RCB's Turnaround this Season
The current table toppers Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are in red-hot-form having won all of their first four matches thus far. In fact, it’s the first time they have done that since the inception of IPL. So, what exactly is working for them? Is this, finally, the season for RCB? Here’s a deep dive into some of the key factors behind their success so far….
AB-DELIVERS
The big guys like AB de Villiers & Glenn Maxwell have turned up and played a key role in RCB’s success so far. AB de Villiers is an all time IPL great and he has always stood tall for the Bangalore team. The IPL followers don’t need stats to know his influence on RCB and how he changes the course of the match. At the end of every season, however, one talking point that fails to escape critics’ column is the positioning de Villiers batting slot which many felt was way down to his liking considering the impeccable hitting prowess of the mighty Protea.
RCB, though, seemed to have learnt their lessons this time and should be applauded for taking the correct decisions regarding de Villiers’ entry point in this season.
ABD entry point stats since IPL 2018
The Glenn factor
While it was Aaron Finch who was expected to take pressure off from Kohli and de Villiers in 2020, RCB gambled with Glenn Maxwell in 2021.
RCB’s batting issues against spin-bowling have been under the spotlight for quite some time and their lack of boundary scoring intent in the middle overs last season is evidenced by their slow rate, scoring at only 6.92 RPO. Their problems against spinners were expected to hurt them again in the Chepauk leg. However, Maxwell took the responsibility for his side and has been the best spin-hitter in the competition so far.
Maxwell in middle overs last year - 72 balls; 59 runs; 5 dismissals
Maxwell in middle overs this year - 72 balls; 101 runs; 1 dismissal
While Maxwell’s inclusion not only added greater stability to the top three it also enabled de Villiers to play his role to perfection and face ample deliveries before getting his eye in. “We have depth in the batting which we want to utilize. AB is probably the only one in the team who is so versatile,” an elated Virat Kohli said after winning their first ever season opener in IPL.
Up and down the order, RCB are able to call on plenty of right-hand/left-hand combinations. Devdutt Padikkal at the top alongside Kohli starts in this vein, and as we saw last year, Washington Sundar is always an option to be promoted into the middle order should the situation demand it.
The rise of Siraj and Harshal
Their Indian bowling core has also stepped up fairly so far. Mohammed Siraj has quickly risen as a powerplay enforcer for RCB as opposed to the death bowling struggles last year. Siraj had 7 wickets and an economy of 6.9 in the Powerplay last year, but this season there’s been a significant improvement in his lines which boosted his economy rate, succeeding in restricting the scoring areas for batsmen while at it. A firm proof of the aforementioned fact is his economy rate which dropped to 3.25 during the powerplay.
The Hyderabad pacer has bowled in the channel and on good and short lengths depending upon batsmen strengths. However, Siraj’s bowling against big hitters has been a big revelation so far. Against MI, he bowled good short-balls to Kieron Pollard and his best death bowling performance came against Andre Russell. Siraj kept the ball out of his arc and attempted wide yorkers which proved to be a struggling zone historically for Russell. He also surprised Russell with a short ball and sealed the game for his side under pressure.
RCB’s death bowling has been a major problem for them for a long time. However, this season Harshal Patel has led the charge well so far. He has bowled 58.33% of his balls (42) in the overs 16-20 and the batsmen have scored at a strike rate of under 80 with just two boundaries against him, picking up 11 of his 12 wickets in this phase. He has improved his skill of delivering accurate yorkers as well. Harshal bowled just one yorker in 2020 while 12 already in this season so far.
“We brought Harshal in a trade from Delhi. He is relishing the responsibility and is clear with his plans. He was the difference today. He is going to be our death bowler. As a captain you want players with clarity, and he has that,” Kohli said after their win against Mumbai Indians in the season opener.
The skipper was crystal-clear about who his death bowlers were since the start of their first game and that speaks volumes of confidence that RCB, as a team, has this year. As they so often say in Bengaluru, let’s hope it’s the “ECN” year for them (Esaala Cup Namde which translates to “This year the cup is ours”)