April 16 (Punjab Khabarnama) : Already at the half-way mark of the season, Royal Challengers Bengaluru are fearing the worst. With 6 defeats from 7 matches, RCB’s playoff chances hang by a thread with no immediate solution in sight. Yes, mathematically they can still qualify but for that to happen, not only do RCB have to win all their remaining matches from here onward but also bank on the outcomes of other teams. That’s a predicament no team wants to be in, especially RCB, whose trophy drought has been a hot-topic of discussion, but unfortunately, the end seems nigh after just 30-odd matches.
Weighing in on RCB’s terrible IPL 2024 campaign, former India cricketers Virender Sehwag and Manoj Tiwary attempted to identify the flaws, and it turns out there are plenty of loopholes that need to be addressed. Sehwag began by highlighting the lack of Indian support staff, without which the domestic players in the team are struggling to express themselves. RCB boast a high-profile support staff that’s filled with overseas star power. Andy Flower is the head coach, while Adam Griffith is overseeing the bowling coach responsibilities. In such a scenario, Sehwag pinpointed how RCB need to bring in a couple of Indian personalities in its support staff to ensure local players find someone to open up to.
“If you have 12-15 Indian players, just 10 overseas and your entire staff is made of foreigners, that’s an issue. Only a few of them are international players, rest are all Indians and half of them don’t even understand English. How will you motivate them? Who spends time with them? Who talks to them? I can’t see a single Indian staff member. At least there should be someone who the players can confide in,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
“Players need a comfort level which they are not getting presently. Players go blank in front of captain Faf du Plessis because if he asks something, they will have to answer. If the leader is Indian, you can share what’s going through your mind. But if you do that to an overseas player, you may be left out of the Playing XI in the next game. RCB need at least 2-3 Indian support staff.”
Sehwag’s former India teammate Tiwary dwelled deeper into the issues plaguing RCB and identified that their problems start at the auction table itself. RCB have never been the most cunning franchise when it comes to mastering the IPL auction, but this time too, like the previous several instances, the bowling department cuts a sorry figure. Not having a specialist spinner in the ranks, and releasing the likes of Shivam Dube and Yuzvendra Chahal are calls that RCB are living to regret.
Tiwary unfiltered
Besides, the fact that RCB benched two of their costliest players last evening against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green – for whatever reason it may be – has raised questions. Tiwary tried to make a sense of what’s pulling RCB down and going by his verdict, there is a whole lot to do without a whole lot of time.
“I know where the problem is. From the auction table to the management. All the good players of this franchise leave to go and play for other teams. One of them is the leading wicket-taker this season [Yuzvendra Chahal]. You let them go. You don’t persist with Virat Kohli’s captaincy. He led them to the 2016 final. Then today, the 4 costliest players of the franchise whose collective budget is more than ₹40 crore, are all benched. Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Alzarri Joseph. Siraj was rested. So when you’re spending so much money and then benching these players, you know where the problem lies,” said Tiwary.
“Batting is not a problem. It was always bowling. They don’t have a specialist spinner. You’re making Will Jacks open the bowling. Sometimes Mahipal Lomror and even some of the on-field captaincy calls are terrible. Everything is wrong from every corner. They need to regroup entirely and devise a long-term plan.”