Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are going through a horrible phase in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2018). RCB has stars like Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock and others, but they have still struggled to register wins and more numbers on the points table.
Every season, RCB are hailed as one of the favourites to win the tournament but, mostly, they fall apart and this is the reason why they have not won even a single season of the Indian Premier League.
This year, many fans and pundits are saying that RCB don’t have the team to win the tournament. They are “top-heavy” and if Kohli and ABDV fail, they don’t have players who can win matches for them.
But, we, at The Cricket Lounge, have a different opinion and we would like to suggest changes that can turn things around for RCB in IPL 2018. Have a read and do share your views in the comments section below.
1) Opening combination
Virat Kohli has done well as an opener for RCB but its time that he moves down the order and let Manan Vohra and Quinton de Kock open the innings. de Kock is a top quality batsman who can destroy any bowling attack on his day and he must bat at the top of the order. Manan Vohra is also a quality batter who has the ability to score quickly as an opener. During his stay at Kings XI Punjab, he played the role of an opener very effectively.
This would also mean that Virat Kohli will bat at number 3 from where he can asses the situation of the match in a better way and anchor the RCB innings if there is an early wicket, and also while chasing.
2) Chris Woakes
Chris Woakes is a very fine T20 cricketer and he should be included in the playing XI for every game of the tournament, if he is fit to play. RCB have been making lots of changes but they shouldn’t play too much with Woakes position in the playing XI.
3) Strengthen the bowling attack
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RCB have been giving Corey Anderson chances with a hope that he can make a difference with the bat and also provide a bowling option. But, in our opinion, RCB must strengthen their bowling attack by including Tim Southee, who is one of the best fast bowlers in the world, in the playing XI. With 3 top quality of batters and a couple of good young Indian batters, RCB must look to add more firepower to their bowling because their home ground Chinnaswamy is, mostly, a batting paradise and an easy chasing ground.
The Cricket Lounge’s RCB’s Playing XI:
Quinton de Kock (wk)
Manan Vohra
Virat Kohli (c)
AB de Villiers
Mandeep Singh
Pawan Negi
Sarfaraz Khan
Chris Woakes
Tim Southee
Yuzvendra Chahal
Umesh Yadav
