Champions League T20 S/F: Red-hot RCB vs in-form NSW

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Following a mediocre show initially, the Royal Challengers Bangalore have exploded into action sensationally. Up until the final match of the league stage they were at the bottom of the table in Group B, until the last-ball six by Arun Karthik fired them into the semifinals.

At the halfway mark in the group stage, very few gave a chance to RCB of making it to the last four, but the Royal Challengers lived up to their name and silenced their critics.

In their last two matches, RCB have crossed the 200 mark with panache – on the first occasion they batted first before the spectacular chase on Wednesday night– to showcase their batting might.

When New South Wales take the field against the Challengers in the semifinals at the M. Chinnaswamy stadium on Friday, they will be wary of the high-on-confidence RCB, who knocked out Aussie champions South Australia Redbacks. Their ouster also meant that none the domestic champions have made it to the last four stage in the CLT20.

The Challengers have often been accused of being over-dependent on Chris Gayle and his failure had led to RCB’s defeats, but against Redbacks they proved it wrong.

Tillakaratne Dilshan’s return to form will be a relief for skipper Daniel Vettori but it was Virat Kohli’s pyrotechnics and his ability to play according to the situation that propelled them. Coach Ray Jennings’ insistence on bowlers contributing with the bat also held the Challengers in good stead in their memorable chase.

The bowling department, however, is a major cause of concern for Vettori. Only the skipper and Syed Mohammed managed to earn some respect from the all-rampaging South Australian batsmen. Pace spearhead Dirk Nannes has failed to either keep batsmen in check or provide regular breakthroughs and this has also affected S. Arvind’s performance.

The home team are also struggling to find a fifth bowler, but considering their options RCB are likely to go in with an unchanged squad. NSW, like their rivals, bat deep with David Warner, Shane Watson, Simon Katich, Steven Smith and Moises Henriques in its batting line-up. Warner, in particular, will be a major threat given his rampaging century against the Super Kings on Tuesday.

NSW’s campaign has gathered momentum steadily. They recovered from a loss to Cape Cobras with a victory over Trinidad and Tobago in the one-over eliminator after the match ended in a tie.

On the morrow, it will be a clash between two teams who are in the best of form and the one that commits minimal mistakes will triumph.

Vettori wary of brutal NSW openers

It is a contest between equals; two teams, who boast of explosive openers in world cricket, will go against each other on Friday night. While the RCB have Chris Gayle and Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top, NSW are more than a match with the David Warner and Shane Watson opening combine.

Their impact on the game is such that the course of the match may well be decided on the performance of the foursome. RCB skipper, Daniel Vettori, knows the threat that the Trans-Tasmanian openers pose and is keen to get rid of them early.

“NSW have strong opening batsmen in Warner and Watson. Our main aim is to get into the NSW middle-order as quickly as possible. They do have a strong experienced middle-order, but they are not as destructive as the openers,” said Vettori. After the last-ball thriller on Wednesday, Vettori is looking to carry forward the momentum into the semis.

Meanwhile, NSW will be playing their first match at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium after playing all their group matches on the slow Chennai turf.

“I don’t think you can plan too much in this form of the game. Here, it only takes someone to have a blinder of an innings and get going. There’s no point planning to go and get 140 if the wicket might end up being better than that. You just don’t know until you get out there,” said Simon Katich, NSW skipper.