Broad told RCB to make a bold decision of dropping Cameron Green who joined them this season on a massive trade deal from MI for a whopping ₹17.5 crore.
It’s a new season but nothing has changed for Royal Challengers Bengaluru as they are still facing the same issues in the bowling department which they have been enduring in the past many years. The franchise name has changed this season but the bowlers continued to put them in trouble in the initial phase of Indian Premier League 2024.
Cameron Green has failed to make an impact with both bat and ball.(PTI)
The Bengaluru-based franchise has failed to put up a collective effort on the field as they have lost two of their first three matches. The over-reliance on Virat Kohli may remind the fans of some old times which weren’t very good for them in terms of desired team results.
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After the women’s team clinched the WPL title on their second attempt, the pressure mounted on the men’s team to add the IPL trophy to their cabinet which has been missing since the start of the season. Despite spending big moolah in the IPL 2024 auction, RCB are left with a dodgy bowling attack with Mohammed Siraj as their leader. They lack a quality international-level spinner in their ranks who can turn the match on their own.
Meanwhile, Alzarri Joseph – their big buy in the auction – ₹11.50 crore – has failed to show any sign of return on their investment. The lanky Caribbean pacer has claimed just 1 wicket and leaked runs at an economy rate of 11.9.
The star-studded batting line-up has failed to perform as per everyone’s expectations. Faf du Plessis, Cameron Green and Glenn Maxwell are yet to make an impact and it has been the Virat Kohli show for them thus far this season with the bat.
Legendary England paceman Stuart Broad, in a selected media interaction, replied to a Hindustan Times query and shared his views on RCB’s below-par start to the ongoing season. The Englishman talked about their empty trophy cabinet and suggested it’s shocking for a franchise where legendary stars like AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle have played in the past, while Kohli – a modern cricket legend is still playing but even all of them failed to grab the coveted trophy.
“I think a lot of people have a lot of different views on RCB. It’s such a glaring lack of a star above that badge, isn’t it for the franchise of the players they’ve had? They’ve had a history of fantastic batters, De Villiers, Gayle and obviously Kohli is still there,” Broad replied to Hindustan Times query on Star Sports Press Room Show.
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Meanwhile, elaborating on RCB’s struggle this season, Broad asserted that batting is not a concern for them despite Faf and Maxwell’s slow start to the season as Kohli is looking all focused on scoring big runs with the T20 World Cup in sight.
“How I look at it is, I don’t think that batters are underperforming. I think Kohli looks in fantastic form so you have to look at what your strength is. Okay, Kohli is in this rhythm, he’s focused, and he wants to be in that T20 World Cup squad, he’s going to score runs. I almost think the batting’s good, you have Maxwell there or Faf to look after that,” he added.
The 37-year-old, who claimed 604 Test scalps, gave an honest opinion on RCB’s pace attack and offered crucial advice on using two overseas pacers in the XI to put their campaign on track.
“But I think you need to play two overseas bowlers. I think the bowling isn’t a strength of theirs. They don’t think the bowling is going to win them enough games. I think they need to bring in Reece Topley and Lockie Ferguson as a left-arm swing bowler and a genuine fast bowler say to Faf, Virat and Glenn Maxwell, you’ve got this, we’re backing you to get our runs on the board. We need a bowling attack to win it,” he asserted.
However, Broad told Du Plessis and Co. to make a bold decision of dropping Cameron Green who joined them this season on a massive trade deal from Mumbai Indians for a whopping ₹17.5 crore. The Aussie all-rounder has scored just 54 runs in three matches and picked two wickets at an economy rate of 8.83.
“Yes, it’s a brave decision to drop Cameron Green after whoever made that decision to trade him for such a lot of money. It’s a brave decision to leave him out of the starting 11 because it’s sort of going against what you believed at the start of the season, but I don’t think that team is balanced. I don’t think it looks right. And if they’re getting 180-190, I don’t see them defending them at the moment. So, bring in two overseas bowlers and say yeah, I’m happy with the batting I think we’ve got that covered and see where it gets you,” Broad concluded.
