Former South African captain AB de Villiers has opined that Royal Challengers Bengaluru have a well-balanced squad ahead of the upcoming season. AB said Virat Kohli and a couple of other big players didn’t feel the pressure in the previous season, which was instrumental in their maiden title run.
The former RCB batter reckons the franchise might not have a lot of firepower in their bowling department as Josh Hazlewood and Bhunveshwar Kumar are not known to trouble the opposition’s batters with extra pace.
RCB were able to come up with a collective effort in the previous season and they ticked the right boxes.
AB de Villiers said on his YouTube Channel, “The difference last year was that someone like Virat and a couple of other big players didn’t feel the pressure they used to in the past. There is a lot more firepower in all departments. They seem like a very balanced squad.”
“Bhuvneshwar is experienced and a great bowler. I think he has dropped half a yard of pace over the last 18 to 24 months. That one extra yard makes a big difference. When I watched him last season, I felt like he was a little bit slow through the air compared to when I played him in 2016. Even with Hazlewood, there is no raw pace in that lineup. So they are lacking a bit of X-factor in the seam department,” added De Villiers.
The former talisman backed RCB to start their season on a high after last season’s success.
“They may be just lacking 1 or 2% in the bowling, but overall, it’s a well-balanced squad. Having won the trophy, they’ll have the belief now. They just have to start well,” stated De Villiers.
On the other hand, former Indian opener Abhinav Mukund said RCB are lacking in the bowling department.
“The bowling is still a little bit of a concern. If Hazlewood isn’t available, then there is a big drop off between the next two, Tushara and Duffy. Neither of them is a proven IPL performer. The potential replacement for Yash Dayal is Mangesh Yadav, who is always very raw,” said Mukund (via the aforementioned source).
“There will be a lot of onus on Bhuvneshwar to carry that bowling lineup. There was a lot of talk that the RCB spinners couldn’t penetrate, but they ended up doing a good job last year. But batting, they have an upgrade with Venkatesh Iyer, and their last seven looks very good.”
RCB will begin their IPL defense against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Bengaluru on 28th March.
