Rajat Patidar’s dismissal against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad sparked a strong reaction from star batter Virat Kohli. Notably, the RCB captain attempted to pull Arshad Khan, but a top edge took it towards deep backward square leg. In an attempt to complete the catch, West Indies international Jason Holder charged towards his right, dived and caught the ball, which was very close to the ground.
What followed was immediate uncertainty. The umpires called for the third umpire to review it and the replays suggested the ball may have touched the ground as Holder finished the movement. However, upon checking the footage, the decision was still given out, which rattled Kohli.
He had already been dismissed earlier in the innings after a brisk start in the powerplay, but the call involving Patidar drew a visibly animated response from him near the dugout. He appeared unhappy with how the review had been handled and questioned the outcome from the sidelines. Head coach Andy Flower was equally puzzled with the decision as he was later seen speaking to the umpire about the same. Nevertheless, Patidar had to leave the ground eventually.
Meanwhile, Patidar’s wicket came at an important stage of the innings. He has been a key figure in RCB’s middle order this season and his departure disrupted their rhythm just as they were looking to build. The visitors lost a few early wickets and the onus was on Patidar to keep up with the momentum, but he departed for 19 runs off 15 balls.
RCB’s middle order struggles again
Bengaluru’s top four batters have been a force to reckon with this season. During chases, even Tim David and Romario Shepherd have done remarkably well. However, in the first innings, RCB’s middle order has struggled to live up to the potential this season and that is highly concerning ahead of the business end of the season.
Against Gujarat, Jitesh Sharma made one, Tim David added nine and Krunal Pandya scored four. They were forced to bring in Venkatesh Iyer as the Impact Player, but he too struggled to live up to the potential so far.
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