Kohli's Blunderbus

Virat Kohli blamed his bowlers for failing to defend 75 in last 4 overs. It was 66 of 24 in reality. He is well within his rights to be upset and criticise his bowlers. But it was Virat Kohli who was the worst culprit in last night's debacle against KKR. Why ? Let's see.

KKR bowling:

Fast bowlers: 6 overs - 89 runs - 0 wickets - 14.83 Runs per over
Spin bowlers: 14 overs - 115 runs - 3 wickets - 8.21 Runs per over

RCB bowling

Pacer Saini bowled pretty well for 4-0-34-2. He picked up 2 wickets including that of DK of his last ball of 17th over. But what did others do ?

Fast bowlers: 8 overs - 125 runs - 0 wickets - 15.83 runs per over.
Spin bowlers: 7.1 overs - 45 runs - 3 wickets - 6.38 runs per over.

RCB spinners had put in a magnificent show and picked up 3 wickets too. Yet, they bowled only 7.1 overs of spin. Negi bowling last over was because Siraj and Southee had screwed up big time. Else, the last over would have been bowled by a pacer too. Kohli simply forgot Moeen Ali was alive and kicking. Kohli just doesn't fit as a captain when Dhoni isn't there on field in the shorter formats of Cricket.

My IPL Diary# Marilize

The IPL team you were cheering for?

I was cheering for the RCB (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

What kind of preparations did you do before coming over for the IPL?

Everything happened so quick. When I found out that I was chosen to be a cheerleader, I instantly hit the gym 2 times a day to become more fit. We needed to attend dance classes everyday for 2 weeks to learn new routines so that we can perform as a group on the podiums without making any mistakes.

How was it when you performed during a match for the first time?

My first match was in Dubai - Sharjah. It was a night game that started 6pm UAE time so it was not that hot anymore. The temp in Dubai can get very high. I was nervous to go on the podium for the

first time as there was so many people and everyone was cheering for us. It was amazing, once my feet touched the podium everything just became instinctive. We made a lot of mistakes in the first games with our routines but we just laughed it off and worked on it. The people loved us and everyone was just taking photos and wanted photos with us. I would say my first performance was scary but the best experience of my life.

My IPL Diary# Ane Booysen

I was asked to write about my trip to India and Dubai as an IPL cheerleader and jumped at the opportunity to do so because, wow, what a truly amazing opportunity it was! Something I would love to share!

Now, where to start! We had numerous dance rehearsals in Cape Town to prepare for the matches, and we learned around 9 routines to ensure we were prepared and that we could keep the audience  entertained by making sure there was a wide variety of options.

So, lets fast forward to Dubai... we arrived in great anticipation and wonder for this magnificent Country! Just the bus ride from the airport was an experience as we started seeing all the billboards advertising the IPL! We also met all the girls in our team and started bonding immediately.  I could see this was going to be an amazing journey! There were 40 cheerleaders sent to Dubai, and due to the fact that one of the team's dancers were only going to arrive in India, my group of 10 cheerleaders had to rotate between all the White Mischief Teams (Kings  XI Punjab, Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore). Although we danced and cheered a lot, this was a great way to see all the stadiums as well as get to know all the aspects of the amazing game of cricket.

Some Facts About Chris Gayle and number 3

Some Facts About Chris Gayle and number 3

1. Gayle's jersey number is 333.

2. His highest Test score is 333.

3. A 30-ball century is a strike rate of 333.

4. His innings was interrupted by a 33-minute rain delay.

5. His opening partner, Dilshan scored 33.

6. Gayle is 33 years old.

The Plunder games – Week 6 Recap

Have you been too busy studying for your exams to take note of what has been going on in the IPL? Or have you been too engrossed in searching for a job to know who has hit the most ‘DLF Maximums’ over the past week? Maybe all your time is being taken up by stalking your ex-boyfriend; or you could just be some closeted IPL fan who likes to keep up appearances by publicly denouncing the ‘pajama cricket’ but want to know how your favorite IPL team is doing?

Never fear. For the attention-deficit IPL fan in you, I present to you ‘The Plunder Games’ – a weekly recap of all the IPL action. Here, you can catch up with all the past week’s action in just 10 minutes.

Game 54: MI vs RCB

Royal Challengers Bangalore 142 for 1 (Gayle 82*) beat Mumbai Indians 141 for 6 (Karthik 44) by nine wickets

Match in 140 characters: RCB bowlers finally fire to restrict the Mumbai Indians to 141; Gayle and Kohli seal the chase without any fuss, as RCB move to 4th spot

Charlie Sheen Winning Moment: When the Mumbai Indians somehow rebuilt their way back to 100/4 in 15 overs, it looked like they had a good launching pad for the big hitters to come in and boost the run rate; instead it was that man Murali, who not for the first time derailed the opposition’s hopes by picking two wickets off successive deliveries.

Viagra Performer of the day: Chris Gayle got the Orange Cap, scored 500 runs in the tournament, and scored another match winning knock to lead RCB to victory. He has hardly been troubled this season, and it is a troubling sign for all bowlers as IPL 5 reaches it business end.

Best tweet of the game: Umpire thinks about giving it out. But then sees it’s Bhajji, decides NO WAY can Bhajji get a wicket. (by @thecricketcouch)