Behind the Chimera of Belligerence Of RCB

Chris Gayle, A.B Deviliers,Virat Kohli and Shane Watson. These are some of the names that are most touted figures in world cricket in the shortest format. It’s like closing your eyes and imagining a cohort of the most exciting cricketers from respective cricket playing nations and bring them together under a roof. Each of the individual names so big with such a conspicuous contribution to that much needed prowess of muscularity in this era, that their mere presence in a single team is enough to send the opposition attack into a dystopia. Out of the entire fan base that RCB enriches, the majority of them may not like the team that they have procured, but it’s just because of these specialists of the game that they come out in copious numbers, wearing red on their chests.

But is it time to finally look over to the other side of the coin? Doesn’t someone need to look beyond the chimera of truculence and high flying life style to actually look into the loopholes? If we look into the intricacies of the team, from the very beginning the franchise from Bangalore has had the luxury of having the World’s most destructive opener, World’s best chasing Batsman and World’s best Batsman. But then what? What is paper overed is the huge gulf of talent that resides in the team after the big names. Yes the inclusion of Shane Watson may have aided to some of the various RCB issues, but there is still lot to be done as a team. But before anything else, what RCB really needs to do, is have a fair introspection about what are they really here for? Are they happy being a franchise that loves to entertain their fans without really pondering over the result of the match. Is the tag of being the most entertaining of teams with the most illustrious of names what they actually seek?

Because if they want to look beyond these titles and really pop up to go in as actual contenders, they really need to keep the big names aside and assess what’s left on the plate. Are they really adept in every facet to be alluded as really potent? When we try and diagnose the current side barring the top 4, they have a really exciting young prodigy in Sarfaraz Khan who needs to be burnished a little more, to prise out his actual talent. A new face behind the stumps in Kedhar Jadhav. The all-rounder option consists of either Stuart Binny or David Wiese. In the bowling unit, a pack of young Indian fast bowlers are entrusted to do the job along with the spinning combination of an off and a leg spinner. It’s a team that has tried to tick all the boxes or at least most of them. But one just feels, that the need of the hour is to distribute the power houses evenly throughout the team. They really lack those intimidating figures down the order. A large part of it alludes to the fact that they are missing out on the services of Mitchell Stark, who would walk into this side to spear head the bowling department. Other than that, RCB needs to take some of those tough decisions.

They need to take a call on how far are they willing to extend the rope to Chris Gayle. Because Once Mitchell Starc comes in and the form Shane Watson has shown this season, these three foreign players could really be envisaged as more or less fixed in the playing line up (AB being the third). Now they need to decide whether they bank on the past laurels of Gayle and believe on his ability to win games single handed on his days or they go for a more reliable all rounding option in David Wiese. Well that’s a debate that isn’t easy to find a conclusion to, but trying to keep the overall picture in mind and keeping in mind how small the size of their home ground is, the needle may shift towards someone with bowling ability as well. It may really sound bizarre to bench someone like Gayle, but does it really make the team weak? Because then we could possibly have Mandeep Singh or Lokesh Rahul coming in to accompany Kohli at the top.And a middle of AB,Watson ,Sarafaraz and Wiese. Or they may slip in Both Lokesh Rahul and Mandeep Singh at the top, with the illustrious trio of Virat,AB and Watson in the middle. And then follow up with Sarafaraz, Jadhav and Wiese. This gives them a lot of depth in the middle and allays the chance of a late order collapse after a high flying start. Whatever may be the case, they need to tweak their batting order to really coalesce together as a side.

The second biggest impediment that really stymies the RCB progress chart is their hapless bowling unit. They really seem of out of sorts against quality opposition and lower their guards fairly easily when the attack is charged back on them. One really feels that they need that introduction of fresh brisk pace to rebuff the monotony. Because even with Watson and Wiese around, all of their quicks are more of less of same style and bring in nothing new to the armory. They need to fit in Milne or Varun Aaron till Starc comes into the side. Because even if they leak runs, they may have that extra fuel in their engine, that may surprise the batsmen and confer that crucial breakthrough. Because on days when their batsmen fail to come up with the goods or the pitch doesn’t play along, I don’t see how three Indian medium fast bowlers could try and restrict the opposition.

The problems may not be too big for the men from Bangalore, or the whimpers may not be loud enough to irk the right ears, but if they do not tweak and fit the combinations right. The outcome may not change directions as well. They need to pull up their socks, show that intent and more importantly pick a side that’s more compliant to the needs of the team rather than a side that’s more obvious and favorable. Because like every other RCB fan, I too believe that we are here not just to entertain but to win as well.