"You see the value he offers not just to this team but any team" - Faf du Plessis on playing without the services of Harshal Patel against CSK in IPL 2022
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis believes that his side missed Harshal Patel in the bowling department. The right-arm pacer left the bio-bubble following the demise of his sister.
Without Patel in the bowling unit, RCB conceded the highest first innings total in IPL 2022. The three-time finalists leaked 155 runs off their last 10 overs, including 13 extras.
We played Bold till the end and never gave up, but it just wasn’t our night.
We learn and move forward.
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Believing that RCB missed Harshal Patel's variety in the bowling attack, du Plessis said during the post-match presentation:
"You see the value he offers not just to this team but any team. He has got the ability to really stop the game. We missed that tonight. Even towards the end we lacked the variety. Big miss for us, hopefully we will have him back soon again."
Death bowling has been an issue for RCB so far this season. This marks the second occasion they have conceded a total in excess of 200.
Speaking about the efforts of the bowling unit, which featured Josh Hazlewood for the first time, du Plessis said:
"First of all our 7-8 overs were good. Then 8-14 we tried to bring the spinners on and they played really well. Dube taking on the spinners, they took the momentum they carried from 8-14. That partnership speaks for itself."
The track, meanwhile, offered assistance for the spinners, with the likes of Maxwell and Hasaranga getting significant turn and grip. However, Uthappa and Dube relished having pace off the ball and making the most out of the situation with a match-saving partnership.
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"CSK used their spinners well" - Faf du Plessis
The biggest differentiator between the two sides was arguably the spin department. RCB's eight overs of spin conceded 82 runs with two wickets to show for it.
overs coming up! 
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Important 4️⃣ overs coming up!
Let’s finish strongly here! 🙌🏻
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CSK's spin attack, on the other hand, led by Maheesh Theekshana's four-fer, registered seven wickets in 11 overs, conceding 91 runs in the process.
Praising his former franchise for the way they handled their spin attack, du Plessis said:
"When you are chasing a big score you have to have a good start. One of the first four setting up the foundation, we didn't have that tonight. Good bowling from Chennai, they used their spinners well on a pitch that had some grip. We lost momentum with wickets, but we came back well. That shows the depth in our batting."
One of the few positives for RCB was debutant Suyash Prabhudessai. The 24-year-old made an impact on the field by effecting a stellar run-out to send back Moeen Ali. With the bat, he played an impactful innings of 34 off 18 deliveries.
Praising the effort of the debutant, du Plessis said:
"Impressed by the way the guys coming in on a debut at 5 or 6 and playing like that just shows depth in our batting. Even though we lost we were only 20 runs short on a total we should have been blown out of order and that is impressive."
According to the IPL schedule, RCB will next take on the Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Wankhede Stadium on April 16 (Saturday).