IPL 2023: Devon Conway, Shivam Dube Had THIS Advantage At Bengaluru, Reveals Glenn Maxwell

RCB all-rounder Glenn Maxwell revealed after the game that at a smaller ground like Chinnaswamy Stadium, CSK had enough left-handers in their ranks to exploit the shorter boundaries on one side.

CSK batters Devon Conway (left) and Shivam Dube in action against Royal Challengers Bangalore. (Photo: BCCI/IPL)

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ended up second-best at the IPL 2023 ‘Southern Derby’ against MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Monday. RCB batter scored a brilliant 76 to complement skipper Faf du Plessis, who scored 62, but the home side still ended up losing.

Maxwell revealed after the game that at a smaller ground like Chinnaswamy Stadium, CSK had enough left-handers in their ranks to exploit the shorter boundaries on one side. The likes of Devon Conway (83 off 45 balls), Shivam Dube (52 off 27) and Moeen Ali (19 not out off 9) – all left-handers made merry as CSK piled up 226 for 6 after batting first.

“I think with short boundaries (at the Chinnaswamy Stadium), they played heavy left-handers. Devon Conway batted for a long period in that innings,” said Maxwell in the post-match press conference.

The Australian all-rounder, who struck his second half-century in this IPL 2023, added that bringing in left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed to bowl to left-handers would have been a risky proposition. “I think, it would have been a risk to bowl Shahbaz Ahmed to those guys,” said Maxwell.

Maxi and Faf ensured we gave a tough fight, and plenty of positives from a high-scoring thriller against CSK. Here's more from Coach Sanjay and Glenn Maxwell on Game Day.#PlayBold #____RCB #IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/JoxovcTeAK

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 18, 2023

Both Faf du Plessis (62 off 33 balls) and Maxwell (76 off 36 balls) departed in quick succession in the middle overs, with Dhoni taking their catches. The Australian wished he or his skipper had stayed a little bit longer, which could have turned the complexion of the game.

“We did so well to get so close. We got into a position where probably we should have won the game, I suppose, if one of us was there a little bit longer. We were trying to get as hard as we could to get the run rate under 10 and make it a little bit easier at the back end. But a pretty exciting game of cricket, unfortunately we fell a little it short,” the RCB all-rounder said.

Maxwell said the conditions were just perfect for him to come out in his favourite position at No.4 following the loss of two early wickets of Virat Kohli (6) and Mahipal Lomror (0). “Whenever I’ve batted at No 4, I’ve generally played well. I think the pressure, the new ball swinging, it’s a pretty familiar role that I played (against CSK). Especially for Australia, I’ve played that role many a times. Even at this ground in international cricket, when it comes to mind, it’s not something that is foreign to me chasing big totals,” he added.

Maxwell said Faf took the pressure off him early on in the innings and helped him to build the momentum later on in powerplay. “I think I have a really clear mindset, the role that I have to play. I think together with Faf, he took a lot of pressure off me early on in my innings. I was able to take that momentum going towards the back end of the powerplay. Once we got out of the powerplay, it was just about making sure that we kept the run-rate ticking along. During the partnership, I thought we got to a position where we were on top,” Maxwell said.

(with PTI inputs)