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Having gotten within sniffing distance twice in the past, Vijay Mallya’s Royal Challangers Banglore will look to claim the trophy in this, the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League, without tripping in the final lap. After an abysmal 7^th-position finish in the first edition, RCB fought back to finish second in 2009, and put on a mighty good show in 2010 to finish third. However, these stats might count for nothing as the RCB, much like most other franchises, has a completely new team, Virat Kohli the only man retained from the previous editions.

The Royal Challangers Banglore enter IPL 2011 with arguably the most ‘in form’ squad in the entire tournament. Led by the determined Daniel Vettori, the team is fielding four other players who turned in high-octane performances in the World Cup just gone by. Add to this a formidable opener, a steady local keeper and two IPL 2010 heroes, and you have a team that looks very intimidating indeed. A local wicket-keeper will position the highly athletic AB de Villiers on the outfield, making this an impressive fielding unit empowered by the nimble likes of Kohli, Vettori, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Cheteshwar Pujara.

Smart, strategic bidding and intelligent player retention, along with some good fortune, has ensured that all the players bought are available for the tournament and free from injury. While the team composition is perfect as far as cricketing ability goes, the absence of local players and crowd favorites such as Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble could dampen the viewers’ enthusiasm. While Kumble is still the mentor, he will be missed and fan opinion is best summed up by a RCB supporter, who says, “…While the Foo Fighters are an awesome band, they’re not and never will be Nirvana without Cobain!”

Batting: With Dilshan at the top and Kohli, de Villiers, Saurabh Tiwary and Pujara to follow, the batting line-up of this new RCB outfit looks to be quite close to a dream team. As luck would have it, all batsmen they have bid for have played excellently in the recently concluded World Cup and come into this IPL in peak form. The Tamil Nadu stroke-maker, Arun Karthik will most likely be chosen to open the innings alongside Dilshan. The youngster will look to make the most of this incredible chance. Muralidharen Gautam, is likely to play the wicket-keeper who comes in at number 6 while Saurabh Tiwary is likely to be handed the role of slogger/finisher as neither of Gautam and Pujara, although both sport good strike rates, is a chronic big hitter. However, if a fifth bowling option is deemed necessary, AB de Villiers could keep wickets or one of Pujara and Kohli could open with Dilshan to accommodate the extra bowler.

While De Villiers and Dilshan were the best batsmen for their countries in the World Cup, Kohli impressed with the bat occasionally, and registered his maiden World Cup century in the opener against Bangladesh. The fact that Daniel Vettori will be the only south paw in this batting line-up may be a cause for concern but the sturdiness of the top and middle orders suggests that the selectors might not spend sleepless nights over the issue. Mayank Agarwal, a big-hitting local with a T20 strike rate of 140, will definitely be given a look-in during the tournament, while a steadier and more experienced Arun Karthik might be able to play a better second fiddle to the explosive Dilshan.

South African left-hander Johnathan Vandiar is also a viable option for RCB in case Vettori or Dilshan cannot play, and the aggressive South African also brings in some utility spin option. Mohammad Kaif’s selection, after an unimpressive 2010 IPL,·was a largesse·granted to a veteran and State team Captain, but the first unavailability of an Indian batsman will see Kaif make it to the playing XI. Australian Luke Pomersbach and South African Rilee Russouw are not likely to get a chance to play this season barring a rash of injuries/inavailabilties.

Bowling:·An opening spell by Dirk Nannes and Zaheer Khan is bound to put the pressure on the batting team very early in the innings. The speciality of the·both of them is·that they are economical as well as likely wicket-takers. Zaheer can get the ball to reverse at the death and Nannes has the ability to dry up runs in the end as well. Zaheer is in terrific form, having finished as the leading wicket-taker in the World Cup with 21 scalps. Vettori will be heading their spin attack, but he comes in not having had the best of tournaments with both bat and ball. For a player of his calibre, however,·a slump in form is only the lull before a storm.

Depending on the pitch, the fourth bowler could be either Karnataka leg-spinning all-rounder Ryan Ninan, or medium pacer BN Bharath. Dilshan’s recent performance with the ball will definitely ensure he is given at least a couple of overs every match, and Kohli is a fairly decent part-time medium pace/leg-break bowler. Selectors will have to take a call on whether to go with the fifth bowler, in case any one of the above options fails, or a seventh batsman, which may be unnecessary given the lineup.

While the bowling balance can be worked out a few matches into the tournament, the opener against Kochi Tuskers Kerala away on their homeground will see·a preference for spinners and part-timers as the Kochi ground is famous for rendering part-timers such as Hansie Cronje and Rahul Dravid (9-0-43-2) lead wicket-takers. The highest wicket-taker on the ground is Sachin Tendulkar, with 10 wickets obtained through loopy leg-breaks and drifting medium-pace deliveries! So the opener is likely to see Ninan play, and Kohli as a part time medium-pace option.

Squad:·Daniel Vettori (capt), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Mohammad Kaif, Saurabh Tiwary, Mayank Aggarwal, Arun Karthik, Muralidharen Gautam, Luke Pomersbach, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rilee Roussouw, Jonathan Vandiar, Zaheer Khan, Dirk Nannes, Charl Langeveldt, Abhimanyu Mithun, Sreenath Aravind, BN Bharath, Raju Bhatkal, Nuwan Pradeep, Johan van der Wath, Abrar Kazi, Ryan Ninan.

Batsmen: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Mohammad Kaif, Saurabh Tiwary, Mayank Aggarwal, Arun Karthik, Muralidharen Gautam, Luke Pomersbach, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rilee Roussow, Jonathan Vandiar.

Bowlers: Zaheer Khan, Dirk Nannes, Charl Langeveldt, Abhimanyu Mithun, Sreenath Aravind, BN Bharath, Raju Bhatkal, Nuwan Pradeep, Johan van der Wath, Abrar Kazi

All Rounders: Daniel Vettori(capt), Ryan Ninan.

Likely Playing XI:·Arun Karthik, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Saurabh Tiwary, Cheteshwar Pujara, Muralidharen Gautam (wk), Daniel Vettori (capt), Ryan Ninan, Zaheer Khan, Dirk Nannes.

Support Staff: Chief Coach: Ray Jennings, Mentor: Anil Kumble, Manager: Avinash Vaidya, Physiotherapist: Evan Speechly, Conditioning Coach: Basu S.

Players to watch:

Virat Kohli:·After a·terrific World Cup for the national side, Kohli’s transformation from being a rookie to vital middle-order batsmen has been meteoric and one to be taken notice of. This IPL could be a chance for him to stamp·his authority on the franchisee league -·something RCB would be hoping for.

AB de Villiers:·He would be the all-rounder of the team, lending it the balance, donning the gloves when required or throw himself around in the outfield, pulling off stunners. A butcher with an incisive blade, used to kill the opposition without compromise on pure shot-making, the 'De Villiers effect' would be vital to the RCB cause.

Schedule:

Royal Challengers Bangalore start their campaign against the new entrants Kerala away from home on Apr 9. Their first home game is three days after that against the mighty Mumbai Indians. A visit to Hyderabad and Chennai follows, with Royal Rajasthan at home. These first five games would set the tone for RCB in the tournament and would give a fair idea of the kind of season they would be having.

Kolkata calls on them next on April 22 with a show-down in Delhi straight after. Their third home game would be on the 29^th against the Warriors from Pune. It’s followed by two more home games against Punjab and Kochi.

An away game to Rajasthan is followed by the visit to scenic Dharamshala. Finally they round off their group fixtures with a home game against the champions Chennai.

A look into the schedule and travelling plans of RCB suggests that their campaign isn’t as hectic as some of the others' might be, but the history of RCB suggests that they are a team of momentum and need to take-off early to be a force of reckoning. Else that aircraft of theirs might find some turbulence.

Home Fixtures: At the M. Chinaswamy stadium, Bengaluru
Tue, Apr 12 vs Mumbai Indians, 8pm
Tue, Apr 19 vs Rajasthan Royals, 8pm
Fri, Apr 29 vs Pune Warriors, 8pm
Fri, May 6 vs Kings XI Punjab, 8pm
Sun, May 8 vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala, 4pm
Sat, May 14 vs Kolkata Knight Riders, 4pm
Sun, May 22 vs Chennai Super Kings, 4pm

Away fixtures:
Sat, Apr 9 vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala (Nehru Stadium), 8pm
Thu, Apr 14 vs Deccan Chargers (Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium), 8pm
Sat, Apr 16 vs Chennai Super Kings (Chepauk), 4pm
Fri, Apr 22 vs Kolkata Knight Riders (Eden Gardens), 4pm
Tue, Apr 26 vs Delhi Daredevils (Feroz Shah Kotla), 8pm
Wed, May 11 vs Rajasthan Royals (Sawai Mansingh Stadium), 8pm
Tue, May 17 vs Kings XI Punjab, (HPCA), 8pm

File Photograph Copyright: Michael Henn

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