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Rassie Van Der Dussen Heaps High Praise On Former Proteas Skipper

Rassie van der Dussen heaps high praise on former Proteas skipper

South African middle-order batsman Rassie van der Dussen has heaped high praise on former Proteas skipper Faf du Plessis, stating that the latter's appointment as RCB's skipper has added' a whole new year dynamic' to the franchise.

Du Plessis, who played a stellar role in the title-winning campaign of the Chennai Super Kings last year, was picked by the Challengers for a sum of Rs 7 Crores in the mega-auction.

He was later appointed skipper of the franchise, and while the veteran opener hasn't yet fired up all cylinders with the bat, he has got off to a brilliant start as skipper.

RCB has won two out of their first three games, and Van der Dussen, a part of the Royals' set-up, feels that the Bangalore franchise will become even more challenging to beat when Glenn Maxwell joins the set-up.

In an exclusive conversation with Charbel Coorey on cricblog.net, Rassie said, "Faf adds a whole different dynamic to RCB. If you include Maxwell, who is going to come in for them, they are a pretty solid all-around team. Last night [vs Royals], for example, they didn't even use their sixth bowler, so they're a team that looks pretty strong."

With so much talent spread across ten teams, the race for playoffs is quite open, and any side can beat anyone on a given day, feels Rassie.

Alluding to his own team's defeat to the Royal Challengers the other night, the Proteas batsman said, "That's the beauty of the IPL. Every match has match-winners scattered throughout. It keeps you on edge; you can never count yourself in or out.

Last night [April 5], we were in a very good position; eight out of 10 times, you probably think we're winning that match, but then Shahbaz and Dinesh Karthik came in and played those innings. They played, and they ended up winning the game."

The Royals have won two of their first three games so far and will take on Lucknow on April 10. RCB, on the other hand, will lock horns with the Mumbai Indians in Pune on Saturday.

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IPL 2022 | PBKS vs GT | Rahul Tewatia's final-over theatrics snatches win from Punjab's hands

Gujarat Titans' multi-million dollar buy, Rahul Tewatia, turned back time to the year 2020, when he sent Sheldon Cottrell all over the park in one over. On Friday, Punjab Kings' (PBKS) Odean Smith fell prey to Tewatia's brilliance as the latter handed Gujarat Titans a six-wicket win in a rivetting contest at Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai. With 190 runs needed to win, Shubman Gill was quick off the blocks, smashing quite a few boundaries facing the new ball and setting the tone for the run-chase. However, his opening partner Matthew Wade continued his poor form and could only score six runs off seven deliveries. Shubman Gill, along with young Sai Sudharsan, took charge of the ship, with the former donning the role of an aggressor while the latter took time in his debut game. Gill did not let the required run-rate climb and gathered boundaries at regular intervals. Sudharsan, in between, four fours and a six during his breezy knock of 35 runs. The platform was set for Hardik Pandya to reignite the finisher in him, with the Titans requiring 57 runs off 32 balls. However, Pandya struggled early in his innings, while Gill couldn't find his timing. As run-rate crept up, Pandya sent the ball past the boundary rope on a few occasions but lost his partner, Shubman, who got out after scoring a 96-run knock. The pressure was telling on the Ahmedabad team, with 19 runs required off the final over. A miscommunication between Hardik Pandya and David Miller resulted in the run-out of the GT skipper, which worsened the situation further. With a couple of maximums required in the final two deliveries, Tewatia came to the fore and again passed the litmus test with flying colours. The former RR finisher smoked Smith for two consecutive deliveries in the final two balls and sealed the game for Gujarat by six wickets. Earlier, PBKS had a jittery start with the bat, losing their skipper Mayank Agarwal (5 off 9) and Jonny Bairstow (8 off 8) in the powerplay. Shikhar Dhawan could never get going and crawled his way to a 30-ball 35. However, Liam Livingstone took inspiration from his last knock and carried on his destructive way to lead Punjab's recovery. After Dhawan's dismissal, Livingstone and Jitesh Sharma sent the ball flying as runs started flowing easily. The Englishman spared no bowler as fours and sixes galore, while the latter registered a quick-fire 23-run knock off just 11 deliveries. Rashid Khan and debutant Darshan Nalkade (2/32) helped Gujarat come back into the game, with Punjab's middle-order succumbing. But, useful cameos from Rahul Chahar (22 off 14) and Arsheep Singh (10 off 5), in the end, pushed Punjab towards a commendable total of 189 runs. This win has led Gujarat Titans to the second position on the points table with three victories in three matches, while PBKS has been dropped to the sixth spot and lost two of its four games. Brief scores: Punjab Kings - 189/9, Liam Livingstone 64(27) Shikhar Dhawan 35(30), Rashid Khan - 22/3; Gujarat Titans - 190/4, Shubman Gill 96(59) Sai Sudarshan 35(30), Kagiso Rabada 35/2; Gujarat Titans won by six wickets

IPL 2022 | Graeme Smith tips Pant how to seize best out of him

Graeme Smith has opined that Delhi Capitals skipper Rishabh Pant should bat at No.3 to maximize his skills in the ongoing Indian Premier League.

IPL 2022 | CSK vs SRH ❘ Match 17 : Preview, Prediction, Probable XI, Fantasy XI

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), two teams who are yet to register their maiden win in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, have got off to identical starts in the 15th edition of the tournament. CSK, under their newly appointed captain Ravindra Jadeja, lost all the three games they played in the tournament. Talking about their previous encounter, they were completely outplayed by Punjab Kings (PBKS) as they beat the defending champions by 54 runs. Their batters failed miserably in the last game, while bowlers did a decent job with the ball. They are currently sitting on the eighth spot on the points table and need to make a quick turnaround to huddle some momentum. Sunrisers Hyderabad, on the other hand, started their IPL 2022 campaign on a terrible note as they lost two back-to-back games and are currently languishing at the bottom of the points table. Their batting has been their massive letdown as Kane Williamson, Abhishek Sharma, and Abdul Samad are yet to make a noise with the bat, while their bowlers did a decent job in both matches. In their previous game, the likes of T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Washington Sundar restricted the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) for 169 runs, but their batter failed to chase down the target as they fell 12-run short. Although both sides look well-matched on paper, the defending Champions will fancy their chances, given their strong bowling unit. With the two teams desperate to open their account on the points table, a cracking game beckons at the DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai. Pitch Report The track at Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai, delivers equal assistance to both departments. The pacers will enjoy bowling initially, while the spinners will come into the game as the match progresses. Both captains will look to bowl first after winning the toss since the chasing side won three of the five games at this venue. Pitch Stats [IPL 2022] Matches Played: 5 Matches Won Batting First: 2 Matches Won Bowling First: 3 Average 1st Inning Score: 169 Average 2nd Inning Score: 164 Injury Update/Players' Availability Chennai Super Kings: Rajvardhan Hangargekar might replace Mukesh Choudhary in CSK's playing combination. Sunrisers Hyderabad: On Saturday, they are expected to go in with an unchanged XI against CSK. CSK vs SRH Head-To-Head Matches Played: 17 CSK Won: 13 SRH Won: 04 Squads Chennai Super Kings: Ravindra Jadeja (captain), MS Dhoni, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Robin Uthappa, Dwayne Bravo, Dwaine Pretorius, Ambati Rayudu, Shivam Dube, Chris Jordan, Mahesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Devon Conway, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Subhranshu Senapati, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Solanki, K. Bhagath Varma, C.Hari Nishaanth, N. Jagadeesan, K.M. Asif, Simarjeet Singh. Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kane Williamson (captain), Rahul Tripathi, Abhishek Sharma, Nicholas Pooran (wicketkeeper), Aiden Markram, Washington Sundar, Romario Shepherd, Shashank Singh, R Samarth, Priyam Garg, Abdul Samad, Marco Jansen, Sean Abbott, Shreyas Gopal, Glenn Phillips, Vishnu Vinod, Umran Malik, Saurabh Dubey, Fazhalaq Farooqui, Jagadeesha Suchith, Kartik Tyagi, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Probable Playing XI Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (c), Dwayne Bravo, Dwaine Pretorius, Rajvardhan Hangargekar/Mukesh Choudhary, Chris Jordan Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Kane Williamson (c), Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Abdul Samad, Washington Sundar, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umran Malik, T Natarajan CREX XI Suggestion Wicket-Keeper: Nicholas Pooran Batters: Rahul Tripathi, Kane Williamson, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Robin Uthappa All-Rounders: Washington Sundar, Moeen Ali Bowlers: T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Chris Jordan Captain: Moeen Ali Vice-Captain: Washington Sundar

Resilient South Africa put up 278 runs on the board at the end of Day 1

Half-centuries from skipper Dean Elgar, Keegan Petersen and Temba Bavuma put South Africa in the ascendency against Bangladesh as the visitors ended the first day of the 2nd Test at a comfortable position of 278/5 in Port Elizabeth.