A glimpse into RCB's memorable second-half comeback in IPL 2024

Royal Challengers Bengaluru which overcame all possible odds outdid expectations of all and defied all calculations and mathematics with six successive wins following a horrid firsthalf run that saw them win just one in eight games will be taking its first step towards the IPL 2024 trophy as they lock horns with Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad on WednesdayRCB could not buy a win at one point but have six successive wins now that helped them write one of the greatest comeback stories in the history of cricket Rajasthan Royals once sitting pretty at the top of the IPL 2024 points table with eight wins and just one loss succumbed to four momentumbreaking defeats in a row which has brought them to this doordie clash against RCBNot only have RCB won matches but also kept statisticians fans experts etc busy by breaking records and the netrunrate barrier match by match Since April 25 when they won their second game against Sunrisers Hyderabad SRH till now they have put up some strong numbers following a terrible first half Let us look at some numbers which tell the tale of this inspirational comebackOverall runrateBefore April 25 the day they won their second game of the season against Sunrisers Hyderabad SRH RCBs overall run rate was at fourthbest with 973 Since the win against SRH till now the teams overall run rate has soared to 1103 the best in the leagueImprovement in middleovers battingIn the first half of the season poor and inconsistent middleorder meant that openers Virat Kohli and Faf Du Plessis had to apply some brakes on their own run rate during the middleovers The teams middle overs run rate was 872 the sixthbest in the competition From April 25 till now the middleovers run rate soared to 1018 the secondbest in the competitionAlso ReadLittle room for error as RCB take on RR in powerhitting slugfest at the MoteraDrastic leap in powerplay bowlingRCB has also improved its powerplay bowling by leaps and bounds Before April 25 RCB had taken just seven wickets in this phase the least by a team Since the win against SRH RCB has 16 wickets in the powerplay the most by a team Also the economy rate has also gone down considerably While RCB bowlers were culprits of many defeats in the first half by conceding runs at 1079 per over in the powerplay their six wins saw them give runs at an economy rate of 872 which is the fourthbestPacers bring the heatFor the first half of the competition the RCB pace attack of Mohammed Siraj Alzarri Joseph Reece Topley Lockie Ferguson etc were smashed in every corner of the park regardless of the venue The ball travelled to the boundary as fast as their deliveries especially at their home venue of M Chinnnaswamy Stadium Subject to a lot of criticism and ridicule the quicks put in hard work Before the April 25 win pacers had taken 34 wickets the least by a team In their next six wins the pacers went on to take 28 wickets the secondmost by a team Also their economy rate went down from 1066 second worst among all teams to 879 best among all teams since April 25Are they the best batting sideWhile Sunrisers Hyderabad SRH and Kolkata Knight Riders KKR have taken the league by storm with their fearless hitting and indepth batting RCBs batting has also put in work worth being documented They ended the league stage with 2758 runs outscoring both SRH and KKR before the knockouts In the overall tally they are just six runs short of SRH who has scored 2764 runs this tournamentThey have also scored 1806 runs through fours and sixes the most by a team in the league stage outdoing SRH 1768 runs through boundaries by the team qualifier one against KKR concluded Also they have got the thirdhighest number of fours 216 and secondhighest number of sixes 157 this seasonAlso the franchise has 554 runs in the final three overs of a game across the season with batters unleasing carnage in death overs ending the league stage on top in this aspectA look at RCBs top batters since April 25Virat Kohli Before April 25 379 runs in eight innings Average 6316 Strike rate 15039 One century and two fifties Since April 25 329 runs in six innings Average 6580 Strike rate 16206 Three fiftiesFaf Du Plessis Before April 25 239 runs in eight innings Average 2987 Strike rate 15222 Two halfcenturies Since April 25 182 runs in six innings Average 3033 Strike rate 18200 Two halfcenturiesRajat Patidar Before April 25 161 runs in seven innings Average 2300 Strike rate 16100 Two halfcenturies Since April 25 200 runs in five innings Average 4000 Strike rate 19801 Three fiftiesCameron Green Before April 25 74 in six innings Average 1480 Strike rate 11044 Best score 33 Since April 25 154 runs in five innings Average 7700 Strike rate 17111 Best score 46Will Jacks Before April 25 76 runs in four innings Average 1900 Strike rate 14901 One halfcentury Since April 25 154 runs in four innings Average 5133 Strike rate 18333 One centuryWith agency inputs