CHENNAI: Among the IPL teams that have served as most fodder for online memes, Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore are the runaway winners. The Men in Yellow won’t be bothered by that, considering that most of those moments have culminated in wins. But Virat Kohli’s men will be. Ever since this year’s auctions, their tactics have been a source for public consternation; a trend that has continued throughout their dismal run this season. Even their last match against Mumbai Indians invited the ire of their fans, after bowling coach Ashish Nehra’s prompt to hand Pawan Negi the ball instead of Navdeep Saini in a crucial over, with a set Hardik Pandya on strike. As expected, that move backfired.
But, breaking their rut — they’re last with seven losses in eight matches — and having a shot at the playoffs is still a mathematical possibility for the Chinnaswamy men. Six wins on the trot have been achieved in IPL history on six occasions.
Bangalore can very well draw inspiration from their opponents on Friday — Kolkata Knight Riders, at Eden Gardens — who strung together 10 victories on the trot, the best streak the tournament has seen.
Kohli himself engineered a comeback for this team three years ago, when he was scoring centuries for fun, reeling off five wins single-handedly to take them to the final.
All said, Bangalore do have one big hurdle to overcome in order to still keep themselves in the hunt: team combination. They’ve had problems in all departments. But, even with potential remedies resting on their bench, the visiting team haven’t really opted for them.
Though Moeen Ali hasn’t really set the stage on fire, Bangalore are yet to go for a similar — if not better bowling choice, T20-wise — in Washington Sundar; a move that will free up another foreign slot for accommodating either both Marcus Stoinis and Colin de Grandhomme, or one of the two with new reinforcement Dale Steyn. An extension of that shift will also beef up their pace-bowling options, a constant bother this season.
Even Steyn’s inclusion doesn’t really inspire confidence, considering the South African’s injury-riddled past. But he is optimistic of fitting into their scheme of things. “He (coach Gary Kirsten) asked me have I been playing and bowling. I said yes. I was actually prepping to play our local T20 tournament. It can sometimes be difficult coming halfway through the IPL, and with the World Cup coming up. But we got through it, and here I am.”
