IPL 2026 | Miss your mark, lose the plot

Bengaluru: If it is in the arc, it goes out of the park” is an adage that never goes out of fashion in T20 cricket. 

On Sunday night, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here, the ball travelled to all parts, even if it was not in Tim David’s arc as the Royal Challengers Bengaluru faithful were treated to one of the most ferocious six-hitting parties the city has seen since Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers’ departures.

Chennai Super Kings imploded under pressure as David went ballistic, smashing an unbeaten 70 off 25 balls, striking at 280.

The RCB middle-order bat clobbered eight towering sixes with one of them covering a distance of 106 metres and landing outside the stadium. 

It is during these helpless situations that a bowler’s mind does not know how to slow down a batter. Stopping the run flow would seem like a mission impossible, but that is where the trick is. 

“When these kinds (97 runs in five overs) of things happen, you need to slow down the game,” former India and Royal Challengers Bengaluru pacer Vinay Kumar tells DH. 

R Vinay Kumar.

“If you give yourself some time, you get to think about the options you have. Cricket is all about handling pressure. No matter how talented or skillful you are, it is about making the right decisions,” he adds. 

When we talk about outrageous six-hitting, we talk about positions that the batters get into. And David’s big build, long levers and a strong base helps him get under the ball and generate the required bat swing and speed. 

Even if the bowler is marginally off target, David maximises on the opportunity and smashes it over the fence. 

“Basically for David kind of batters, who have the reach, if you try to bowl wide yorkers and miss, they can hit. They (CSK) just bowled pace on and did use slower ones and did not try to bowl under his feet.”

Vinay also believes that the best way to go about business on surfaces that are flat is to back one’s strengths while staying level-headed. 

“As a bowler, you need to accept that Chinnaswamy is a high-scoring venue. And there will be many things running in a bowler’s mind when bowling at the death or to hard-hitting batters. But it is very important to stick to one’s strength.”

While the carnage at times is inevitable, the key to limit the damage is to try and pick wickets before the batter gets his eye in.  “As soon as the batter comes to bat, the best time to get them out is the first three to four balls.”

Vinay also feels that it is essential to have variety in your bag to outsmart any batter. 

While the batters have become more flexible and adaptable to conditions, cramping them for room is still a vital option. 

“Especially when you are under pressure, you don’t think about many options. You try one or two balls and look to finish the over. 

“If you are having the plan of bowling wide of the stumps and if you miss by a bit, still they can connect. So the better option is to cramp them. If you sense that they are going hard early, then you can always slow it down. Even if you are trying to bowl wide, it has to be slow.”

While the bowler is under pressure, the batter at the other end is also under pressure. And maybe that is why the death overs phase is the survival of the most composed.