Royal Challengers Bangalore got their first points of IPL 2022 with a nervy three-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders at the DY Patil Stadium on Wednesday, March 30. The match, which was a low-scoring one, went right down to the wire but RCB managed to hold their nerve and clinch the victory, registering their first points on the board this season. A 129-run target might have looked pretty easy to chase down but that surely was not the case and KKR bowlers got off to a flying start, with RCB losing their top three--Faf du Plessis (5), Anuj Rawat (0) and Virat Kohli (12) within 2.1 overs. KKR really did make things difficult for RCB but important partnerships between David Willey and Sherfane Rutherford and also one between Rutherford and Shahbaz Ahmed helped their side get to the side. RCB Clinch Thrilling Three-Wicket Victory Over KKR To Register First Win of IPL 2022

And if things could not get more dramatic, there was missed run-out opportunity and former KKR man Dinesh Karthik (14*) hit the winning runs against the men in Purple and Gold. Umesh Yadav once again impressed on his comeback for KKR with figures of 2/16 in four overs. Tim Southee, brought into the side in place of Shivam Mavi, also did well, taking three wickets for 20 runs in four overs. Sheldon Jackson was also clinical behind the stumps.

Wanindu Hasaranga (4/20), Akash Deep (3/45) and Harshal Patel (2/11) set up this victory with the RCB bowling attack performing splendidly well in the first innings. Hasaranga was their star performer with the ball, taking four wickets while Akash Deep was their next best bet with the ball, taking three. Harshal Patel showed why RCB paid such a huge sum to buy him back with a sensational bowling performance, which included two maidens and two wickets in his four overs.

Batting first, Kolkata Knight Riders' innings never really got going as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Openers Venkatesh Iyer (10) and Ajinkya Rahane (9) fell cheaply and so did the middle-order, comprising of skipper Shreyas Iyer (13), Nitish Rana (10), Sunil Narine (12) and Sheldon Jackson (0). Andre Russell (25) and Sam Billings (14) did have a brief 16-run partnership which raised hopes of a KKR comeback but all that ended when the Englishman found Virat Kohli at long on. Russell too perished later on, having scored 25 runs off 18 deliveries. It was largely due to a 27-run partnership between Umesh Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy that helped KKR reach a competitive total of some sort. Wasim Jaffer Shares RCB Funny Meme As Glenn Maxwell Continues to Miss IPL 2022 Due to his Wedding

Here are some stat highlights from the game:

#Harshal Patel became the second bowler after Mohammed Siraj to bowl two wicket maidens in the IPL. Both these bowlers did it in RCB vs KKR matches.

#Varun Chakaravarthy faced 16 deliveries, the most by a number 11 batter in the IPL.

#Harshal Patel bowled a total of 19 dot balls, the most-ever bowled by a RCB bowler.

#Andre Russell played his 400th T20 game.

KKR would take inspiration from the way they bowled ahead of their third match in IPL 2022 against Punjab Kings on April 1. RCB meanwhile head to Wankhede Stadium as they face Rajasthan Royals on April 5.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 31, 2022 12:05 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).