IPL 2023, DC vs RCB | Kuldeep-inspired DC spin attack restricts RCB to 174/6

Delhi Capitals bowler Kuldeep Yadav celebrates with teammates after the wicket of Royal Challengers Bangalore batter Glenn Maxwell during the IPL 2023 cricket match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals, at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, Saturday, April 15, 2023.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Kuldeep Yadav led the charge in the middle overs as Delhi Capitals spinners restricted Royal Challengers Bangalore to 174 for six in their Indian Premier League match here on April 15.

In pursuit of their first win of the tournament, bottom-placed DC found the going tough after inserting RCB in.

RCB were going all guns blazing as Virat Kohli (50 off 34 balls) slammed his third fifty of the tournament and Glenn Maxwell (24 off 14 balls; 3×6) was in a six-hitting spree.

But the DC spin trio of Kuldeep (4-1-23-2), Axar Patel (3-0-25-1) and Lalit Yadav (4-0-29-1) seized the momentum in the middle overs.

Mitchell Marsh (2/18 from two overs), who rejoined the team after his wedding, also made a significant contribution with wickets of RCB captain Faf Du Plessis and Mahipal Lomror.

The famed Kohli-du Plessis duo got going without any fuss, scoring 33 runs in four overs.

Kohli hammered Anrich Nortje with a fine boundary, while the South African upped the ante with a couple of fours.

Du Plessis stepped out to Axar for the first six of the match after spin was introduced in the fourth over.

With Kohli in the box seat, RCB looked in a comfort zone at 89/1 at the halfway mark.

But then, RCB found themselves in the backfoot and were reduced to 132/6 after Kuldeep grabbed the wickets of Maxwell and Dinesh Karthik (0) off successive deliveries.

The double-wicket maiden over was preceded by Axar Patel’s dismissal of Harshal Patel as DC secured a team hat-trick to turn it around in the 15th over.

Patel’s dismissal was a freak one as wicketkeeper Abhishek Porel appealed for an LBW and the review showed a faint spike as the batter ended up being dismissed caught-behind.

It was Lalit Yadav who dismissed Kohli with a big full toss as the star Indian batter perished, failing to clear the midwicket boundary.

Maxwell entered the stage with an aggressive intent and launched Yadav for a couple of sixes in the same over to get it going straightway.

Maxwell was in no mood to relent and the scoring rate almost touched the 10-run an over when Warner took a fine backward running catch to dismiss his Australian teammate.

In the next ball, Karthik got out to a golden duck and it was DC up and running out of nowhere.