries, and clumsy running between the wickets, left a lot to be desired as Shreyanka took 4-12 to be the leading wicket-taker in the competition, followed by Sophie taking 3-20 and Asha Sobhana picking 2-14 in what was another impressive spin bowling show for RCB.

Electing to bat first, Delhi overcame a mix-up between Meg Lanning and Shafali Verma in the opening over to have a blistering start. Shafali was the main aggressor -– slamming a brace of sixes over the bowler’s head, before Meg cleared mid-off and sliced Renuka Singh Thakur for back-to-back boundaries.

Shafali continued to deal in boundaries -– sending one down the ground for six, slicing for four more and carved a drive-over cover for another boundary. Meg then whipped a four over backward square leg for four as DC signed off from power-play with 61/0.

Post Power-play, RCB made a powerful comeback to leave DC’s innings in tatters, thanks to left-arm spinner Sophie in the eighth over. In a bid to clear a longer boundary, Shafali slog-swept straight to deep mid-wicket off her.

Sophie had Jemimah Rodrigues castled on sweep for a two-ball duck, before Alice was cleaned up while shaping up for a lap shot, falling for a golden duck as the left-arm spinner took three wickets in four balls. More trouble followed DC as an edgy Meg was trapped lbw by Shreyanka after playing all around an off-break delivery in the 11th over.

Marizanne miscued her slog-sweep against Asha and long-on caught the thick top edge. Jess Jonassen was next to fall, miscuing her slog off the leg-spinner, and was safely caught by Smriti. Minnu missed a paddle sweep off Shreyanka and was trapped plumb lbw.

Radha hit back-to-back boundaries to take DC past 100, but her run-out by a direct hit from Sophie in the 17th over ended the side’s prospect of getting a respectable total. Shreyanka knocked over Arundhati and had Taniyaa Bhatia caught behind by Richa on a faint edge to end DC’s innings in 18.3 overs, as the hosts ended up being runners-up in the WPL for a second straight time, this time at their home turf.

Brief scores: Delhi Capitals 113 all out in 18.3 overs (Shafali Verma 44, Meg Lanning 23; Shreyanka Patil 4-12, Sophie Molineux 3-20) lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore 115/2 in 19.3 overs (Ellyse Perry 35 not out, Shikha Pandey 1-11) by eight wickets.

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Kohli’s ton in vain as Gujarat oust RCB

The result means that Bangalore crashed out of the race to the playoffs, with five-time champions Mumbai Indians sealing the last remaining spot in the last four stage…reports Asian Lite News

After a long wait of 55 minutes for Sunday’s game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Titans to start due to rain, the crowd at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium was treated to spectacular one-man show from Virat Kohli, who coasted to his second consecutive century through an unbeaten 61-ball 101.

Kohli’s efforts of carrying his bat through the innings with 13 fours and a six at a strike-rate of 165.57 meant Bangalore posted a competitive 197/5, giving hopes to their die-hard fans in the stadium about reaching the playoffs and keeping the quest for the elusive trophy alive.

But Shubman Gill, the heir apparent of Kohli in the Indian batting line-up, sizzled with an unbeaten 104 off 52 balls, also his second straight IPL century, laced with hitting five fours and eight sixes at a strike-rate of 200 to break countless Bangalore-supporting hearts in the stadium and steal Kohli’s thunder.

He also shared a crucial 123-run partnership off 71 balls for the second wicket with Vijay Shankar, who scored a quick 53, to help Gujarat chase down 198 with five balls to spare, in what felt like passing of the Indian batting baton from one generation to another.

The result means that Bangalore crashed out of the race to the playoffs, with five-time champions Mumbai Indians sealing the last remaining spot in the last four stage and will face Lucknow Super Giants in the eliminator on May 24 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

Chasing 198, Wriddhiman Saha and Gill hit two fours each in the first three overs, before the former fell in the third over off Mohammed Siraj when Wayne Parnell at cover jumped to take the catch with his outstretched left hand for a stunning one-handed take.

Shankar got couple of outside edges off Parnell for fours, followed by lofting a six over long-on as Gujarat ended power-play at 56/1. While Shankar struggled to get his timing against spinners, Gill smacked Vyshak Vijaykumar down the ground for a clean six, followed by a lucky edge going for four and swiping Himanshu Sharma for six over deep mid-wicket.

A change of bat saw Shankar cut Harshal Patel for four, followed by slog-sweeping between long-on and deep mid-wicket off Himanshu for another boundary. Gill ended the 11th over by dancing down the pitch to drive Himanshu through extra cover, followed by getting his fifty in 29 balls.

Bengaluru, May 21 (ANI): Gujarat Titans’ Shubhman Gill and Vijay Shankar during their 100runs partnership in a match against Royal Challengers Bangalore of Indian Premier League 2023, at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru on Sunday. (ANI Photo/Digital Restriction)

Gill then tore into Michael Bracewell’s off-spin, picking up a delivery on pads over long leg for six and clobbered one over deep mid-wicket for another maximum. Gujarat’s luck continued when Shankar got a four off an outside edge against Siraj. He then ramped and lofted Vyshak for two fours, before slogging him for six to get his fifty in 34 balls.

In a bid to get another six, Shankar holed out to deep mid-wicket on the very next ball, followed by Dasun Shanaka holing out in the same region in quick succession. After a no-boundary 17th over, Gill eased pressure with a short-arm pull off Siraj for six, though the pacer bounced back by having David Miller slicing to deep point.

Gill then nailed a pull off Siraj over deep mid-wicket for six to bring the equation to 19 off 12 balls. He again brought out the nonchalant short-arm pull against Harshal for six, before finishing off the chase in style with a maximum over long-on bringing up his second IPL century in as many games.

Earlier, Kohli mesmerised everyone with his magical bottom-handed shots, controlled footwork and usage of wrists to take Bangalore to a big total despite wickets falling around him, and went off the field to a rousing standing ovation from the crowd.

Pushed into batting first, Faf du Plessis went after Mohammed Shami, hitting four boundaries in the third over. Kohli joined the boundary-hitting party by flicking and pulling twice for three well-timed boundaries, before du Plessis ended the over by lofting over mid-off for four to end fourth over by taking 17 runs.

Kohli took a four each off Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad to end power-play at 62/0. Gujarat fought back in the eighth over when du Plessis went for loft off Noor, only for the bottom edge to go past the keeper and lobbed up to slip for an easy catch. Glenn Maxwell began powerfully with a six and four off the left-arm spinner, but was castled by a Rashid googly while trying to drive off him.

Noor stuck again when he enticed Mahipal Lomror to come out for a flick. But the ball went past him down leg and Saha moved swiftly to stump the batter. Kohli smashed a drive past long-off, before reaching his fifty in 35 balls. He found support from Bracewell, who began with three crisp boundaries through the off-side.

Kohli slammed Mohit over extra cover for four, before Bracewell capitalised on his slower deliveries to pick consecutive boundaries in a 15-run 13th over. Bracewell’s handy knock came to an end when the top-edge on a miscue was caught by Shami off his own bowling and Dinesh Karthik fell for a golden duck off Dayal when the bouncer took a glove edge behind.

Kohli led Bangalore’s recovery by cutting wide of cover and square-driving with perfection off Mohit for a brace of fours in the 16th over. He welcomed Dayal by swivelling hard over deep mid-wicket for six, before clipping him for four. Kohli flicked sweetly and pulled off Shami for two fours, before reaching his century off 60 balls in the final over. But it wasn’t sufficient enough to avoid being stunned by Gill.

Brief Scores: Royal Challengers Bangalore 197/5 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 101 not out; Noor Ahmad 2/39) lost to Gujarat Titans 198/4 in 19.1 overs (Shubman Gill 104 not out, Vijay Shankar 53; Mohammed Siraj 2/32) by six wickets

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Stoinis, Pooran leave RCB shocked

Stoinis began his onslaught by flicking off the pads for six off Harshal Patel, then slashed through point and smacked a straight drive down the ground for back-to-back fours…reports Asian Lite News

Lucknow Super Giants were 37/3 at the end of power-play, with Royal Challengers Bangalore firmly on top of them in a run chase of 213 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium but Marcus Stoinis brought his side back with his impressive 30-ball 65 while Nicholas Pooran smashed a sensational 19-ball 62, including hitting fastest fifty of the season in 15 balls, to take the team to a last-ball thrilling one-wicket victory in a dramatic match, here on Monday.

Mohammed Siraj gave Bangalore an ideal start as Kyle Mayers chopped on to his stumps. Wayne Parnell dealt double blows to Lucknow, having Deepak Hooda nick behind a cutter to Dinesh Karthik and then forcing Krunal Pandya to edge off an outswinger to the keeper.

Stoinis began his onslaught by flicking off the pads for six off Harshal Patel, then slashed through point and smacked a straight drive down the ground for back-to-back fours. He welcomed Karn Sharma with a pulled six over deep mid-wicket and struck a brace of fours.

A lofted driven six over long-off against Shahbaz Ahmed got Stoinis his fifty in 25 balls. He hit a six each off Karn and Shahbaz, before slicing to deep point off the former. With Rahul flicking straight to deep square leg off Siraj in the 12th over, it felt all was over for Lucknow.

But Pooran had other plans, starting his blitz with a classic square cut off Siraj, with Ayush Badoni taking a four too off him. While Badoni flicked Karn off his legs for four, Pooran upped the ante with successive sixes and teared into Harshal with two pulled sixes, apart from a four cut through short third man.

Parnell came under attack from Pooran, with the left-hander slicing him twice for fours apart from a six whacked over long-on which got him his fifty in just 15 balls. Badoni was lucky in an outside edge flying over short third man for four off Willey while Pooran ended the 16th over with a magnificent swing over deep square leg for six.

Bengaluru, Apr 10 (ANI): Lucknow Super Giants’ Nicholas Pooran celebrates his half-century against Royal Challengers Bangalore during their match in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru on Monday. (ANI Photo/ Digital Restriction)

His blitzkrieg came to an end in the 17th over when he picked out deep backward square leg off a full toss from Siraj. Jaydev Unadkat guided a yorker past keeper for four off Harshal while Badoni pulled Parnell for another boundary. Badoni moved across to scoop a six off Parnell, but his bat crashed into the stumps to be out hit-wicket.

As Bangalore fielded four fielders outside the circle in final over due to over rate penalty, Harshal added more drama by castling Mark Wood and had Unadkat holing out to a juggling long-on.

After Harshal’s attempt to run out Ravi Bishnoi twice didn’t happen, a fumble from Karthik behind allowed Bishnoi and Avesh Khan to go for a leg-bye, taking Lucknow to a thrilling last ball victory.

Earlier, Virat Kohli was at his aggressive best in attacking pacers in power-play while making 61 off 44 balls. Faf du Plessis was at 33 off 31 balls and looked scratchy but he found his timing to be unbeaten on 79 from 46 deliveries. Glenn Maxwell smacked 59 off just 29 balls, as the crowd was treated to some scintillating strokeplay with Bangalore reaching 212/2 in 20 overs.

Kohli got his first boundary with a not-so-convincing shot — getting a fat top-edge on a pull off Avesh. When offered width on the very next ball, Kohli drove authoritatively through extra cover for four.

Kohli further attacked Avesh in his second over through a brace of crisp drives on the up through cover, and welcomed Krunal Pandya with a delightful loft for six over long-on. Wood’s extra pace didn’t trouble Kohli as he brought out the drive over the bowler’s head for four and on the next ball, rocked back to pull over midwicket for six.

But with the spinners tying them down with control, Kohli took time to reach his fifty in 35 balls. He broke the shackles by pulling Krunal over mid-wicket for six, but holed out to deep mid-wicket off Amit Mishra in the 12th over. By then, du Plessis had hit three fours and with Maxwell coming in, Bangalore were in danger of losing momentum.

Maxwell laid the foundation for the acceleration with a beautiful inside-out slash over cover for four and followed it up with a loft over long-on for six off Mishra. Du Plessis took a brace of sixes off Bishnoi � with the second of it being a monstrous 115-m hit going above the roof of the stadium, with Maxwell closing the over with another six slammed down the ground.

A chipped loft over long-off for six off Wood brought du Plessis’ fifty in 35 balls. Maxwell welcomed Avesh with a hoick over square leg for six, before slicing him over extra cover for four.

The duo then teared into Unadkat — Maxwell sliced through third man for four and earned a reprieve when Krunal dropped his catch on the very next ball. Du Plessis slammed consecutive sixes over the leg side, before ending the over with a sliced four through backward point.

Maxwell brought up his fifty in 24 balls with back-to-back sixes off Avesh — second of which was the shot of the night — opening the bat face late to glide over deep point. After the second-wicket stand completed its century in just 44 balls, du Plessis slammed Avesh through extra cover for four.

Maxwell pulled Wood over deep backward square leg for six in the final over, before the pace bounced back by uprooting the batter’s leg-stump with a 150kph scorcher, as Bangalore fetched a whopping 108 runs in the last seven overs.

Brief Scores: Royal Challengers Bangalore 212/2 in 20 overs (Faf du Plessis 79 not out, Virat Kohli 61; Amit Mishra 1/18, Mark Wood 1/32) lost to Lucknow Super Giants 213/9 in 20 overs (Marcus Stoinis 65, Nicholas Pooran 62; Wayne Parnell 3/41, Harshal Patel 2/48) by 1 wicket.

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Kohli, Du Plessis steer RCB to victory against Mumbai

As RCB took the field in Chinnaswamy Stadium after 1247 days, chants of the franchise engulfed the whole arena. ..reports Asian Lite News

Scintillating half-centuries from Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli led Royal Challengers Bangalore comprehensive eight-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians in an IPL 2023 match, marking a happy homecoming at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, here on Sunday.

As RCB took the field in Chinnaswamy Stadium after 1247 days, chants of the franchise engulfed the whole arena. To their credit, RCB didn’t disappoint at all, as bowlers got wickets in power-play and middle overs to keep Mumbai to 171/7, though young Tilak Varma shined with an outstanding 84 not out off just 46 balls.

In reply, du Plessis and Kohli put out an exhibition of majestic strokeplay and rattled Mumbai’s bowling attack to enthrall home fans. While du Plessis made 73 off 43 balls, including five fours and six sixes, Kohli was in sublime touch to be 82 not out off 49 balls, laced with six fours and five sixes to chase 172 in 16.2 overs to get their IPL 2023 campaign off to a winning start.

In defence of 171, Mumbai brought in Jason Behrendorff as an impact player in place of Suryakumar Yadav to share the new-ball with Arshad Khan. After making a watchful start, du Plessis cut down on the swing by dancing down the pitch to hit a four and two sixes on both sides of the wicket off Behrendorff.

Jofra Archer put down Kohli on his first ball of the match. Kohli then followed it up by placing a steer between backward point and short third man for four, and smacked a six over long-off. Kohli and du Plessis took a boundary each off Piyush Chawla and Archer to bring the fifty of their opening partnership in the power-play.

Du Plessis continued to be unstoppable — timing his drives through the off-side against Cameron Green twice and ended the over with a scooped six to take 17 runs off the eighth over. He welcomed off-spinner Hrithik Shokeen with consecutive sixes over mid-wicket and long-on, first of which took him to his fifty in 29 balls.

Kohli then danced down the pitch to whack Chawla over long-on for six, and bring up the century of the opening partnership in the 11th over, before reaching his fifty in 38 balls. He then welcomed Behrendorff with a pull through cow corner for four, before du Plessis pulled and flicked for four and six respectively.

Kohli hammered sixes off Archer and Arshad through the leg-side to keep Mumbai under the pump. They had a breakthrough when du Plessis holed out to long-on, breaking the 148-run opening partnership. After Dinesh Karthik fell for a three-ball duck, Glenn Maxwell slapped sixes over extra cover and fine leg, with Kohli whipping and lofting for four and six respectively to complete Bangalore’s chase with 22 balls remaining.

Brief Scores: Mumbai Indians 171/7 in 20 overs (Tilak Varma 84 not out; Karn Sharma 2/32) lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore 172/2 in 16.2 overs (Virat Kohli 82 not out, Faf du Plessis 73; Arshad Khan 1/28, Cameron Green 1/30) by eight wickets.

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Sport Sports Woman

RCB launches ‘Sports for All’ initiative

RCB aim to increase participation of women in cricket with 'Sports for All' initiative

The Sports For All — the Female Cricket Strategy is a revolutionary model to ensure increased participation of women at all levels of cricket ..reports Asian Lite News

Taking forward the visionary ‘Sports for All’ concept, Royal Challengers Bangalore have made inclusivity and diversity the key heading into the inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL).

The Sports For All — the Female Cricket Strategy is a revolutionary model to ensure increased participation of women at all levels of cricket and contribute to equal opportunity for women and growth in India.

Beyond the field, the RCB thinks that the ‘Sport for All’ philosophy will also create a vibrant work culture and a holistic society.

“Sports for All” is a roadmap based on critical pillars to ensure cricket becomes a household name and one of the first career choices for young women in India.

Prathmesh Mishra, Chief Commercial Officer, Diageo India, and Chairman of RCB, said, “Gender inequality is not only a pressing moral and social issue but also a critical economic challenge. The nation can grow if there is gender parity and advancing woman’s equity can add to economic growth.”

“We are confident that the WPL will go a long way not just in boosting women’s cricket in India but also mark a journey in equal participation of women in society at large. Along with superstars like Smriti Mandhana leading the team that RCB is immensely proud of putting together reflects our commitment and desire to promote women’s cricket and the growth of opportunities for women in this country. We are ready for this historic journey which we firmly believe will enhance the future of women’s sports while encouraging equal opportunity for everyone,” he added.

It was the natural progression for RCB and Diageo as brands that have adopted diversity and inclusivity as their core values. Diageo held back all investments in overseas teams because it believes in India’s story and wants to be part of this monumental journey for equal opportunity in Sports.

While “Sports for All” approach is based predominantly on the ethos of building icons, giving more opportunities to women to compete at the highest level and unearthing new talents, thereby inspiring the next generation of women cricketers.

Smriti Mandhana, RCB women’s team captain said, “First of all, I should thank the RCB management for giving me the opportunity to be a part of and lead a legacy team like the RCB. It is an exciting opportunity and at the same time challenging. The WPL is a landmark tournament in the history of women’s cricket, and I hope we all inspire many women to take up the sport through our performance and presence.”

“It’s extremely encouraging for us to see a franchise like RCB commit to this larger cause of equal participation of women and invest a round sum of money to get a team and contribute to the growth of India.”

RCB will open its campaign in the WPL on Sunday squaring off against Delhi Capitals. (ANI)

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