After the rout in the first match against Kolkata Knight Riders in Bangalore just over a month ago, the Challengers crashed to their second heaviest defeat in the Indian Premier League here at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Saturday.

The stadium was only half-full given the unforgiving weather, the uneasy calm in the city and the stringent security measures in the aftermath of blasts, but it was heartening from the organisers point of view. The gathering was treated to some entertaining cricket by the Shane Warne-led side. Once Royals, put into bat, ran up total of 197 and it was going to be a big ask for any side let alone the Challengers, whose batting has been their weakest link. Once the Challengers lost three wickets inside first three overs, the match was effectively over.

Having created a deep hole right in the beginning of the innngs, the Royals drilled deeper into Bangalore's innings to restrict them out to 132 for nine in 20 overs to register a comprehensive 65-run win. Sohail Tanvir (3/10) and Shane Warne (3-23) stoodout for Royals with their stellar bowling show. The loss to Rajasthan Royals was Bangalore's eighth in the 10 league matches so far, and even their theoretical chances to make it to the semifinal have gone up in smoke.

Impressive Dravid
Barring Rahul Dravid, none of the visiting batsmen got going with three of them returning to the dugout without opening their account. Between the three — opener J Arun Kumar, Misbah-ul-Haq and Praveen Kumar — they lasted just five balls. Arun was hasty, while Misbah misfired again. Virat Kohli looked totally out of sorts. Jacques Kallis made a comeback to the side, but was ineffective as usual, both with the bat and the ball. Dravid's belligerent knock (75, 36b, 6x4, 6x6) came a trifle late in the innings to make any impact on the outcome.   
   
Prior to the match, the Royals' players had expressed their concerns over security in the Pink City. But those concerns seemed the last thing on Royals batsmen's mind. Swapnil Asnodkar, who came in for Neeraj Patel, justified his recall with a typically audacious knock at the top of the order. The pocket-sized dynamo along with his left-handed partner Graeme Smith tore into Challengers' attack bringing up a 109-run partnership in mere 12.2 overs. Asnodkar set the tone for a pacy innings with a pulled six off Zaheer Khan in the first over that smacked with sheer arrogance. He continued in the same vein even as the lacklustre Challengers' bowlers kept leaking runs. Bangalore's cause wasn't helped by their lethargic fielders either. Stumper Devraj Patil, replacing Mark Boucher, seemed to have applied grease to his big gloves as the ball repeatedly slipped out of his hands.         

Once Asnodkar (50, 44b, 7x4, 1x6) departed becoming the first IPL victim to Anil Kumble, Smith took over. The burly South African with his savage hitting and crisp cutting made mincemeat of the visitors' attack. The Protean skipper along with Shane Watson made mockery of Dravid's decision to field first collecting runs at will. The duo added 88 runs for the unfinished second-wicket association in a mere 6.4 overs. Smith remained unbeaten on 75 (8x4, 2x6) while Watson, who damaged Kumble's economy rate in his final over taking 17 runs off it, went back undefeated on 46 (28b, 6x4). Abdur Razzak became the first Bangladeshi to play in an IPL match, but could not make an impact. The left-armer conceded 29 runs in two overs.

RAJASTHAN ROYALS: Smith (not out) 75 (49b, 8x4, 2x6), Asnodkar c Misbah b Kumble 50 (44b, 7x4, 1x6), Watson (not out) 46 (28b, 6x4). Extras (B-1, LB-6, W-18, NB-1) 26. Total (for 1 wkt, 20 overs) 197.
Fall of wicket: 1-109 (Asnodkar).

Bowling: Zaheer 4-0-46-0 (w-1), Praveen 4-0-28-0 (w-5), Kallis 4-0-39-0 (w-5), Razzak 2-0-29-0 (w-5, nb-1), Kumble 4-0-32-1, Kohli 2-0-16-0.

Scoring pattern: after 5 overs: 43/0; 10: 94/0; 15: 143/1; End of innings: 197/1 (20 overs)

Runs during power play (1-6): 51/0.

ROYAL CHALLENGERS: Arun Kumar c Trivedi b Tanvir 0 (3b), Kohli b Tanvir 3 (7b), Misbah c Taruwar b Munaf 0 (1b), Kallis c Yusuf b Trivedi 20 (29b, 2x4), White c Trivedi b Munaf 10 (16b, 1x4), Dravid (not out) 75 (36b, 6x4, 6x6), Patil c Jadeja b Warne 9 (12b), Praveen c Kaif b Warne 0 (1b), Zaheer c&b Warne 1 (5b), Kumble c Rawat b Tanvir 8 (8b, 1x4), Razzak (not out) 0 (2b). Extras (W-6) 6. Total (for 9 wkts, 20 overs) 132.

Fall of wickets: 0-1 (Arun), 2-2 (Misbah), 3-5 (Kohli), 4-31 (White), 5-40 (Kallis), 6-73 (Patil), 7-73 (Praveen), 8-83 (Zaheer), 9-118 (Kumble). 

Bowling: Tanvir 4-0-10-3 (w-3), Munaf 4-0-21-2, Shane Watson 2-0-6-0 (w-1), Shane Warne 4-0-23-3, Siddharth Trivedi 2-0-23-1 (w-1), Yusuf Pathan 2-0-28-0, Jadeja 2-0-21-0.

Scoring pattern: after 5 overs: 18/3; 10: 38/4, 15: 83/7; End of innings: 132/9 (20 overs).
Runs during power play (1-6): 23/3.