IPL 2023: Inconsistency, banking on batting troika, middle order woes did RCB in, again

And so, the wait continues. For 15 years, Royal Challengers Bangalore flattered to deceive, occasionally threatening to break free of the mould but always coming up short.

Their fiercely loyal fans didn’t lose hope, believing that the Promised Land wasn’t that far away. As always, their aspirations were dashed this year too, after Faf du Plessis’ men crashed out of the IPL in the first stage following their six-wicket defeat to Gujarat Titans on Sunday night.

The contrast couldn’t have been starker at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. The Gujarat franchise, only in its second year of existence, which is the defending champion and was the first to qualify for the playoffs this time, comfortably secured a top-two finish with games to spare and rounding off their campaign with a staggering 10 victories in 14 matches.

RCB, vastly more experienced and possessing the mercurial trio of du Plessis, Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell, ended up with seven wins to go with as many losses, perfectly reflecting their lack of consistency and an overdependence on the aforementioned troika that proved their undoing.

Also read: IPL 2023: RCB knocked out despite Kohli’s record ton; Gill’s 104 gives GT win

Struggles with bat & ball

RCB were let down as much by the lack of depth in their batting as the lack of bite in their bowling, Mohammed Siraj excepted. True, they can point to a plethora of injuries that left their bowling attack in a shambles. Wanindu Hasaranga, their leading wicket-taker last year, played only eight matches while Australian quick Josh Hazlewood was available for only three. Injury replacement Reese Topley played a solitary game and David Willey couldn’t last beyond four.

But these aren’t problems endemic to RCB alone; every team has had to battle its fair share of injuries, not least Mumbai Indians who were forced to start the season without Jasprit Bumrah and Jhye Richardson, and for whom Jofra Archer played only a bit part.

The IPL tests endurance and stamina and depth and resolve as much as it does skills; RCB were found wanting on various counts, and while they might seek to take refuge in excuses bandied out as explanations, they must dive into introspection and soul-searching if they are to shed the “best team never to have won a title” tag.

Also read: IPL 2023 playoffs schedule, points table, and how the 4 teams qualified

Sample these facts, and if you then wonder how RCB are where they are now, you will definitely not be in a minority:

• The leading run-scorer in the tournament this season is their skipper du Plessis, with 730
• Kohli is the third highest scorer of the competition, with 639
• Maxwell, who ended up with an even 400 runs, has the second best strike-rate of all batsmen with 183.48 runs scored per every 100 balls faced
• Siraj, who picked up 19 wickets, boasted an overall economy of 7.50 and a league-best economy of 5.93 runs per over in the Powerplay (first six overs)

And yet, RCB could finish no higher than sixth in the ten-team first stage. Isn’t there a story in it somewhere?

Podcast: IPL 2023 week 8 review

Meltdown of middle order

These sure is, of course. After Maxwell, the next highest scorer was Dinesh Karthik, who looked a pale shadow of the ebullient finisher of last season who rode back into the Indian T20 team on the back of his heroics for his franchise.

Batting from exceptionally poor memory, the stumper had a season to forget with 140 runs from 13 innings; the only other batsman to top 100 for the season was Mahipal Lomror (135), which points to a massive meltdown of the middle order and therefore increased onus and responsibility on the Big Three to not just score quickly but also bat deep and carry the innings on their shoulders.

Again, this isn’t a problem new to the franchise. Historically, RCB have tended to place faith in three or four chosen ones in the conviction that they will help tide over whatever lacunae might exist. History also holds a mirror to the truism that this tack has seldom paid dividends.

Even when they had Chris Gayle, Kohli and AB de Villiers firing in tandem, RCB didn’t go all the way, and one will be hard pressed to find an equal to this triumvirate, with all due respect to du Plessis and Maxwell. Perhaps that is an indictment of their approaches to auctions and piecing squads together, something coach Sanjay Bangar obliquely conceded after their elimination.

Also read: IPL 2023: Kohli hits record ton as RCB down SRH; Klaasen’s 104 in vain

Minimal investment in local talent

“We are doing certain things right to maintain that sort of consistency (reaching the playoffs three years in a row before this season),” the former Indian opener said, “but we have to find for answers within as to why we can’t take that final couple of steps which are needed, which will help us fulfil our long-cherished dream – not only from a team’s perspective, but the support the team gets from all across the country and more so the crowd in Bengaluru.”

Over the years, several existing and future superstars of Indian cricket hailing from Karnataka have played for the franchise, ranging from Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble to KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal, but increasingly, RCB’s investment in local talent has become minimal to non-existent. Indeed, the only ‘hometown’ boy to play for them this season was Vyshak Vijay Kumar, the industrious and bustling fast-medium bowler who began the tournament as a net bowler and was roped in after last year’s find, batsman Rajat Patidar, was ruled out due to injury. Bangar said Vyshak had been “impressive” throughout the season, though it remains to be seen if they hang on to him or let him go, as they have done other “impressive” performers in the past, not least of them the excellent leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who this year became the leading wicket-taker in the tournament’s history.

As a brand, with Kohli as its obvious driving force and for the chord he touches in people, RCB is a behemoth, an uber-successful commercial entity. But as a cricketing unit, it continues to remain a mid-level performer, unable to command the consistency in results that less glamorous but more ambitious sides have been able to achieve. Maybe it’s a trade-off, or maybe that’s how the pieces have aligned; either way, that’s no consolation. The grim reality is that after 16 seasons, RCB – for all their bravado – are still searching for their first piece of silverware. That should hurt, plain and simple.