IPL PREVIEWS: All you need to know about Royal Challengers Bangalore ahead of the start of the new Indian Premier League season in April
After months of boardroom plotting, weeks of speculation and a lavish auction that has become a phenomenon in itself, the wait is almost over.
The Indian Premier League gets under way in April, and it promises to be the most open in recent memory, such is the nature of the competition.
Here is all you need to know about Royal Challengers Bangalore, from rising stars and the ones to watch to their title chances.
The nearly men. In ten seasons of IPL, Royal Challengers Bangalore have finished runners-up three times (most recently in 2016), and twice in the playoffs.
Last year, they were substandard and punished for making a slow start in the competition, finishing bottom in the season standings. Bangalore’s misery was compounded midway through the tournament: their total score against Kolkata Knight Riders, a measly 49 from 9.4 overs, was the lowest in the history of IPL.
Kiwi connection
Daniel Vettori has been head coach since 2014. The New Zealander, a former left-handed spinner, played for Royal Challengers Bangalore over a four-year period, before taking the top job once he retired from all forms of the game.
World Cup-winning coach Gary Kirsten and Ashish Nehra will support Vettori in the batting and bowling departments respectively. Indian batsman Virat Kohli, a former ICC ODI Player of the Year, retains his place as captain.
Kohli, Royal Challengers Banaglore’s most capped player, is also the second highest run-scorer in the IPL, accumulating 4418 runs in 149 games.
He will be looking to continue his strong partnership with AB de Villiers, as he and the South African batsman have recorded five century and two 200+ partnerships in the IPL. Bangalore have spent big on pace bowler Chris Woakes, who described his 7.4 crore (£810,000) price tag as “mind-boggling”.
Virat Kohli will captain RCB
Washington Sundar, labeled on the club website as an “allround prodigy”. He is a left-handed batsman, who made his first-class debut in the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy for Tamil Nadu.
Sundar had an eventful 2017 as he scored his maiden century in professional cricket in October and ended the year as an India ODI and T20 international. Bangalore won the bidding contest for him, and at 3.2 crore (roughly £350,000), he might represent a steal.
M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Surrounded by green space, work on the ground began in 1969 and finished a year later. Within a few years it had acquired Test status, hosting West Indies as they toured India.
Named after a reputable cricket administrator, the stadium is considered one of the country’s most sustainable, because there are solar panels in place and the operator has successfully administered an environmentally-friendly initiative. The ground holds a capacity of around 40,000.
AB adds to an explosive top order
A very good one. One of the issues they have addressed from last year is the bowling department, and in Sundar, Murugan Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal, they have a solid trio of spinners.
Wicketkeeping has been strengthened with the acquisitions of South African Quinton de Kock and experienced India Test player Parthiv Patel, while the batting lineup is sturdy. The availability of Woakes and fitness issues surrounding Nathan Coulter-Nile are causes for concern. Bangalore’s pitch, a nightmare for the home team, may hinder their chances yet again.
Squad: Virat Kohli (C), AB de Villiers, Sarfaraz Khan, Brendon McCullum, Chris Woakes, Colin de Grandhomme, Moeen Ali, Quinton de Kock, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Manan Vohra, Kulwant Kejroliya, Aniket Choudhary, Navdeep Saini, Murugan Ashwin, Mandeep Singh, Washington Sundar, Pawan Negi, Mohammed Siraj, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Aniruddha Joshi.
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