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Tag: Glenn Maxwell

  • Glenn Maxwell Is Most Overrated Player Of IPL: Ex-RCB Cricketer Slams Star Following Poor Season | cricket news

    Former India cricketer Parthiv Patel slammed Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and called him the “most overrated” player in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

    Patel’s comment on Maxwell came after the end of RCB’s match against Gujarat Titans (GT) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, where the Australian scored just four runs from three balls at a strike rate of 133.33. However, the Bengaluru-based franchise clinched a four-wicket win over GT in front of their home crowd.

    Patel took to his official

    “Glenn Maxwell…HE IS THE MOST OVERRATED player in the history of ipl,” Patel wrote on X.

    In the 17th season of IPL, Maxwell scored 104 runs after appearing in eight matches. He bagged five wickets at an economy rate of 8.33 for RCB in IPL 2024.

    Recapping the match, RCB elected to field first after winning the toss. GT was 19/3 at one point. Then, a 61-run partnership between Shahrukh Khan (37) and David Miller (30) helped GT make a brief comeback.

    RCB kept taking regular wickets and once again reduced GT to 87/5. Then, a 44-run partnership between Rahul Tewatia (35) and Rashid Khan (18) took GT beyond the 100-run mark. RCB bundled out GT for 147 runs in 19.3 overs.

    Yash Dayal (2/21), Vijaykumar Vyshak (2/23) and Mohammed Siraj (2/29) were among the top bowlers for RCB. Cameron Green and Karn Sharma took a wicket each. During the run chase, RCB started off brilliantly with Faf Du Plessis (64) and Virat Kohli (42) putting up a 92-run stand.

    After that RCB lost its way due to a fantastic spell from Joshua Little (4/45) and Noor Ahmed (2/23). However, Dinesh Karthik (21*) and Swapnil Singh (15*) guided the team to a four-wicket win with 38 balls left.

  • Did Royal Challengers Bangalore get their picks wrong again at the IPL auction?

    Express News Service

    BENGALURU: One look at the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) squad after the IPL mega auction and it is a case of old wine in a new bottle. Problems are plenty.

    The auction was an opportunity for the team to make the changes that were needed and break their title jinx, but Bangalore failed to pick quality Indian players. This has left them lacking in depth on the batting front, which could hurt them if they manage to qualify for the end stages of upcoming IPLs.

    Among the top six costliest players at the auction, five were Indians. And while Bangalore did avail the services of Harshal Patel (Rs 10.75 crore) and Dinesh Karthik (Rs 5.50 crore), the rest of the Indian players they invested in, including Mahipal Lomror and Shahbaz Ahmed, will not instill fear amongst their opponents.

    They also allowed themselves to get outbidded by other teams having bigger purses. How did that happen?

    One reason could be their splurging on Sri Lanka spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, for whom they paid Rs 10.75 crore at a time when when Yuzvendra Chahal, who has been a fine servant for Bangalore in the past, had not come up for auction. The latter was snapped up by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 6.5 crore.

    ALSO READ | IPL 2022: Complex auction dynamics in display on day one

    And despite RCB being in need of an explosive opener and a possible captain, they did not even make a bid for David Warner, who went to Delhi Capitals for a relatively modest Rs 6.25 crore. They might have made that call as they had already signed Faf Du Plessis, who could lead the team next season. However, the team management have not finalised their captain yet.

    “We have three great leaders in Maxwell, Virat, and Faf du Plessis. We are happy with those three leaders, also have Josh Hazlewood as a leader from the bowling point of view. So we are happy with the group, we will make a decision regarding captaincy after the auction,” Mike Hesson, Director of Cricket Operations, RCB, had said .

    Irrespective of who leads the team, the captain has a huge task ahead with the franchise not able to fill the gaping hole left by the departure of their stalwart AB de Villiers. It also means, their big players, including Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell (both retained) and new man Du Plesis will be under sheer pressure to deliver.

    From the present squad, it seems incredibly difficult to find a decent better at No 3 and 6. The team lacks a solid finisher at six or seven as well. This was one of the problem areas last season. They might have to depend on the 36-year-old Karthik to bring his A game week in and week out and shoulder responsibility with cameos. It will be interesting to see if David Willey will be given the role of assisting Karthik.

    If the franchise has anything to be happy about, it is the look of their pacers department. With Mohammed Siraj already retained, and the likes of Patel, Willey, Josh Hazlewood, Jason Behrendorff and Siddharth Kaul around, there is quality and firepower in plenty.

    While they have pacers for all kinds of surfaces, they come up short in the spin department. Barring leg-spinner Hasaranga, they do not have much quality there and this too can create create problems when it comes to fielding the right combinations.

  • Had asked Maxwell if he wanted strike but he said ‘you can finish it off’: KS Bharat after DC win

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore’s latest star Kona Bharat said that his senior partner Glenn Maxwell had complete faith that the Andhra wicketkeeper-batter could finish off the last IPL league game against Delhi Capitals, which he did with a last-ball six.

    Bharat, who has had a good IPL with the bat, smashed 78 not out off 52 balls as he kept calm under pressure and lofted Avesh for a straight six with five needed off the last delivery to chase down DC’s target of 165.

    The result of the match didn’t have a bearing on points table though as DC finished on top with 20 points and RCB on 18 but in third place due to inferior net run-rate (-0.140) compared to Chennai Super Kings (+0.455).

    Asked what was the talk before the final over, Bharat spoke how Maxwell boosted his confidence.

    “The last over…me and Maxi were talking about what are the areas we can access. He said, watch the ball and get bat on the ball… The last 3 balls, you know I asked him whether to run, he said ‘no, you can finish it off’. It gave me a lot of confidence,” he said.

    Bharat had a couple of good scores of 32 against Mumbai Indians and 44 against Rajasthan Royals. Bharat said he didn’t want to think too much ahead during the last over.

    “I was just focused on one ball which is coming next rather than thinking of too many things. I kept it very simple and as a team, we did very well and we pulled it off,” he added.

    What has worked for Bharat in the UAE leg is the fact that he loves facing fast bowlers and DC has three genuine quicks in Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Avesh.

    “I love fast bowling, to be honest. I have played for India A and am also a part of the Indian team, you get to play with the best bowlers in the country. It wasn’t a surprise element for me to play pace.

    “I would love someone who is giving pace so that you can work the ball instead of hitting the ball hard. I found it really interesting and I was enjoying the challenge,” he added.

    Bharat has been regularly batting at No 3 in this phase of IPL but the management has told him that order will remain flexible.

    “We are flexible to go at any order. It was communicated fair enough. Everyone is up for their challenge. I don’t think there is any miscommunication. When the chances are given to you, you want to do well and finish it off well,” the 28-year old keeper-batter said at the virtual post-match media interaction.

  • Glenn Maxwell’s run-out was probably turning-point of match against SRH: RCB director Mike Hesson

    By PTI

    ABU DHABI: Australian allrounder Glenn Maxwell was scoring at a good pace and his runout was probably the turning point of their match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, said Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) Director of Cricket Operations Mike Hesson.

    Maxwell smashed three fours and two sixes in his quickfire 25-ball 40 to keep RCB in the hunt but he was run-out due to a poor call by opener Devdutt Padikkal in the 15th over. RCB’s chase derailed after that as they ended with 137 for six in their 20 overs for a narrow four-run loss. SRH had posted 141 for 7.

    “…the fact that Glenn was scoring at a rate of over 10 an over, he is probably the only batsman who really had fluency on the surface and he was set, so he was probably the man we wanted at the crease, so look it probably was,” Hesson said when asked if Maxwell’s run-out was the turning point.

    It was SRH skipper Kane Williamson, who produced the sensational effort while fielding at cover. He collected the ball quickly and hit the bull’s eye while still in motion as Maxwell was way short of the crease.

    “An exceptional piece of work in terms of that run out and yeah probably did turn the game. We just left a little-bit too much for us to do at the end. We weren’t quite good enough for those key moments to get over the line,” said said Hesson, who has coached New Zealand in the past, at the post-match press conference.

    Another highlight of the game was the bowling by rookie SRH pacer Urman Malik, who hails from Jammu and Kashmir.

    Asked how did RCB prepare for Malik, Hesson said, “We looked at his pitch maps and in terms of, we know he bowls good pace, what sort of lengths and the general areas he looks to bowl, he tends to bowl hard length, so that was pretty clear in terms of what we were expecting today.

    “Looks like he has got a good bouncer. He is a very promising bowler. In terms of preparation, it is more about watching a bit of footage, looking at the pitch maps and then making that adjustment to the surface out there,” he added.

    Sunrisers Hyderabad all-rounder Jason Holder also lavished praise on Malik, who was constantly hitting the 150 kmph mark. “I think, the first thing to mention is his pace, that’s his asset. He is just consistent in training and given us quite a hard time, he is very hard to get hold of. It is good to see his control as well. He is being pretty consistent and he has grouped really good deliveries together,” he said.

    According to Holder, Abhishek Sharma gave the team a “pretty good” start after being asked to open the innings and it is unfortunate that he couldn’t not carry on a little further. Holder also said dismissing Virat Kohli in the first over was also a plus for his side.

    “You have got your best bowler in the world in Rashid Khan to match-up against their best batters, we got Virat (Kohli) in the first over, which was very crucial. We know what type of player he is, so to get him out pretty early was a plus for us and it put pressure on them,” said the West Indian.

    Holder said that the SRH bowlers were good in the death overs. “Our bowlers were excellent in the end. All the years Sunrisers has had a trend for good death bowling and good bowling in general and it showed today,” he said.

    “Siddharth Kaul was outstanding, young Urman Malik and obviously myself and Bhuvneshwar finishing off nicely, so it was a good team effort and hopefully we can continue to go in this way and finish well against Mumbai (Indians),” he signed off.

    Sunrisers Hyderabad will play their final match of the competition against Mumbai Indians on Friday.

  • Cool and calm Maxwell: Aussie veteran makes the difference for RCB in IPL 2021

    By Express News Service

    CHENNAI: 145, 179, 310, 169 and 108 runs. These were Glenn Maxwell’s numbers in his last five IPL seasons. Such numbers are staggering for a player, who has done well in the shorter format of the game at the international level and leagues like the Big Bash. 

    He had a thing or two to prove in the 2021 campaign, and has delivered in style, scoring 407 runs for Royal Challengers Bangalore so far.

    Previously with other teams, the 32-year-old was seen as someone who can smash.

    Things have been a tad different in the 24th edition where he has played as the number four batsman allowing  him more time at the crease.

    Maxwell has also take upon himself the responsibility of being much more responsible.

    Much more calculated.

    So what has really worked for Maxwell in Bangalore colours? Previously with other teams, the 32-year-old was primarily looked up as someone who can smash quickfire runs at the end. As a result, he did not have much time to settle down. 

    He was also expected to deliver from ball one. Things have been a tad different in the 14th edition as the number four batsmen, allowing him more time at the crease.  

    An impressive opening stand between Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal has helped Maxwell a lot, ensuring he does not walk in under pressure.

    It would not be wrong to say that Maxwell has been one of the main reasons for Bangalore’s success this season as they have already reached the Playoffs. 

    And if things go as per plan, they could well finish in the top two. More importantly, when he has walked to bat for Bangalore, the element of pressure is quite non-existent with the likes of AB de VIlliers, who can score at blistering pace at the end, batting at number five.

    “It is more about the overs that we are trying to get our batters out there. For me, I am looking to get out there just after powerplay. If I can have that opportunity to bat a little more than 10 overs to go, then I give myself an over or two out  there to get used to the conditions and give myself a platform to go. AB is a little bit later…he has the ability to hit boundaries early on in his innings, he is suited to back end and later overs, where he can cash in. Having (De Villiers) come after me and be there to finish the innings is a hell of a luxury,” said Maxwell, who has scored three half-centuries in a row in his last three innings.

    Maxwell has also taken upon himself to be much more responsible. 

    Often criticised for playing reckless shots in the past, he has been much more calculative and taken time to understand the conditions before taking charge. 

    After getting his eye in, he has been dangerous, hitting sixes at will against both the spinners and pacers.

    “I know I score quickly in ODI and T20 cricket. It was more about having a solid technique at the start of my innings and making sure I take in much information before taking the first risks. With this (RCB) line-up I am afforded a little bit more time to gather information and spend more time in the middle and then when I decide to flick the switch and have a crack, it is a well informed decision.”

    It remains to be seen if he can outdo his best (552 runs in 2014) for the then Kings XI Punjab.

  • Royal Challengers Bangalore want me to do same role I have for Australia: Glenn Maxwell

    By ANI

    SHARJAH: Australia batter Glenn Maxwell has revealed that Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) always wanted him to do the same role he has for his country while batting.

    Maxwell’s knock of 57 runs off just 33 balls helped RCB defeat Punjab Kings by 6 runs at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Sunday. With this win, Kohli’s side sealed its qualification for the playoffs.

    “Not much has been different, came at a nice time out to bat, took a bit of time to assess the conditions, got away with the first couple of risks that I took and then started off. A bit of clarity, I think I have been clear in my mind over the last couple of seasons in the IPL as well as professional cricket. I have found a nice bit of rhythm. Batting at 4, sometimes it’s not the easiest position to bat – but the openers gave us an ideal set-up, took a bit of time to understand the wicket,” Maxwell told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation.

    “This is something I have had with Australia for a long period of time (a clarity in the role), this is perhaps why I have had success over there. Coming into RCB, they wanted me to do the same type of role. Really enjoyable to come into the dressing room and not make too many changes. This Sharjah wicket is the toughest to adjust, the ball skidded through, unlike at the other venues where the ball held up and gave you some time to go onto the back-foot. Once you get used to it, the more time you spend, the easier it gets,” he added.

    Maxwell’s firing fifty was followed by a spirited bowling performance by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) as they defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS).

    For RCB, Yuzvendra Chahal scalped two wickets while Shahbaz Ahmed and George Garton returned with one piece. Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul scored innings of 57 and 39 respectively for Punjab.

    RCB will next square off against SunRisers Hyderabad at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

  • IPL 2021: KS Bharat genuine top-class batter, says RCB teammate Glenn Maxwell

    By ANI

    DUBAI: After registering a seven-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) all-rounder Glenn Maxwell praised Srikar Bharat, calling him ‘genuine top-class’ batter.

    Chasing 150, Glenn Maxwell and Srikar Bharat scored 50 and 44 respectively as RCB defeated Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets with 17 balls to spare. With this win, RCB consolidated its position at the third spot with 14 points from 11 games.

    “I thought we played really well. They got off to an absolute flier and to bring them back in the last 10 overs was outstanding, then we controlled the tempo of the innings and finished it off. I have felt good since coming here, got myself into a nice routine at training and outside of training as well, just feel like it is really clicking for me. I don’t suppose it (the atmosphere) is different to any other franchise, just what we have created as a group,” Maxwell told host broadcaster Star Sports after the game ended.

    ALSO READ | My job is to provide good base for finishers like AB de Villiers, Maxwell: RCB’s KS Bharat 

    Earlier, Harshal Patel’s three-wicket haul helped RCB restrict Rajasthan Royals to 149/9 in the allotted twenty overs. For Sanju Samson’s side, Evin Lewis top-scored with a knock of 58 runs from 37 balls. Yuzvendra Chahal was adjudged as Man of the Match for his two-wicket haul.

    “It is nice to have a bunch of guys doing different things and not relying on one guy. Everyone is chipping in and it has been a really enjoyable group so far. I wouldn’t call it an experiment, he’s (Bharat) a genuine top-class batter and the way he has gone about his innings is outstanding,” he added.

    RCB will next square off against Punjab Kings on Sunday in the ongoing IPL.

  • My job is to provide good base for finishers like AB de Villiers, Maxwell: RCB’s KS Bharat 

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore wicket-keeper KS Bharat is happy that he is able to provide a stable base as a number three batsman, for finishers like Glenn Maxwell which has been a key recipe in the last two wins for his franchise.

    RCB dished out a clinical display with both bat and ball to record a comprehensive seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday, to boost their prospects of a top-two finish.

    With knocks of 32 and 44 against MI and Rajasthan Royals, Bharat has sorted RCB’s problems with their one-drop batter in the current edition.

    “So, number three is always a beautiful spot to play. It asks a lot of questions if you are not ready for it. And we at RCB, we have always focussed on keeping the strike going and get busy right from ball one,” Bharat said at the post-match press conference.

    “…. and the little things of running and calling well and rotating the strike, all these little pointers, it plays a huge role in building up a partnership,” the Andhra keeper-batsman said.

    For him, providing a platform for Maxwell and de Villiers to have a final assault is the main thing.

    “The number three is someone who keeps the scoreboard ticking at 8 or 9 per over, then you will have a good base (and) for people like Maxi (Maxwell) and AB coming in after 12th over.

    “If you have the wickets in hand, then you can go all out towards the end of the innings. So, the message is clear saying I should get a partnership going and we are sticking to it,” he explained.

    Just like any youngster would say, Bharat was no different when asked the staple question about what he has learnt from the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.

    “If you play with Virat bhai (Virat Kohli), AB (De Villiers) and (Glenn) Maxwell, you tend to learn a lot of good things in terms of cricket and as well as how to handle yourself on and off the field,” Bharat said at the post-match press conference.

    Bharat and Maxwell, one of the sought after T20 player, shared a crucial stand which helped RCB and the stumper said that the communication between the two was all tactical.

    “And coming back to this innings, me and Maxi (Maxwell), we were having the conversation of what are the areas we could access and what are the boundary options…” ….how many overs one particular bowler is going to bowl, what are his lengths, so it’s all purely tactical things what we were discussing out in the centre and it came out well,” he noted.

    On his 44-run knock, he said, “It is obviously a good feeling winning this game and coming back to it and contributing going out in the centre.

  • IPL 2021: All-round RCB thrash Rajasthan by seven wickets, keep top two hopes alive

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore dished out a clinical display with both bat and ball to record a comprehensive seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League here on Wednesday, boosting their prospects of a top-two finish.

    Chasing 150, RCB completed the task with as many as 17 balls to spare.

    Star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell blazed away to an unbeaten 50 off just 30 balls, while Srikar Bharat played sensibly for his 44 off 35 deliveries.

    RCB needed 71 runs in the back 10 after the RR bowlers checked the flow of runs following the dismissals of Virat Kohli (25) and Devdutt Padikkal (22).

    Kohli and Padikkal gave the team a brisk start as RCB scored nine runs per over in the power play.

    The Indian captain got three boundaries in the first over though he was lucky with the first one that flew over the slip cordon off a leading edge.

    However, both got out after settling down with Kohli falling to a fine direct hit by Riyan Parag after he had made a diving stop.

    Earlier, RCB staged an excellent comeback as Rajasthan Royals blew away a blistering start to finish at 149 for nine.

    Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed (2/10) and leg-break bowler Yuzvendra Chahal (2/18) triggered the slide after RR were cruising at 100 for one in the 11th over.

    Pacer Harshal Patel (3/34) came close to picking a hat-trick in successive matches, in the final over, but Kartik Tyagi denied him that as RR lost eight wickets for 49 runs.

    Evin Lewis top-scored with 58 off 37 balls, but he was guilty of throwing away his wicket at a crucial juncture, and so was skipper Sanju Samson (19), whose adventurism did not help his team.

    Asked to take first strike, RR saw off two quiet overs before Evin Lewis and Yashasvi Jaiswal (31) decided to cut loose at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

    From eight for two in two overs, RR were cruising at 39 for no loss at the end of fourth before racing past the fifty-run mark in the next over, with Lewis being the aggressor.

    Jaiswal played the day’s first scoring shot when he hit Mohammed Siraj through the cover and in the next over, he clobbered Glenn Maxwell for a huge six over long on.

    Lewis took over after that, smashing debutant English left-arm pacer George Garton for two sixes and a four as RR picked 18 off the over.

    Garton was coming back into the attack after being strangely taken off despite a very economical first over.

    Lewis hammered another six and a four against Harshal Patel, as RR crossed the fifty in the fifth over.

    India pacer Siraj came back to bowl a tight sixth over but Jaiswal got two boundaries off Daniel Christian to record RR’s best opening partnership of the ongoing season, even as Kohli kept switching his bowlers frequently.

    Maxwell kept things tight in the next over, giving away just four runs, before Jaiswal smoked Christian for a maximum over extra cover.

    However, Christian had the last laugh as Jaiswal mistimed and failed to clear Siraj at mid off.

    It swung a bit early on but the fast bowlers didn’t get much purchase from the pitch as the innings progressed.

    Lewis continued in same vein and hit Harshal Patel for two successive fours before in-form skipper Sanju Samson went inside out to clobber leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal over extra over for a six.

    Garton, who was taken to the task by Lewis in his second over, came back strongly to exact revenge when he had the big-hitter from Trinidad sky one for wicketkeeper Bharat Srikar to complete a high catch.

    Samson pulled Garton over deep square leg for a six but RR lost the plot after that, the slide starting with the wicket of Mahipal Lomror off Chahal.

  • Maxwell produces ‘Big Show’, Harshal takes hattrick as RCB crush Mumbai by 54 runs

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Glenn Maxwell justified his million dollar contract with an all-round performance before Harshal Patel took a hat-trick to ensure a thumping 54-run victory for Royal Challengers Bangalore over Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League here on Sunday.

    Maxwell (56 off 37 balls and 2/23) produced one of his better efforts in the IPL while Harshal (4/17 in 3.1 overs), the current Purple Cap holder removed Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard and Rahul Chahar off successive deliveries to defend a target of 165 without breaking much sweat.

    MI were all-out for 111 in 18.1 overs, losing 10 wickets for 54 runs after being 57 for no loss at one stage.

    Skipper Virat Kohli won the ‘Battle of Bosses’ against his national team deputy Rohit Sharma as RCB with 12 points are back in the play-off contention while MI with three successive defeats are now in a real spot of bother at seventh spot in eight-team table.

    Kohli would also happy with his second half-century and the form of his premier spinner Yuzvendra Chahal (3/11 in 4 overs).

    Rohit teed off with three boundaries in a single over from Kyle Jamieson.

    MI looked in complete control during the Powerplay as Quinton de Kock also got a few boundaries.

    However it was Chahal, who removed de Kock and then Ishan Kishan’s full-blooded shot was just about parried away by Rohit, who was hit on the left wrist trying to avoid a body blow.

    That must have affected his concentration as he tried to hit a second six off Maxwell having hit one in the earlier over but this time was pouched by Devdutt Padikkal at the long-on boundary much to the delight of rival skipper Kohli.

    Ishan Kishan (9 off 12 balls), who has barely managed 100 runs in nine IPL matches this season, would increase the worry of national selectors as he played an irresponsible hoick against the turn off Chahal and Krunal Pandya (5) then trying to break the logjam was bowled by Maxwell.

    However, what disappointed the MI skipper most was how Surykumar Yadav (8) chased a wide yorker from Mohammed Siraj to give simple catch to short third man as MI slumped to 97 for 5 with recovery looking implausible.

    Then Harshal got his hattrick to finish off the proceedings in style.

    Earlier, Maxwell finally came good with an attacking 56 after skipper Kohli’s second consecutive half-century, taking Royal Challengers Bangalore to a par-score of 165/6.

    Kohli, who completed 10,000 runs in T20 cricket, scored 51 off 42 balls with three fours and three sixes but it was Maxwell who justified his expensive price tag with a 37-ball blitzkrieg before Jasprit Bumrah brought MI back in the game.

    Maxwell’s innings had six fours and three sixes as he showed true destructive potential with switch hits, lap shots and flicks during the final overs when he launched into MI pacers Adam Milne (1/48 in 4 overs) and Bumrah (3/26 in 4 overs) with utter disdain.

    Such was the ferocity of Maxwell’s hits that even the normally calm MI skipper Rohit looked helpless before Bumrah removed both Maxwell and AB de villiers (11) off successive deliveries which at least helped them save 20 to 25 runs in the final two overs.

    The normally dependable Devdutt Padikkal (0) had an off-day as Bumrah bowled a beauty which pitched on length and moved away taking the outside edge into Quinton de Kock’s gloves.

    Kohli found a confident partner in Bharat (32 off 24 balls) as they quickly added 68 runs for the second wicket.

    Bharath for good measure swept Rahul Chahar against the turn for two sixes while Kohli also imperiously pulled Bumrah for a six over deep mid-wicket.

    However, Bharat couldn’t convert his start as Chahar bowled one straight and full and the batter didn’t get the required elevation being holed at long-off boundary.

    Once Bharat was out and Maxwell came in, RCB despite some great shots couldn’t force the pace as Kohli and Maxwell added 50 runs in seven overs.