Varma’s unbeaten 84 lifts MI to 171-7 v RCB

Tilak Varma during his 46-ball 84 not out against RCB. Pic/AFP

Two Hyderabadis at different, if not opposing, ends of the cricketing spectrum held centrestage at a packed-to-the-rafters Chinnaswamy Stadium, which celebrated the return of the Indian Premier League to the southern metropolis on Sunday with gusto.

Mohammed Siraj, the express paceman who is at the top of his white-ball game, especially, bowled an outstanding first spell to rattle Mumbai Indians, before ceding ground to his 20-year-old statemate, the wonderfully talented Tilak Varma. With his team's innings in tatters on being put in by Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Faf du Plessis, the left-hander took it upon himself to play both the anchor's role as well as that of the enforcer.

The lone warrior

The youngster, who had impressed last season too while amassing 397 runs in 14 innings, brought up his highest 20-over total, a magnificent unbeaten 84 off just 46 deliveries, to single-handedly muscle the five-time champions to a competitive 171 for seven. It was a total that looked well beyond Mumbai's reach when they limped to 55 for four at the halfway stage, with most of their heavy artillery silenced. Through a remarkable show of composure, temperament and breathtaking ball-striking, Varma gave his crack bowling attack something to work with against a formidable RCB batting unit.

At the time of going to press, RCB were 58-0 in seven overs.

Earlier, Siraj was the early star during a first spell of 3-0-5-1, making the ball talk, hitting the right lengths and not allowing Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan to free their arms. He struck in his second over by having Kishan caught at third-man and should have had Rohit too, but a collision with wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik meant Siraj fluffed the return catch that would have accounted for his national skipper.

Skipper Rohit fails

Rohit, subdued and scratchy, didn't make the most of the let-off, dismissed for a 10-ball one, by which time debutant Cameron Green had been cleaned up by Reece Topley. The giant left-arm quick left the field clutching his right shoulder after a diving stop, but RCB had enough resources to tide over that loss, until Varma decided it was time he joined the party.

Nehal Wadhera, the debutant, kept Varma good company during a fifth-wicket stand of 50, but when he and Tim David fell within a few balls of each other, Mumbai appeared in dire straits. Fear not, said Varma, as he opened his broad shoulders to pepper the fence and often mock the length of the boundary. It was largely on the back of his enterprise, and a sweet cameo from Arshad Khan, that Mumbai amassed 69 in the last five and 116 in the final ten, leaving RCB with a fair bit of work to do after having been well in control for the most part.