By Ekantika Iyer
Estimated reading time 5-7 mins
The 55th match of IPL was held at Abu Dhabi between DC and RCB. Both the teams were fighting to reach the playoffs. They had to win this one in order to be in the top 2 of the points table. Whoever reached the top 2 would have a second chance in case they don’t bag a win against MI. They were both looking for that spot. DC won the toss and elected to field.
In the first half of the match, RCB’s batting unit had a good start, but later the pace gradually went down as wickets were falling off simultaneously. There were some good performances from the unit. Devdutt Padikkal scored 50 runs in 41 balls; Ab de Villiers scored 35runs in 21 balls; and Virat Kohli scored 29 runs in 24 balls respectively. As we witnessed, with a chain of wickets falling of RCB, the team was experiencing higher amount of stress. Kohli wanted to set a competitive target for the DC, but seeing the scores around 15 overs, it was seemed like a great deal to crack for the team in order to set a competitive target. DC bowlers were giving tough time to the RCB’s batting unit. Their intent was there. The same old Delhi was back into action. With Anrich Nortje (4-33-3), Kagiso Rabada (4-30-2) and Ravichandran Ashwin (4-18-1) leading the bowling attack, we saw a determined bowling unit on field yesterday. During the last 3 overs, RCB batsmen put the foot on the pedal and started scoring runs. They, at the end of the innings, set a target of 153 runs in 120 balls for DC.
In the second half of the game, DC lost its first wicket the second over of game. Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane built a very good partnership. It was a crucial one as losing more wickets would break the momentum of the team and winning the game would have been difficult. Dhawan scored 54 runs in 41 balls and Rahane scored 60 runs in 46 balls. This was the strongest partnership by the batsmen of DC in the past few games. There was composure and some great batting shots in the play. During the post match interview, we also heard Rahane who mentioned about how this partnership was building during the game between Dhawan and him. He mentioned they had clear communication on how to strategize the game which helped them play some good shots and not lose wickets. RCB bowlers bowled up to the mark. Shahbaz Ahmed (4-26-2); Mohammed Siraj (3-29-1); Washington Sundar (4-24-1). Despite their efforts, they could not restrict DC or pick up wickets and win within 17.3 overs which would have lead them to a win and no. 2 position. On the other hand, if Dc would have finished the game by 17.3 overs, then KKR would have qualified for the game as RCB’s NRR would have dropped.
DC won the game and locked it’s spot on No. 2 and qualified for the playoffs. They would be facing MI in the first qualifier on 5/11/2020. RCB also made it to the qualifiers as their Net Run Rate (NRR) was higher than KKR who also has 14 points but hasn’t made the cut yet. RCB would be playing the eliminator with either SRH or KKR which would be decided after the match between MI and SRH. The result of the game came out as a win-win factor for both the teams.
In yesterday’s match, we could see extrinsic motivation playing a vital role. We have talked about how intrinsic motivation plays a role in guiding us to a better performance. Similarly, extrinsic motivation too plays a role in determining our efforts and performance in a game. For both the teams, qualifying to the playoffs was their external drive and to achieve it was their motive.
But how does extrinsic motivation guide our intent?
Extrinsic motivation is usually a behaviour that is driven by external rewards. It is the external factor that guides one’s behaviour and intent to perform at some stage. For example: Do you remember when you were a child, your parents used to say that if you get good grades I will gift you a latest toy/buy you your favourite product/ make some sweet dish and so on? As a child, you may have given your best and performed the task at hand in order to get that reward. As you grow up, the reward changes its value. If you are a writer, your possible extrinsic motivation would be appreciation and positive feedback from the readers, if you are an athlete your possible extrinsic motivation would be to be selected in a tournament and win that trophy, and so on. These rewards hold different value at different stages. A chocolate in return for your effort right now would not drive you to work and put in that much effort but if you are told that you will be paid for your efforts, your effort and performance would be positive and different as that would mean recognition, income, more work opportunities and so on.
In this game, what we observed was that extrinsic motivation played a role in their performance. Winning the game meant getting the top 2 position but also having the benefit of getting another chance in the run for finals. Both the teams performed extremely well compared to their last few games.
This motivation isn’t a bad type of motivation. But, one should not be always driven to perform by extrinsic/ external motivation only.
With both the teams having the motivation and determination to make the cut, the external motivator (no. 2 position and an extra opportunity) guided their intent to win the game and gave a boost to their determination of winning the game. In competitive games, having both internal and external motivation enhances the performance of an individual and acts as a guide to their energies.
Watch the highlights of this exciting game by clicking here!
Key takeaways from this game:
- External motivation helps us to perform better too.
- It is not always a loss sometimes you do get another chance and its on you how you perform in that.
- When things get tough, stick to your basics.
- Keep it simple. You don’t have to do great to be great. Do simple things right and you will see the change happening.