IPL 2022: Eliminator – Predicted Royal Challengers Bangalore Playing XI vs Lucknow Super Giants

Delhi’s heartbreaking defeat at the hands of Mumbai Indians meant that Royal Challengers Bangalore got the ticket to the IPL 2022 playoffs. The Bangalore side will face the 3rd placed side, Lucknow Supergiants, in the Eliminator on Tuesday (25th May) at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata. RCB has qualified for the playoffs for the 3rd straight season. But on the previous two occasions, they have failed to progress beyond this stage.

RCB fans will hope that they can finally breach the mark this year. If they manage to get over the line against LSG, they will face the loser of Qualifier 1 (GT or RR) in Qualifier 2. Faf Du Plessis will look to bring his winning mentality to the fore as he went all the way with CSK last season. Bangalore will not look to make any changes to the team that had convincingly beat GT in their previous group stage game.

Here’s a look at RCB’s predicted playing XI against LSG for the Eliminator of IPL 2022:

Openers: Virat Kohli and Faf Du Plessis (c)

Virat Kohli has finally arrived at the IPL 2022. After struggling for form throughout the season, he looked at his fluent best in his knock of 73 of 54 balls against the table-toppers GT. Kohli also became the first player ever to score 7000 runs for a single team in T20 competitions. He has breached the 300-run mark for the 13th consecutive time, a stat that shows the consistency of the former skipper. RCB’s dream of a maiden IPL trophy will hinge on Kohli’s shoulders.

When Virat relinquished the captaincy role at the end of last year, there were question marks all around. But, the arrival of Du Plessis has had a calming influence on the RCB camp. The former Proteas captain has been shrewd in his decision making and doesn’t hesitate to make bold decisions. Du Plessis has not let captaincy affect his batting form as the stylish batter has so far amassed 443 runs in IPL 2022. Player of the match in last year’s final, Faf will hope to bring his big-game player mentality in upcoming matches.

Middle-order: Rajat Patidar, Mahipal Lomror and Dinesh Karthik (wk)

The star-studded batting line-up of RCB has relied on two young batters in the middle order and they have grabbed the opportunity with both hands. The duo of Rajat Patidar and Mahipal Lomror has allowed the batters around them to play their natural game as they have played handy knocks to get their team out of trouble on a few occasions this year.

There is adapting your game, and then there’s changing your game altogether. Dinesh Karthik has done the latter. The former KKR skipper was staring down the barrel, and rumors of him even considering retirement from the game surfaced. RCB took the gamble of acquiring him in the IPL 2022 auctions, and the Tamil Nadu man has elevated his game to an unprecedented level. He boasts a staggering strike rate of over 190 in IPL 2022 as he has embarked on the role of the ‘finisher’.

All-rounders: Glenn Maxwell and Shahbaz Ahmed

IPL 2022 has some of the most skillful players on display. But there are things that only Glenn Maxwell can do, and he is doing it for RCB this year. Taking stunning catches, duping batters with the ball, and reverse lapping pace bowlers for a six, Maxwell is doing ‘Maxwell’ things, and long may it continue. The Australian maverick has played some crucial cameos for the team and has contributed six wickets with the ball too. 

Shahbaz Ahmed has been one of the most improved players for RCB this season. He has bailed out his team a couple of times with important knocks with the bat. He has contributed in the field as well, with six catches. The left-arm orthodox spinner has impressed everyone with the ball but has been a tad expensive. He will hope to tighten up things with the ball in hand.

Bowlers: Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Josh Hazlewood and Siddarth Kaul

Yuzvendra Chahal‘s departure from RCB perplexed their fans as the star spinner was one of their key players. But the management replaced Chahal with another star in the form of Wanindu Hasaranga. The highest wicket-taker in T20I’s in 2021 has lived up to his reputation, as he is second in the race for the purple cap with 24 wickets to his name. The leggie can use the long handle as he has five half-centuries for Sri Lanka.

RCB are sweating on the fitness of their pace bowler, Harshal Patel. The right-arm quick suffered a split webbing in his bowling hand while fielding against Gujarat Titans. But Patel has revealed that he will be up and running for the eliminator against LSG. Although he hasn’t replicated last season’s form, he is still quite valuable to RCB as he has bagged 18 wickets in 13 games of IPL 2022.

RCB’s powerplay bowling has relied heavily on Josh Hazelwood, and he has been quite potent with the new ball. The man from Australia has scalped 15 wickets and has troubled batters with his trademark red ball line and length. With the pitches being more conducive for fast bowlers at the Eden Gardens, the Aussie will have a big role to play in the Eliminator.

Sidharth Kaul was brought in the last game in place of Mohammed Siraj, who has had a disappointing season in IPL 2022. But, Kaul was quite ineffective with the ball as he was taken for 43 runs in his four overs. RCB will hope that the former Sunrisers man has a better outing in the game against LSG.

Bangalore’s predicted playing XI for the LSG Clash: Virat Kohli, Faf Du Plessis (c), Glenn Maxwell, Rajat Patidar, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Josh Hazlewood, Siddarth Kaul.