IPL 2020 in UAE: Royal Challengers Bangalore beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 8 wickets – as it happened

Mohammed Siraj’s history-making spell helped the Royal Challengers Bangalore rout the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2020 game in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night. Kolkata slumped to 84 for 8, the lowest total of the season, and Bangalore faced little trouble in chasing it down with the loss of two wickets.

Electing to bat first, Kolkata Knight Riders rued the decision in the second over when Siraj scalped two with his outswingers. Another followed in Siraj’s second over, and Kolkata were in trouble. With two consecutive maidens, Siraj created history in the IPL.

If Siraj sparked early panic, leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal inflicted further damage, and the Kolkata innings was beyond repair. Captain Eoin Morgan (30 runs off 34 balls) played a lone hand, and finally, the pressure got to him as well.

Bangalore chased with ease as Devdutt Padikkal (25 off 17) unleashed a series of lofted boundaries. There was a slight wobble in the seventh over, when they lost two wickets, but there were no further alarms.

Kolkata’s pathetic display evoked images of a similar collapse by Bangalore in 2017. AB de Villiers, skipper Virat Kohli and Chahal will remember that miserable night when Bangalore crashed to 49. So, this is a payback of sorts.