'Don't Leave Pressure Situation For...' - Rayudu Calls For Depth In RCB Batting In IPL 2024
Glenn Maxwell and Virat Kohli in IPL 2024 (AP)
In a candid conversation, former CSK batter Ambati Rayudu analysed RCB’s misfire with the bat and revealed how the team needs to increase the depth and distribute responsibilities evenly to avoid hyper-dependence on the top order featuring Virat Kohli.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s woeful story continues to be perpetuated in the 17th IPL edition as well. The team slipped to the bottom two of the points table after the latest loss to RR.
While Virat Kohli did his part with an anchoring century, the rest of the pack misfired, thus leading RCB to an underwhelming target.
Ambati Rayudu's suggestion to RCB !
That being said, while analysing RCB’s batting woes on Star Sports, former CSK player Ambati Rayudu revealed that RCBs aren’t the same formidable force they used to be a few years ago.
Rayudu added that back in the day, even on the best days, the opposition feared facing RCB due to their powerful batting lineup where every player stepped up with their respective responsibility. However, now, the magic is lost.
"When you’re playing against RCB, and you see them all pumped up, you tend to get your best cricket on that day. It happens, and also there has been a case where even if you play at your best, teams like RCB, back in the day, can beat you. I don’t think it’s the case anymore,” said Rayudu.
Further suggesting things that went wrong this year, Ambati Rayudu said RCB must emphasize having a longer batting lineup and perhaps push Glenn Maxwell to no.7 to finish with Dinesh Karthik.
"You need to phase it out, and definitely Glenn Maxwell needs to come at No. 6 or No. 7 and finish games along with Dinesh Karthik. I think that will serve them well going ahead into the season," he added.
Rayudu also suggested distributing roles equally amongst batters to ensure that youngsters are not left stranded in pressure situations.
“RCB needs to play with a longer batting line-up, dividing their best names proportionately. You cannot have all your so-called best players at the top of the order and leave all the pressure situations for the young boys," Rayudu concluded.
RCB will next encounter MI at Wankhede on Thursday.