Royal Challengers Bangalore will have a good deal of catching up to do when they cross swords with Sunrisers Hyderabad on the 21st of September. Despite having one of the best teams of the fray, RCB have always lacked in the killing element and one of the most striking factors which they have always seen bereft of is balance.
Known for its batting-heavy approach, RCB will be inclined in trying to strike a proper balance with the bowlers, and with the latest inclusions made in the team, they will hope to make things right. Kohli is an industrious moniker in their ranks while ABD will be the destructor-in-chief. However, in order for situations to be controlled, RCB will be looking forward to mining a good Indian player that can create the bridge between being good and excellent.
We will look at the likeliest top four of the team as they start their IPL campaign against the side of equal stature, Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Josh Philippe
The Australia wicketkeeper has impressed everyone with his batting flair in the Big Bash League and eventually turned out to be the third-highest run-scorer of the tournament. He is known for his belligerent stance with the bat in the hand and his wicket-keeping flair has also been highly laudable.
RCB suffered a lot for pedestal keeping by Parthiv Patel and will not mind a good inclusion of Philippe who can actually flip things over for Bangalore in the flash of an eye. He is also nimble-footed which gives him a decent edge over Parthiv, in terms of batting and keeping.
Devdutt Padikkal
An Indian wunderkind who will be eyeing this fray to file a strong case for his inclusion in the Indian national team, Devdutt Padikkal will most likely open the innings with Philippe. He has a wide range of shots in his arsenal and his command over his effusive stroke-playing has already earned him a great deal of limelight.
Padikkal is a good confluence of aggression and repose that will help him in sizeable proportions, given the mercurial ilk of the UAE pitches. He won’t really have it easy but if he manages to keep his patience and focus on crafting those knocks neatly, he will be a bloke to watch out for.
Virat Kohli
Needless to say, RCB’s best batsman will be out at number three. Though his best stats reflect in the opening slot, his heroics in the natural number three position aren’t bad either. He is a good striker of the ball and can execute the shots in clinical fashion, even though they are regular ones and nothing extraordinary. In the pursuit of extra-terrestrial brilliance, we have forgotten how difficult it is to pull off those ordinary strokes with perfection and a swagger unparalleled
Also, Kohli’s introduction at number three makes him a hot favorite to spearhead the Bangalore batting lineup as his transition from settling into killing the bowlers is a treat to sore eyes.
Abraham Benjamin De Villiers
The South African tornado is definitely a name that can blow any opposition away in a puff. Once his bat starts speaking, even the best of bowlers have a hard time comprehending the situation around them.
He likes to take the first few balls to get used to the circumstances and then brings out the bunny of the hat. He can strike the ball into any corner of the park with consummate ease and he can make the cherries disappear with his blistering hard-hitting. He is a prolific striker of the ball who can actually disperse any bowler on his given day. More importantly, he is an adapter and his adaptability to any given situation makes him one of the most fearsome batsmen of the world.
