Bengaluru, May 5 (IANS): As the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) picked up their fourth win of the IPL 2024 after beating Gujarat Titans (GT), former India cricketer Ajay Jadeja, praising RCB's comeback in the business end of the tournament, said Faf du Plessis-led side are "off the ventilator but still in ICU".
Riding on a superb show by their fast bowlers and a scintillating 64 from skipper Du Plessis, RCB kept their playoff hopes alive with a four-wicket win at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Saturday's win also lifted RCB off the bottom of the table to number seven.
After Yash Dayal, Vyshak Vijaykumar and Mohammed Siraj picked two wickets each to bowl out GT for a below-par 147. A dominant start by the RCB openers, skipper du Plessis and Virat Kohli, set the platform for a win. Although there were a few nerves during the run-chase, RCB were comfortable as they chased the target down with 6.2 overs to spare.
Jadeja praised the overall performance from RCB with significant contributions from Kohli (42), Du Plessis (64 ), Siraj (2/29), and Dayal (2/21) and said the win reflects that RCB picked the right road in the tournament.
"We are excited about today's match after seeing Virat and Faf bat. But the real work that was done, was by the bowlers, an aspect RCB has historically struggled at. The bowling department has started to click for them now, and we're talking about the business end of the season, this is the point where realistic chances of winning comes from momentum... More than momentum, it's about the mentality of the team where you know if you're in a bad situation, someone will take you out of it...
"Today(Saturday), it seemed like RCB picked the right road while Gujarat was on the other side. Who will reach their goal? It's a very tough ask still. The chinks in the armour are visible, what happened at the end. But the chance is there. They're off the ventilator but they're still in the ICU," said Jadeja on Jio Cinema.
Discussing RCB's batting strategy, the former cricketer remarked that he had never witnessed RCB commence a match with not one but two sixes in the first over. "Today was outstanding... They came into the game differently from the start. I haven't checked the statistics, but I have never seen them start a game with a six. Not one, but two of them, in the first over, when there was no need.
"What Faf did, he was operating at a different pace. Later, there was some excitement in the match but at no point did it seem like this was (GT win) going to be successful," he said.
RCB now travels to Dharamshala to lock horns with Punjab Kings on May 9 at HPCA Stadium.