Royal Challengers Bangalore has one of the strongest fanbases in T20 cricket. Though the Men in Red have made it to the playoffs on five editions, and as runners up in 2009, 2011, and 2016, they are yet to gain their maiden IPL title.
Batting wise, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers have been the core contributors to the team’s success in the last few seasons, while leggie Yuzvendra Chahal has been their most reliable bowler to date.
However, the management made some interesting picks in the IPL 2020 auction, thereby cutting down the over dependency on the aforementioned trio, and with the tournament being shifted to UAE, there’s a great chance for RCB to stamp their authority in the forthcoming edition of the cash rich Indian T20 tournament.
Here are the possible reasons why Royal Challengers Bangalore could lift their maiden trophy in IPL 2020
Quality bowling attack
Steyn is an answer to RCB’s death over woes. He would spearhead the pace attack for Kohli & Co. and for obvious reasons, picked 256 wickets in 220 T20s, averages less than 22 and has a spell-binding economy of 6.75.a
Assisting him would be Australian pacer Kane Richardson, who has been decent in T20 cricket, scalping 127 wickets at an economy of 7.89.
From Indian pacers, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Siraj would find themselves in the playing XI. Umesh’s pace prowess has grown immensely over the last few years, especially the powerplay, wherein he has been economical and scraping wickets.
And special attention would be on Yuzvendra Chahal and his unplayable leg-breaks and googlies. He is the highest wicket-taker for RCB, with 100 wickets in 83 matches at an average of 22.84.
Experienced all-rounders
All-rounders play a significant role in the shortest format of the game. They could be the X factor that gets their team past the winning limits.
One has to say, RCB is fortunate in this regard this time around, as they have all-rounders who have international experience under their sleeves, and willing to experiment and learn from the matches that are about to unveil.
Moeen Ali, has an experience of over 150 T20s and has mustered over 3300 runs at a strike rate of 140. His spin prowess has helped him garner 108 wickets so far, a tally that is likely to increase in the conditions of UAE. He came up with top-notch exhibitions in the later stages of IPL 2019, and would be vying to resort to similar shows since the start of the season.
Chris Morris is another effective all-rounder who could be lethal with the yorkers, cutters and the bounce he commands. As far as Morris’ batting is concerned, he can bat aggressively, striking at rates of over 140 when needed, with the most notable knock being his 82* against Gujarat Lions in IPL 2016.
Among others include Washington Sundar and Isuru Udana, who’ve rendered impactful performances at the international arena and would look to replicate similar success in IPL.
Plenty of opening batsmen
The franchise picked Australian cricketer Aaron Finch for a price of 4.4 crore, who could solve their opening issues. As an opener in T20Is, Finch has amassed 1839 runs in 54 T20Is, striking at 36.78, with 11 fifties and 2 hundreds. In the last two years, he has averaged over 50 in ODIs and if he continues the same form in IPL 2020, then there might be no stopping him in UAE.
Parthiv Patel is another experienced campaigner in IPL who has played over 100 matches in IPL as an opener, striking at 121.07, with 13 fifties.
Other than the duo of Finch and Parthiv, the franchise could also opt-in for Devdutt Padikkal and Joshua Philippe.
Devdutt was the highest run-getter in 2019-20 Vijay Hazare trophy wherein he clobbered over 600 runs, and with the variety of shots that he possesses, it wouldn’t be easy for the rivals to dominate him once set.
Meanwhile, Philippe had a blast in BBL 2019-20 while playing for Sydney Sixers, who won their second title in BBL history. In 16 T20s, Philippe aggregated 487 runs at an average of 37.46, striking at 129.87, with 5 half-centuries to his name.
It looks all sorted for Kohli’s XI as they gear up to grab their maiden trophy in IPL 2020.
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