The sun is shining bright within the walls of M Chinnaswamy Stadium once again. Following a trout of massive disappointment, which saw the Virat-Kohli led side losing their opening six games on the bounce, Team Bengaluru pounced on the opportunity and are now unbeaten in their last three games; four victories in last five fixtures.
With an immense flow of optimism dribbling through their veins, the possibility of qualifying for the playoffs now sees like a dear dream. But what is it that the team needs to do to qualify for the next round?
For the starters, there is no possibility of a defeat from this point. Having lost seven games already, the thing to take note of is the fact that this figure (seven defeats) is the maximum an Indian T20 League team can have and still qualify for the playoffs. There’s no margin for error.
Bengaluru have seen a sudden surge in form and a part of credit goes to the arrival of Dale Steyn, who in one way, has stabilized the team’s bowling attack. “I’ve watched them at the nets, and they have had questions on how to swing the ball, what the mindset is. But I just think they needed somebody of senior stature to help them, to look up to,” Steyn had told Hindustan Time.
All the buoyancy though will be put on test as Steyn has been ruled out of the tournament owing to a shoulder injury.
Their next assignment lies in Feroz Shah Kotla stadium against Shreyas Iyer’s team Delhi, who deservedly acquire the second spot on the log. If history is taken into consideration, Bengaluru is set to march with their head held high given that they are undefeated at the venue since 2010.
But as we can suspect, these statistics hardly matter in a game of cricket. In fact, Delhi had the last laugh when these sides met earlier this month, emerging victorious at M Chinnaswamy Stadium with four wickets.
AFP / Manjunath Kiran
Following Delhi’s fixture, a visit of Team Rajasthan – another team vying for points – is scheduled before the ultimate decider against Hyderabad at home. Hyderabad, winner of 2016 edition of the tournament, will stepping without the services of Jonny Bairstow and David Warner, and they show how vulnerable their batting order can get without these two marksmen.
Bengaluru are no short in troubles of their own. The likes of Marcus Stoinis and Moeen Ali will be unavailable owing to their respective international commitment, leaving a huge void – in both batting and bowling - to fill. It’s not that Bengaluru don’t have replacements, but given how Colin de Grandhomme and Shimron Hetmyer have performed, they do have a thing or two to worry about.
The positive, however, remains the fact that opener Parthiv Patel has found a stable footing while their top scorer, AB de Villiers will be staying for the rest of the season. It is safe to say Bengaluru’s fate lies in their own hands, and it remains to be seen how they fare without their foreign reinforcement.
