The Royal Challengers Bangalore, owned by India’s largest beverage maker, would usually play their home matches at the M. Chinnaswarmy Stadium in the team’s home state of Karnataka. It’s fair to say that the RCB are the bridesmaids of the IPL, having finished as runners-up three times but never securing the crown. Perhaps this could be their year?
With supremely talented captain Virat Kohli at the helm, supported by South Africa legend AB de Villiers, as well as spin-king Yuzvendra Chahal who is a former international chess player, the squad has the ability to go further than some experts predict. After years of expectation, coming in as comparable underdogs might help the Simon Katich-coached franchise to cope with the pressure.
The key will be whether they can finish teams off during the ‘death-overs’, which has been a pain point for the squad over recent years. The addition of Chris Morris, the third most expensive player bought at the latest IPL Auction, will help. Their chance is probably best summarised by a slogan that has been adopted by RCB fans: ‘Ee sala cup namde’ which means ‘This time, the cup is ours’.
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