IPL 2022: Match 49 - Predicted Royal Challengers Bangalore Playing XI vs Chennai Super Kings

The Royal Challengers Bangalore will be locking horns with the defending champions Chennai Super Kings in Match 49 of IPL 2022 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on May 4. RCB are in a dire need of a win in order to revive their campaign having lost three consecutive games in a week. Meanwhile, they would also be hoping to avenge their reverse fixture loss against CSK.

While Bangalore suffered a six-wicket loss to the table-toppers Gujarat Titans in the last game, they might not be interested in making any changes to their playing XI and instead field the same playing XI for this southern derby. The best part for RCB is that batting megastar Virat Kohli roared back to form with a half-century in the last game.

Here’s the predicted Playing XI of the Royal Challengers Bangalore for Match 49 of IPL 2022:

Openers: Faf du Plessis (c) and Virat Kohli

Bangalore skipper Faf du Plessis would look to score some runs with the bat after his stay at the crease came to an end for a duck against GT. Apart from the last game, the Proteas sensation did not make much of an impact in the previous couple of games as well where RCB went on to suffer an awkward batting collapse.

On the other hand, Virat Kohli proved that ‘form is temporary but class is permanent’ as he scored 58 runs which was nothing less than a morale-booster as far as his individual performance is concerned. He would be hoping to replicate that performance against Chennai’s challenging bowling attack.

Middle-Order: Rajat Patidar, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, and Mahipal Lomror

The inconsistent middle-order has now become a worry for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the last few matches. In the last match against GT, Rajat Patidar scored an impressive 32-ball 52 and was also involved in a 99-run stand with Virat Kohli after RCB lost their captain Faf du Plessis for a duck. Dinesh Karthik who was Bangalore’s saviour at one point in the middle order has disappointed in the last three games scoring just eight runs including a duck.

Shahbaz Ahmed has scored 197 runs from ten matches with his highest score being 45. He would look to take up the responsibility in the middle and death overs in the next game. Mahipal Lomror’s handy 16 runs in eight balls at a strike rate of exactly 200 helped RCB in posting a fighting total of 170/6 against Gujarat.

All-Rounders: Glenn Maxwell and Wanindu Hasaranga

Despite being one of RCB’s mandatory retentions for IPL 2022, Glenn Maxwell has not been at his impressive best this season as he has only managed 157 runs from seven matches including a solitary half-century with his highest score being 55. The star Australian all-rounder has not been able to make an impression in the wickets column either with just one wicket to his name.

Apart from being a lethal leggie, Wanindu Hasaranga also has the ability to play big shots lower down the order. He has managed 37 runs with his highest score being 18. Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan cricketer has been excellent with the ball in hand having registered 15 scalps to his name from 10 outings.

Bowlers: Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, and Josh Hazlewood

Harshal Patel has been one of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s star performers, but he went wicketless in the last game against GT and also conceded 35 runs at an economy rate of 8.8. Mohammed Siraj has not been able to showcase his best performance in IPL 2022 as he has just registered eight scalps to his name from 10 outings.

RCB’s new overseas bowling recruit Josh Hazlewood had a forgettable game against Gujarat as he conceded 36 runs in 3.3 overs and remained wicketless, but he also has been the most consistent bowler of this side with 10 wickets from six appearances at an economy rate of 7.64.

Here’s the Predicted XI of Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Faf du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, Mahipal Lomror, Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Josh Hazlewood.

Check out our latest IPL Orange Cap report to know which team’s batsman is making the most runs in  IPL 2022.