Raipur, May 10 (IANS) Royal Challengers Bengaluru pace spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar credited careful planning and disciplined execution after his superb four-wicket spell helped restrict the Mumbai Indians to 166/7 in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash in Raipur on Sunday.

Bhuvneshwar, who removed Ryan Rickelton, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Tilak Varma, finished with figures of 4/23 in four overs and once again proved decisive with the new ball on a surface that offered variable bounce and movement.

Reflecting on the conditions after the innings, the veteran seamer admitted the pitch remained difficult to read throughout the innings.

“Honestly, it was a tricky wicket. It looks like you're going to have a good time as a bowler. The next ball goes for a boundary. So yes, it was a tricky wicket, but we did well,” he said after the innings.

RCB opted to bowl first after winning the toss, and Bhuvneshwar immediately made an impact by dismissing Rickelton in the opening over before returning to remove Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav in quick succession. Mumbai, who had raced to 22 in the second over through Rohit’s aggressive strokeplay against Josh Hazlewood, suddenly found themselves in deep trouble at 28/3.

Bhuvneshwar revealed that the team had discussed specific strategies before the game and was pleased with how accurately they were carried out on the field, as he said, “We had a few plans going into the match. Before the match, we planned a few things, and we executed them really well.”

The experienced pacer also opened up on the thinking behind Rohit Sharma’s dismissal, explaining how he anticipated the MI opener’s intent to attack by stepping out of the crease.

“I was thinking that I was being proactive. I was thinking Rohit might step out, the way he played for me in the past. So I thought that he might step out and bowl that ball,” he stated.

Rohit eventually edged a cleverly disguised knuckleball behind after a brisk 22-run knock, while Suryakumar Yadav departed for a first-ball duck after edging to Virat Kohli at slip.

Speaking about his approach against Suryakumar, Bhuvneshwar said simplicity proved effective on a surface where hard lengths created uncertainty for batters. “And again, SKY was new in the crease. I wanted to bowl the normal length ball, and that worked.”

Asked whether the hard length was the ideal delivery on the Raipur pitch, Bhuvneshwar agreed the conditions made that approach particularly effective. He said, “Probably yes, if it's working for you, then it's the best ball for sure. But you know, the way the wicket behaved, I think length ball is the best ball to bowl today.”

Despite the challenging nature of the surface, Bhuvneshwar expressed confidence in RCB’s batting line-up ahead of the chase and pointed towards dew potentially easing conditions later in the evening.

“It was a tricky wicket, but the advantage we might have is that there's going to be dew from the first ball. The batsmen who timed the ball batted well then, rather than those who tried to muscle the ball. I think that's going to be the key for us. I'm backing my batsmen to chase this down,” he mentioned.

--IANS

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