IPL 2017: Royal Challengers Bangalore's Best Possible XI

The finalists from the previous edition of the Indian Premier League, Royal Challengers Bangalore were on a dream run and just fell short by one step to make it the perfect story. A day before the player auction this year, they suffered a setback as their spearhead pacer Mitchell Starc opted to pull out of this year’s league to prepare for the ICC Champions Trophy. They released him immediately from the squad and as a result, there was a void for a fast bowler. They filled that by bringing in Tymal Mills of England by spending a whopping INR 12 crores. He was their costliest buy and the second biggest pick was Aniket Choudhary for INR 2 crores. The Royal Challengers Bangalore side now looks balanced and here we analyze their best possible combination for the playing XI: Openers: Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli. (Photo Source: BCCI) The openers’ slot will feature two of the biggest names in the league, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli. When it comes to power hitting, there is no one who can match the prowess of Gayle. Even though he didn’t play too many games last year, yet his sheer presence makes a lot of difference. Kohli, on the other hand, had the most amazing time in the last season. He did the impossible of scoring 4 centuries in the tournament and amassed a massive 973 runs in 16 games at an average of 81.08, way ahead of the rest. In the previous years, he used to bat number 3 but he moved up one slot last year which did wonders to him and he is expected to hold on to that spot. Middle Order Mandeep Singh, AB de Villiers, Kedar Jadhav and Sachin Baby KL Rahul, AB de Villiers, Kedar Jadhav and Sarfaraz Khan. (Photo Source: BCCI) Mandeep Singh has been an exceptional performer in the domestic circuit. He has done a great job for the top order in the limited over fixtures for his domestic side. He has performed decently well at the bigger stages whenever he has got his opportunities. He will be followed by Mr. 360 degrees AB de Villiers who is as good as any other batsman at any stage of the match. He too had a superb run in the previous season where he accumulated 687 runs at an average of 52.85 and finished as the third highest run-getter in the league. Kedar Jadhav will bat probably at number 6 behind Shane Watson. Although he played just 3 games in the last season, he now holds a different stature altogether following his outstanding performances for India. He played some majestic innings that termed him as the potential finisher, something he would be expected to do for RCB too this year. Kerala batsman Sachin Baby was a regular face in the RCB line up last year. He replaced Sarfaraz Khan in the line up kudos to his superior fielding abilities. Now, with Sarfaraz out of the tournament, Sachin will get his chance again. All-rounders Shane Watson and Pawan Negi Shane Watson and Pawan Negi. (Photo Source: BCCI) The Australian all-rounder might have retired from international cricket but he is still pretty much active in the game. Last year, he played in all the 16 matches of the team and ended up with 20 wickets which put him third on the list of leading wicket-takers. Although with the bat he did not contribute a lot, he would look to make amends this time around batting at number 5. The man who made the limelights in the previous year’s player auction after being bought for a huge bid of INR 8 crores by the Delhi Daredevils, Pawan Negi had a poor tournament last year and as a result was removed from the DD squad. He was picked up by RCB for INR 1 crore and now could well find himself straight into the playing XI due to his all-around abilities. Spinner Yuzvendra Chahal Yuzvendra Chahal. (Photo Source: BCCI) The young leg-spinner had a dream season last year as he picked up 21 wickets in 13 matches and was the second highest wicket-taker behind Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He also held the orange cap for a fair part of the league. The 26-year-old was also the lone spinner in the team and the only bright spot in a rather dismal bowling line-up. Recently, playing for India he notched up the best ever figures by an Indian in T20 internationals and also the third best overall when he picked up 6 wickets for 25 runs against England earlier this year. RCB would hope for similar returns from him this year too. Fast Bowlers Tymal Mills and Sreenath Aravind Tymal Mills and Sreenath Aravind. (Photo Source: BCCI) After Starc’s departure, RCB were in desperate need of a foreign fast bowler who could lead the bowling attack. They found the able hands of Tymal Mills who could be the ideal replacement for Starc. He caught the eyes of everyone when he bowled beautifully at the death overs against India in the recent T20I series. He can bowl over 140 KMPH and simultaneously change the pace to fox the batsmen. He could be accompanied by the Indian fast bowler Sreenath Aravind who had picked up 11 wickets in the 9 games last year and got the important wicket of Warner in the final. One area where RCB lacks is in the Indian fast bowler’s department and hence someone like Aravind will have huge responsibilities to fulfill. Possible Replacements The squad is top heavy having probably the best batting line-up amongst all the teams. With the presence of Kohli, Gayle and de Villiers, they are assured of big scores more often than not, something they did in the last season too. Their weakness lies in the bowling department. If Aravind does not do well, he could be replaced by Harshal Patel or the 20-year-old Avesh Khan to backup the pace battery. Additionally, if Mills doesn’t turn up with the expected results, there is Adam Milne from New Zealand in the squad who can fill in for him. Other foreign spinners Samuel Badree and Tabraiz Shamsi can be brought in strategically by dropping Watson if he doesn’t perform and bringing in an Indian batsman like Sachin Baby or Mandeep Singh and dropping an Indian spinner. Iqbal Abdullah is also in the squad who can replace Negi if he continues on his poor form of the last season. Royal Challengers Bangalore’s final squad for IPL 2017 Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harshal Patel, Mandeep Singh, Adam Milne, S Aravind, Kedar Jadhav, Shane Watson, Stuart Binny, Samuel Badree, Iqbal Abdulla, Travis Head, Sachin Baby, Avesh Khan, Tabraiz Shamsi, Pawan Negi, Tymal Mills, Aniket Choudhary, Praveen Dubey, Billy Stanlake.

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