Mumbai Indians have five Indian Premier League championship titles which make them the most successful IPL team. They are followed by Chennai Super kings with four titles and Kolkata Knight Riders with two.
Meanwhile, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals already have one title each. Only four teams haven’t won the IPL yet and that includes Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
Surely, many RCB fans have been frustrated with how long the wait has been for this team to finally champion the league. To some, it’s simply not enough for RCB to only lead today’s IPL match live scores. They want to see their team bring the bacon home.
RCB has only gotten too close to getting the championship thrice. They were able to reach the finals in 2009, 2011, and 2016 but it was to no luck. This was even when two big names like AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli were on the team at the same time.
What are RCB’s chances of winning in the upcoming 2023 Indian Premier League? Let’s see what’s in store for RCB this season.
What AB de Villiers Have to Say
Former South African cricketer AB de Villiers who played for Royal Challengers Bangalore from 2011 to 2021 strongly backs RCB that once the team finally wins a title, they will go on a title-winning streak.
The former RCB player is hopeful that the team’s unfortunate luck will finally change this year. In an interview with Star sports, the former cricket star said that the first win will break RCB from its shackles.
“It’s been how many seasons now? Quite a few, 14 or 15 or whatever. So, they would love to break the shackles. I think if RCB wins one then, they’ll probably win two, three, or four quickly but let’s wait and see what happens.
“T20 cricket is a bit of a gamble sometimes, anything can happen. Especially knockout games, but hopefully RCB’s turn is around the corner,” de Villiers added.
It’s no secret how much love de Billier has for the team. His IPL career was mainly composed of his run with the team. He did play for Delhi Daredevils from 2008 to 2010, but when he joined RCB in 2011, he never left until he retired.
“I love RCB. [It] means the world to me. It’s changed my life. I have been there since 2011, I’ve made friends for life, it’s part of me and my family and that’s what we do, you know? We are all RCBians,” the former cricketer added.
Royal Challengers Bangalore Full Squad List for IPL 2023
RCB went into the auction with not the biggest purse since it retained most of its core players. During the auction, the franchise’s purse value was Rs 8.75 Crore.
Here are all the cricketers RCB retained and how much they had to pay to retain them:
- Faf Du Plessis (C): Rs 7 Crore
- Virat Kohli: Rs 15 Crore
- Glenn Maxwell: Rs 11 Crore
- Mohammad Siraj: Rs 7 Crore
- Harshal Patel: Rs 10.75 Crore
- Wanindu Hasaranga: Rs 10.75 Crore
- Dinesh Karthik: Rs 5.5 Crore
- Shahbaz Ahmad: Rs 2.4 Crore
- Anuj Rawat: Rs 3.4 Crore
- Akash Deep: 20 Lakh
- Josh Hazlewood: Rs 7.75 Crore
- Mahipal Lomror: 95 Lakh
- Finn Allen: 80 Lakh
- Suyash Prabhudessai: 30 Lakh
- Karn Sharma: 50 Lakh
- Siddarth Kaul: 75 Lakh
- David Willey: Rs 2 Crore
RCB purchased a total of 7 players during the Auction that happened on December 23, 2022, and here they are:
- Reece Topley (Bowler): Rs 1.9 Crore
- Himanshu Sharma (Bowler): 20 Lakh
- Will Jacks (Batsman) Rs 3.2 Crore
- Manoj Bhandage (All-Rounder): 20 Lakh
- Rajan Kumar (Bowler): 70 Lakh
- Avinash Singh (Bowler): 60 Lakh
- Sonu Yadav (All-Rounder): 20 Lakh
The remaining purse of RCB after this auction is now RS 1.75 Crore.
RCB’s predicted Playing XI for the 2023 IPL is the following:
Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mohammed Siraj, and Josh Hazlewood.
Tom Moody’s Take on RCB’s Auction Results
Former Australia International cricketer and the current director of Sri Lanka Cricket spoke to India Today about the results of the Auction in December. He said that the team seems to be very clear with what they want despite not spending so much on players.
Moody said, “I see RCB probably in the grand final for the best auction. They didn’t have a lot to do, but what they have done is be clever.
“I see the strategy behind picking Will Jacks. There is a long-term benefit in what he can produce over time and he is also a direct cover for Maxwell. He is a dynamic batter and bowls off-spin. So if there is any issue with Maxwell, they have got that covered perfectly,” Moody explained.
Cover Photo: royalchallengers.com
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