IPL 2021: 3 Blunders RCB should avoid making in the tournament

One of the biggest mysteries of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is how the franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) do not have even a single IPL trophy in their cabinet. Captained by Indian skipper and modern-day great Virat Kohli, RCB boast of having some world-class players in their line-up. But despite that, every year they fail to cross the finishing line.

Ahead of the 2021 edition, RCB retained just 12 players while they traded two cricketers namely Daniel Sams and Harshal Patel from Delhi Capitals (DC). The IPL 2021 auction saw the Red and Gold Army as one of the most active participants and by the end of the event, they managed to rope in as many as eight players including Kyle Jamieson, Glenn Maxwell, Rajat Patidar, Sachin Baby, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Dan Christian, KS Bharat, and Suyash Prabhudessai.

The 14th edition of the T20 extravaganza (IPL 2021) can be another year of disappointment for the fan-favorite franchise if they don’t strategise properly. The Bangalore outfit shouldn’t make the blunders listed below if the magical duo of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers wants to lift the trophy. 

Here are the blunders RCB should avoid making in IPL 2021:

1. Making changes in Playing XI after every loss

Over the years, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have followed a pattern in the IPL and that is changing their playing XI after almost every game when they fail to cross the finishing line. However, this trend needs to change this time if the franchise want to end their 13-year long wait of lifting an IPL trophy.

The captain Virat Kohli and team management need to show faith in the abilities of their players and should back them irrespective of the overall result of the game. The same will give the players the required confidence to work harder and bounce back stronger after a few setbacks.

If the Playing XI will be changed frequently, all the players will be insecure about their position and the fear of getting dropped from the side will not let them play their natural game. This will potentially hamper their performance and will also impact the team.

2. Over-reliance on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers

Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are considered as two pillars of the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Over the years, the two modern-day legends have shouldered the responsibility of leading the side to victory in almost every game. The team performs well only if Virat or AB or both contribute with the willow.

However, this needs to change this year as other batsmen need to understand their role in the Playing XI and will have to step forward to take the responsibility in crunch situations. The whole of the batting line-up shouldn’t depend on just the two batting greats. 

The IPL 2021 auction saw RCB working on this aspect by acquiring the services of all-rounders like Glenn Maxwell, Daniel Sams, and Dan Christian. It is now up to the players to live up to their reputation and repay the faith shown by the team management in their capabilities.

3. Not getting the pace combination right

Over the years, death bowling has proven to be the Achilles heel for Royal Challengers Bangalore. There have been times when the franchise failed to defend a target of 200+ in 20 overs as the bowlers leaked runs in the death overs and failed to take timely wickets. The franchise has a lethal spin combination featuring Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Adam Zampa, and Glenn Maxwell.

However, they need to pick their three main seamers in the Playing XI judiciously as that can either make or break the team. Ahead of IPL 2021, RCB released a lot of their experienced pacers including Chris Morris, Dale Steyn, and Umesh Yadav. This leaves their pace attack inexperienced as the new inclusions in the form of Daniel Sams, Dan Christian, and Kane Richardson have not played a lot of IPL games.

The costliest buy of RCB, Kiwi pacer Kyle Jamieson, sails in the same boat as he is yet to make his debut on Indian pitches. Coming to the Indian pacers, the team has only two options in the form of Mohammed Siraj and Navdeep Saini.