RCB do not have the right team out in the middle: Brian Lara

Batting legend Brian Lara has opened up about the battle between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru ahead of their IPL 2024 clash on April 11. Lara stated that Mumbai, after a traditional slow start, have found their feet with a victory against Delhi Capitals in their most recent fixture at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Lara also reckoned that RCB have to figure out their batting combination as they face a "structural problem" in their unit. 

“MI is getting into a little bit of form with a recent victory. It was great to see Romario Shepherd, the West Indian, do well. I think their timing was very well. RCB is facing more of a structural problem, their form is okay. But I don't think that they have the right team out in the middle. I don't think that they have the right batting order. MI knows their batting order. SKY played a bit out of form, he hasn’t scored any runs. I think they're in a better position to really press this rivalry into their favour,” he said while speaking during the ‘Star Sports Press Room’.

Lara went onto add that RCB should focus to exploit their local stars more than relying merely on their star-studded overseas contingent, which is yet to fire this season. 

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“It is Mumbai’s best chance to play because they’ve solved a few problems. Suryakumar Yadav is back on the field; he did not contribute the other day, but the fact that he’s back on the field makes them a much stronger unit. RCB is still searching to find what their best form is, their best team. And a player like Mahipal Lomror, who I think has done everything asked of him, he came as an impact player, done well and still did not play in the match against the Rajasthan Royals. I think they should just shift their attention a lot more to the local talent. A lot of emphasis is placed on the international talent and what they can do and how many matches they can win for RCB. Of course, you’ve got Virat Kohli, but I think they've truly got good local talent, and you cannot win an IPL trophy without performances from the local stars. I’d like to see them included more in critical moments of the game.”

Meanwhile, Lara's co-panellist and former India cricketer Ambati Rayudu reminisced the days while playing against RCB. “It especially does, when you're playing against RCB, and you see them all pumped up. You tend to get your best cricket on that day. It happens, and also there has been a case where even if you play at your best, teams like RCB, back in the day, can beat you. I don’t think it’s the case anymore.”

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Rayudu also expressed his views on RCB’s batting line-up, calling for an extension of it. He stated that the team needs to resort to a balanced approach and must not place all their eggs in one basket.

“RCB needs to play with a longer batting line-up, dividing their best names proportionately. You cannot have all your so-called best players at the top of the order and leave all the pressure situations for the young boys. You need to phase it out, and definitely Glenn Maxwell needs to come at No. 6 or No. 7 and finish games along with Dinesh Karthik. I think that will serve them well going ahead into the season,” he said.