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It was a heartbreaking end to RCB’s miraculous run in the IPL 2024 season. The team that seemed dead and buried at one point in the season after 8 games came back to secure a spot in the IPL 2024 playoffs with a thrilling win over CSK in their final league game in Bengaluru to set up an Eliminator game against RR.
The odds were certainly in favour of RCB as RR were seemingly out of form, and they didn’t have Jos Buttler, who had given the Bengaluru franchise some sleepless nights in the past. But the Royals were better than RCB with the ball on the day and edged past them with the bat to secure a 4-wicket win to set up a clash with SRH in Qualifier 2. While defeat is never something sweet, RCB fans would have been proud of their accomplishments this season.
IPL 2024 Eliminator, RR vs RCB: Highlights | Scorecard
But can the team and the management be really happy with the performance in IPL 2024? Was this run really magical in the end? Let’s have a look at some of the reasons why RCB would rue this season in the end.
The failure in auction
The tone for a season is always set in the auction. KKR went all out to get Mitchell Starc, who finally repaid the faith they put in him during Qualifier 1. Pat Cummins, someone RCB went all out for, has been leading SRH from the front this season and has given them a new identity of being entertainers in T20 cricket.
IPL 2024 Full Coverage | IPL 2024 Points Table and Standings | 2024 IPL Full Schedule
When it came to RCB, the route they took was surprising. The big-money signing, Alzarri Joseph, ended up playing just 3 games for just 1 wicket while conceding 115 runs. The West Indies vice-captain wasn’t backed after that and didn’t play at all.
It was surprising that RCB didn’t go for a top spinner in the auction. It also cost them dearly as it was a department that sent them on a downward spiral in the first place. This would be something that RCB cannot afford to have next time around.
Big Show, Big Flop
The wicket of Glenn Maxwell against RR summed up his season. The Aussie all-rounder got out for a duck and scored 52 runs in 10 matches at an average of 5.78. He was supposed to be a trusted spinner this season, given they didn’t have a big name in the department.
He got 6 wickets in 10 matches with an impressive average and economy rate, but more was expected from him. It remains to be seen if he will be one of the names that will be on the chopping block ahead of the mega auction, as his place seems to be taken by Will Jacks and Cameron Green.
Team combinations and constant changes
When you look at the most successful team this season, KKR, you can see why they made it to the final. The chopping and changing from the side was minimal as they had their combinations sorted. When Nitish Rana went out, they brought in Angkrish Raghuvanshi. An in-form Phil Salt had a Rahmanullah Gurbaz waiting in the wings to replace him. When it came to RCB, changes were constantly made.
Mayank Dagar started off as the main spinner and then, despite his good form, was shown the door. Vijaykumar Vyshak was their best bowler in a KKR hammering, but they decided to drop him the next game. They had two experienced spinners in Karn Sharma and Swapnil Singh in their mix, but they failed to back them.
Green, someone who has been destructive in T20 cricket, coming at No.3, was constantly floated around and came in at No.5 at times. This would hurt RCB when you look at it from the big picture.
The constant dependence on Kohli
For more than 10 years, Virat Kohli has been the captain of the RCB ship. Through tricky waves, he was the one guiding the ship to shore with his batting. This season, the same trend continued as Kohli scored 741 runs and the next best batter for RCB was Du Plessis with 438.
Rajat Patidar found form in the end, but he was out of sorts at the start. The bowlers constantly failed to defend targets as only 3 of them got 10 or more wickets. Something that the team management would really need to think heading into next season.
So, RCB can head into the close season being happy about what they were able to do, but if they do a proper review, they would be left distraught thinking of those mistakes in the auction and the team selections being all over the place at the beginning.
To be a champion side, just one star stepping up isn’t enough and there needs to be collective effort.
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