IPL 2025: Punjab Kings lord over RCB as Arshdeep Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal produce magic

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Variety is the spice of life. This was a post-match comment from Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer as his team crushed Royal Challengers Bengaluru by five wickets in a rain-hit IPL match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday (April 18) night.

This was also the 18th birthday night of the Indian Premier League. Rain is considered as auspicious but when it comes to cricket, handling rain can be tricky. Agreed, the drainage system at the venue is excellent and even copious amount of rainfall means the ground staff can get it ready.

However, the same does not apply for the city as a whole, where the drainage system has collapsed. Anyone who knows about the 'concretisation' of Bengaluru will vouch, when this city was Bangalore, even in summer, folks wore jackets.

Times have changed, urbanisation has led to chaos. Traffic snarls, poor public transport system and honking on the streets, Bengaluru now extends way beyond city limits into the airport area called Devanahalli. All this has seen sky scrapers come up.

But inside the Chinnaswamy Stadium, RCB crumbled, blown away by the might of Punjab Kings after rain had restricted it to 14 overs a side. Before you ask what is the need for a mention of how Bengaluru is overburdened and the city has become choc-a-bloc, this city is bursting at its seams.

It is a survival of the fittest, unless you have inherited landed property. Likewise, just because RCB were playing at home did not mean they got an advantage. If anything, their string of losses at home means the 'home advantage' thing bit gone for a toss.

In contrast, the more one gets to see Shreyas Iyer led his team, it becomes even more clear, he is cerebral. His reference to 'variety is the spice of life' was a good one. Goading his bowlers to fire, the captain had a pep talk with them before the match.

To just come out and hurl the white ball after showers, there is something in the air and off the wicket. Add to it the mindset, what left-arm medium pacer Arshdeep Singh and wild old fox Yuzvendra Chahal produced as a potent and varying variety wrecked RCB.

First comes Arshdeep, the lanky Sardar who has a large heart. He has a bit of everything in his game, bowl two overs or so up front and then come back later. He can tilt the ball inwards and he can use accuracy and swing effectively.

For any right-handed batter, facing Arshdeep is loaded with risks. If fans think smashing a medium pacer out of his line is easy, no, not against Arshdeep. He can mix it up and also nail the Yorkers. Plus, he weighs heavily on the mind of batters.

Watching RCB score only 95 for 9 in 14 overs, it was a reflection of how they imploded against Arshdeep, at first, before Yuzi came to bamboozle them with variety and accuracy stuff.

RCB's dangerous opener, Phil Salt, who had been peppering the bowlers all over in earlier matches, went for four, falling to the machinations of Arshdeep, caught by Josh Inglis. And then came the crippling blow as Virat Kohli Paaji was caught by Marco Jansen off Arshdeep for 1. Arshdeep had broken the spine of RCB, so to say.

Well, in a format where the overs are cut from 20 to 14, mindset matters. Maybe, RCB could not handle this swifter format which was a bit like cooking the unhealthy yet famous two-minute noodles.

Skipper Rajat Patidar, who has done well as a leader and captain, fell for 23. This was a big wicket, Yuzi got him. The amount of confidence and pep talk which Shreyas gives to his bowlers worked.

Losing Patidar was awful, though one man at No.7 Tim David mastered the conditions to score an unbeaten 50 off 26 balls. It clearly showed conditions could be conquered. In hindsight, it was too late.

Back to Yuzi Chahal, he has rich experience, a cool head and bowls from his heart and thinks with his head. Leg spinners may be a dying breed in today's cricket but Yuzi and a few youngsters are ensuring they do not become extinct like the Dinosaurs.

Chahal also bagged the wicket of Jitesh Sharma but his bowling needs to be valued, for, he bottled up the run flow. To finish with a 3-0-11-2 analysis says everything. At the same time, Arshdeep had figures of 3-0-23-2.

For Punjab Kings, the chase was not manic, even though they lost wickets in forcing the pace. Chasing makes more sense in 14 overs than batting first and setting a target. And in Nehal Wadhera, a 24-year-old boy from Amritsar, Shreyas Iyer has great confidence.

As the leader board looks now, Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings can twirl their moustaches and feel proud of what they have done so far. To be placed at 10 points each, after six and seven matches respectively, DC and Punjab Kings have been the revelations of IPL 2025.

What it means is, the race for Playoffs will see other teams fighting. All is not over for RCB, as they have eight points from seven matches. The Easter weekend should see thick action, with four matches scheduled on Saturday and Sunday. Punjab Kings can get some well- deserved rest after playing bold and creative cricket.