High time to get back to winning ways
Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Lions will look to turn the tide when they clash on Tuesday
Gujarat Lions and Royal Challengers Bangalore were among the teams to watch out for in IPL-10 because of their last season’s record. Suresh Raina’s team had topped the points table while Virat Kohli’s men finished second, two points behind Gujarat Lions.
The fortunes of the two most consistent teams during last IPL have taken a beating this time as they prepare to face each other for the first time in IPL-10 at the SCA Stadium on Tuesday.
STACKED AT THE BOTTOM OF TABLE
Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Lions are stacked at the bottom of the points table and a win could help them come out of the rut.
While RCB, with one win and four losses, are at the bottom, Gujarat Lions are at seventh position with a win and three defeats. Both teams are coming into this game after suffering losses. Royal Challengers Bangalore suffered their third straight defeat at the hands of Rising Pune Supergiant on Sunday, while Gujarat Lions were comprehensively beaten by Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium.
TIME TO PLAY FAULKNER
Gujarat Lions’ balance has probably taken a hit because of the absence of injured Dwayne Bravo.
The West Indian’s skills with the bat and ball were the reason why the Lions were so successful last time. In Andrew Tye, Gujarat Lions have found a hope, but he needs to be backed up from the other end as well.
In Bravo’s absence, Gujarat Lions can explore their other option in James Faulkner, who not just bowls tightly but can also finish the game lower down the batting order with some lusty blows, as seen during his time with the Rajasthan Royals. Gujarat Lions could have tried Faulkner against Mumbai Indians when Aaron Finch missed out on the game as his kitbag did not arrive on time.
RCB’S OPENING CONUNDRUM
Royal Challengers Bangalore’s biggest problem is getting their combinations right, especially at the top. In five matches, RCB have tried five opening combinations and are yet to figure out their best opening pair.
Chris Gayle and Mandeep Singh opened against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the opener. Gayle then paired with Shane Watson, the stand-in captain, to open against Delhi Daredevils.
Against Kings XI Punjab, Gayle was dropped and Watson and Vishnu Vinod opened. When Kohli returned from injury layoff, Gayle and the Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper opened against Mumbai Indians.
EXPERIMENTING WITH THE OPENERS
On Sunday, Gayle was again dropped to try Kohli and Mandeep as openers, but that too hasn’t worked as RCB were left stranded on 134/9 in their 20 overs, chasing Pune’s 162-run target.
It was the third time in five completed innings that Royal Challengers Bangalore failed to go past the 150-run mark.
SEARCHING FOR THE RIGHT BALANCE
“We’re constantly searching for the right balance,” RCB coach Daniel Vettori lamented. “In the Mumbai game, we were down a bowler.
“Shane (Watson) has been such a successful all-rounder in T20 cricket for a long period of time. So we made the decision to back Shane because of his allround contribution.”
IN BRAVO’S ABSENCE, GUJARAT LIONS CAN EXPLORE THEIR OTHER OPTION IN JAMES FAULKNER, WHO NOT JUST BOWLS TIGHTLY BUT CAN ALSO FINISH THE GAME LOWER DOWN THE BATTING ORDER