MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli have same MASSIVE concern ahead of mega CSK vs RCB clash

The Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Chennai Super Kings had a great start to the IPL 2021 season and both teams are sitting at first and second position on the points table respectively. RCB and CSK are about to face each other on Sunday, April 25 for the top position on the standings. Apart from winning the game, both Virat Kohli and M.S. Dhoni will have to maintain the right over-rate as violating it can impose a heavy fine on either of the captains.

Slow over rate in IPL

An over rate is the average number of overs bowled per hour by the bowling team. According to the IPL 2021 Playing Conditions Clause 12.6, an innings has to be completed in 90 minutes which also includes the strategic time-out intervals (five minutes in total) followed by a 20-minute-long innings break. This means an uninterrupted game is expected to conclude in 3 hours and 20 minutes. However, this clause doesn’t include any unforeseen intervals which are covered in Clause 12.7. The officials calculate the over-rate at the end of each innings.

MS Dhoni fined for slow over rate

We have seen IPL captains regularly fined for maintaining a slow over rate in IPL. So far, captains like MS Dhoni, Eoin Morgan and Rohit Sharma have paid the price of INR 12 lakh for not maintaining the required over rate. In Match 2 of the IPL 2021 between CSK and DC, the rule got MS Dhoni fined INR 12 lakh.

Virat Kohli IPL 2021 season recap

Virat Kohli IPL 2021 season so far is off to a dream start. The RCB captain has taken his team on a perfect winning streak in the tournament and will wish to continue the same. Virat Kohli has been fined earlier for maintaining a slow over rate in IPL 2020 against the Chennai Super Kings.

Virat Kohli faced the same problem in the first ODI against Australia back in November where the Indian team was fined 20% of their match fee for maintaining a slow over rate. A match against CSK is not always an easy affair and Virat Kohli will have to be on his feet at all times while keeping the over rate in mind. Considering a top spot at the points table, both the captains would want to finish the week on a high note while adhering to the pace of the game as breaking the over rate rule more than twice can lead to a single game ban for the captain. 

According to the slow over rate rule, if the offence is committed the second time, the captain will be fined INR 24 lakh. Each member of the team excluding the captain will also be fined 6 lakh rupees and 25% of the match fee. If an offence is committed a third time the captain will be fined INR 30 lakh and will not be allowed to play in the next league match. MS Dhoni has already been fined once and Virat Kohli will not want to add a similar penalty to his innings in the upcoming match that will decide who goes top of the table.

CSK vs RCB live streaming

The CSK vs RCB live streaming is set to take place on Sunday, April 25. The CSK vs RCB live telecast can be seen on the Star Sports Network from 3:30 p.m. onwards. The match can also be streamed on Disney+ Hotstar online streaming platform.

Image Source: PTI/CSK Twitter