Live Report - Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals, Bengaluru

Ashwin starts the final over with a streaky four, followed by a risky couple, and then another boundary. That was half the job done. In the next three balls, however, Harshal removes Ashwin and then concedes just two singles.

Strangely, Holder never came out to bat; RR used Abdul Basith as their Impact Player. And that's the story of this game: how the two teams used their Impact Players.

RCB have now successfully defended three times this season; all three were day games. This victory means they now have eight points from seven games. Among the six teams tied on eight points, CSK and GT have played one game fewer than others. RR are still on the top, though.

So, that's all from my side for this game. See you soon.

A surprising move by Royals to send R Ashwin ahead of Jason Holder but it's not the first time they have done this. Moreover, they are yet to use their Impact Player. They have got Akash Vasisht and Abdul Basith to pick from.

At the moment, Jurel is keeping them alive almost singlehandedly. He hits Siraj for a six to pick 13 from the 19th over. A risky single, which should have resulted in a run-out had Siraj not broken the stumps without the ball in his hand, means they need 20 from the last over, to be bowled by Harshal. Ashwin will be on strike.

RCB will have only four men outside the ring as a penalty for slow over-rate.

A nine-ball Siraj over, which had three wides deliveries and two fours by Jurel, goes for 16. On the first ball of the next over, Jurel hits Willey for a six, and then gets a wide for height after reviewing an on-field call.

Hetmyer was struggling at the other end. He looks for a quick single but Suyash Prabhudessai nails a direct hit from extra cover with one stump visible. Jurel then picks up a couple off the last ball to make it 33 required from two overs.

And that's a huge wicket. With 69 needed from five overs, Samson started the over with a boundary, hitting a back-of-the-hand slower ball from Harshal to the right of backward point. The next one was an on-pace delivery that Samson cut hard but it went straight to Shahbaz at short third.

Dhruv Jurel is the new batter, and both he and Hetmyer look to go big. But Harshal concedes only four more in the rest of the over.

RR need 61 in four overs.

In the last four overs, Royals have managed only 16 and lost both set batters. They still have Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer in the middle, their heroes in that unlikely win against Gujarat Titans. In that game, they needed 77 in the last six overs. Here, the requirement is 82 in six.

After a five-run Hasaranga over and just two singles off the first three balls of Willey in the next, Padikkal looks to break the shackles. But he ends up holding out to long-on.

Sanju Samson walks in at No. 4, and Matt Roller reminds me Hasanranga has a good match-up against him, having dismissed him six times in 34 balls for just 25 runs. Yes, they do have Hetmyer, and Jurel, in the hut but if Hasaranga can get Samson out cheaply, RCB would be the favourites.

After the first over, Harshal Patel went off the field for the next two. But having served his time, he can bowl the seventh over. Padikkal welcomes him back with a one-handed six over long-off. Jaiswal bookends the next over, bowled by Maxwell, with a six and four.

Last year, Wanindu Hasaranga had played a big role for RCB in the middle overs. This year, he is yet to hit his straps. Before this game, he had an economy of 10.77, and today too he goes for ten in his first over. And that means Royals aren't lagging too far behind the asking rate.

Royals have not got off to a flying start but Jaiswal and Padikkal have kept them in the contest. RCB have been the best side in the powerplay this season - the most they have conceded in the first six overs is 53 against CSK. So Royals' 47 for 1 is a decent effort.

If Boult has been taking loads of first-over wickets, Siraj has been equally exceptional with the new ball this IPL. And he does it once again for RCB, taking out Jos Buttler's middle stump with a wobble-seam delivery that nipped back in to beat the inside edge.

RCB have used their Impact Player, and it's Harshal Patel. He has a heavily strapped little finger in his left hand, so couldn't have batted. But he is good to bowl. And this once again reminds us of the importance of this latest rule. Both du Plessis and Harshal wouldn't have played this game if not for the Impact Player rule.

Just 33 runs (and five wickets) in the last five overs mean, RCB didn't finish with the 200-plus total they were eyeing at one stage, but they have got very close to it. In fact, Banger said during the innings that 190 would be a good total here. And mind you, it's a day game. The totals haven't been that high in day games. And defending should also be slightly easier with dew not having set in.

An excellent 17th over by Chahal. Two wickets and just two runs from it. Mahipal Lomror was the first to depart, miscuing one to long-off. Two balls later, Suyash Prabhudessai is run-out after a mix-up. Suddenly, it looks like RCB may finish well short of 200. A lot depends on Dinesh Karthik.

Just like the Kohli-Boult match-up, Maxwell had never got out to R Ashwin. His numbers against him coming into this game: 146 runs off 73 balls at a strike rate of 200. He was doing alright today as well, having taken 23 off 14 off him. And then he nails a reverse hit, but straight into the hands of Holder at short third. And Maxwell is livid, a swish of a bat straight after the dismissal and still shaking his head when he crossed the boundary.

Perhaps that's the only way this stand could have ended. Du Plessis hit Sandeep Sharma's first ball for a four. The next one he hit to the right of extra cover where Yashasvi Jaiswal made a sliding stop and then nailed a direct hit at the bowler's end to find du Plessis short. He walks back for 62 off 39.

But there's no respite for Sandeep Sharma. He has had an excellent tournament so far after coming in as a replacement for the injured Prasidh Krishna. But today hasn't been his day. After the wicket ball, Maxwell hits him for another boundary. In all, he conceded 13 in the over. His figures so far: 3-0-39-0.

He had conceded just 24 in his first three overs while picking up two wickets. But Boult goes for 17 in his last - it also included five wides. During that over, the 100-run stand and du Plessis' fifty also came up. Matt Roller tells me that du Plessis has now been involved in all five of the highest partnerships this IPL 2023. Two with Kohli, three with Maxwell.

RCB 135 for 2 after 13. ESPNcricinfo's Forecaster is predicting they could end up with 204.

After two quiet, boundary-less overs, Maxwell and du Plessis are on the way once again, taking 26 in the next two overs. Maxwell brought up his fifty, off 27 balls, with a six off Holder. Du Plessis is also approaching his fifty; he is batting on 46 off 29 balls.

RCB head coach Sanjay Banger spoke to the broadcasters on the sidelines and said, "190 is a good total in a day game here. And in the second half, the change-up balls are not easy to score off."

At 78 for 2 after eight overs, RCB seem to be on track for a good total. ESPNcricinfo's Forecaster is giving them 184.

RCB might have lost two early wickets but Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell have kept the scoreboard ticking at a decent pace. Du Plessis hit Sandeep for two sixes and a four in the fourth over. In the next, Maxwell picked up two fours off Boult.

Ashwin came in for the final over of the powerplay, and started around the wicket. Maxwell dragged him between square leg and short fine for a lucky boundary, forcing the bowler to move to over the wicket. It didn't make much difference as Maxwell backed away and launched a carrom ball over long-off.

RCB tried sending Shahbaz Ahmed at No. 3 but Boult got him with the first ball of his second over. It was a short ball. Shahbaz was late on the pull and ended up mistiming it to short midwicket.

Maxwell opened his account with a first-ball four, and found another boundary later in the over.

Before this game, Trent Boult had bowled 53 balls to Kohli without getting him out ever. Kohli had scored 76 runs off deliveries, at a strike rate of 140.74. Today, it took Boult just one ball to send back Kohli. Boult pitched it up and got it to swing in. Kohli was moving across, looking to flick on the leg side. He missed and got hit on the pads. It was so plumb he didn't even consult with Faf du Plessis about reviewing it. The Chinnaswamy has gone silent.

Royal Challengers made the playoffs in each of the last three seasons. But their run also coincided with them not playing at their home ground, the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Theirs is one of the poorest home records for an IPL team. They have 44 wins and 42 losses here. In IPL 2023, they have played four games so far here, with two wins and two losses.

RCB's best bowler over the years, Yuzvendra Chahal, will be walking out from the away team's dressing room. Sandeep Sharma, another Royals bowler, said yesterday that having spent a lot of time at the NCA, he has a fairly good idea of the conditions here.

So, can RCB convert their home venue into a fortress? If so, how? Here's Matt Roller trying to look for those answers.

Rajasthan Royals have won the toss and they want to bowl first. "A lot of learnings from the last game," says Sanju Samson. "We are starting with the same XI; we might or might not add [a bowler]."

"We anyway wanted to bat first," Virat Kohli says. "This wicket looks much drier than the previous one we played on. [on being the captain once again] I told Mike [Hesson] I am not used to (laughs). The only thing I was thinking about was that my toss record hasn't been great. We have just one change, Parnell makes way for Willey. Obviously, Faf will be our Impact Player."

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Virat Kohli (capt), 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Mahipal Lomror, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Suyash Prabhudessai, 6 Shahbaz Ahmed, 7 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 David Willey, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Vijaykumar Vyshak
Substitutes Harshal Patel, Finn Allen, Akash Deep, Karn Sharma, Anuj Rawat

Rajatshan Royals: 1 Jos Buttler, 2 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3 Sanju Samson (capt, wk), 4 Devdutt Padikkal, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Dhruv Jurel, 7 Jason Holder, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Trent Boult, 10 Sandeep Sharma, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal
Substitutes Donovan Ferreira, M Ashwin, Akash Vasisth, KM Asif, Abdul Basith

Matt Roller is at the venue and he tells me that Virat Kohli is ready to walk out for the toss. And that means Faf du Plessis is yet to recover fully from his rib injury, and just like in the previous game, he might play as Impact Player, coming out only to bat.

Roller also says David Willey is warming up with the rest of the attack, Wayne Parnell isn't. Does that mean Willey will replace Parnell? If so, it will add to RCB's batting muscle.