After woefully fluffing their lines against the Chennai Super Kings in their last game, the Royal Challengers Bangalore will look to find that winning touch again when they host the beleaguered Kings XI Punjab at the Chinnaswamy on Wednesday.
After their bowlers came to the fore on Monday, RCB lost the plot with the bat another time, as their much-vaunted batting lineup failed to chase down a relatively small target of 149.
Despite losing three wickets in the Powerplay, RCB looked on course for a win, with Virat Kohli anchoring the chase, but a brilliant piece of fielding off his own bowling from Dwayne Bravo turned the match around completely, with the team from Bengaluru fumbling and tumbling to 124 all out.
With such a strong batting lineup, it should be unacceptable for RCB to keep failing with the willow time and again, and questions will be asked as to why Chris Gayle was dropped for both matches against CSK, much to the team's detriment.
Gayle should be back in the lineup for this crucial, almost must-win game against KXIP, and RCB will hope the West Indian slugger, fresh from his rest, will take-off like only he can.
KXIP, of course, will want the opposite, and if there is any stadium tailor-made for a struggling batting side to find their touch again, it is the Chinnaswamy. If the RCB batting lineup has struggled at times this season, KXIP's willow-wielders have been awful and the main reason why they are bottom of the table with just two wins from nine matches.
A place in the playoffs, and with it a repeat of last year's final appearance, looks pretty much gone, but KXIP skipper George Bailey has not quite given up the ghost yet.
"We are disappointed," said Bailey."But we have the team to turn it around. This is a unique competition. You can chose your teams and then go about it. We have not got the right combination. It can happen to any team.
"Look at Delhi, they did not do well last season but this year they have done better. There is still plenty to play for and we hope to still make it.
"Our top order batting failure has been the worry for us. The bowling has been pretty good. Last year, bowling was our weakest link. It is disappointing as far as the batting is concerned, but I am confident it will come good."
Even if they win their remaining five matches, it looks like it will not be enough for them to finish in the top four, but all they can hope to do is to pick up five wins on the spin.
RCB ended their home jinx with a win over KKR in a truncated match, and having kicked that monkey off their back for this season, Kohli, AB De Villiers and the rest of the superstars will hope to kick-on at home and give their second-to-none supporters something more to cheer about.
To do that, the batting lineup needs to step up; because, you know, Mitchell Starc will lead this RCB bowling attack well, and give his team a chance to pick up a victory.
Where to Watch Live
Get the Match Highlights and Video of Chris Gayle's 100 HERE
RCB vs KXIP is scheduled to start at 8 pm IST (10.30 am ET, 3.30 pm BST) with live TV action on Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony Aath and Sony Kix. The match can also be watched by viewers in India via live streaming online on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Watch the match live in the UK on Sky Sports2, with the option to live stream on Watch Sky Sports and Sky Go. Viewers in the US can go to ESPN to catch the IPL 2015 game live, while the action can also be live streamed on ESPN Cricket. Audience across the world can also log on to Cricketgateway to watch Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kings XI Punjab live.
