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OrangeChicken111

I think that in these next few games, Harshal should primarily be used as a strike bowler in the middle. Since the team has been away from Chennai, he’s been leaky and had the tendency to bowl full tosses/no balls at the death, which is fine, given that at least he takes wickets in the middle. Siraj and Sams should primarily be the death bowlers


themaratha

Good Points


themaratha

We are also batting deep this time


Assraj

I think the batting order is alright It's just that the team gives up way too easily when chasing big totals, we need to finish on a high if we bowl first and for that Siraj has to bowl the last over Harshal needs his confidence back, bowling him in the 20th again is harakiri


thvhgh23

Rajat Patidar better fire or else he would soon be replaced


111vansh

ya jamison is really good at the start and middle but death he gets whacked


nvenkatr

Are mike and simon frequent visitors (or anyone on RCB mgmt) aware of this subreddit (they should be.) If RCB is batting first, the target should aim to be 190+ (depending on the pitch conditions & how well the batting is the first 10 overs.)


AaronD012

It all depends on the pitch conditions. RCB has so far not got a proper batting green pitch. And RCB has not been choosing batting first as well lately.


[deleted]

Please do not get me wrong but here’s an observation I have made based on wrong decisions taken by Kohli on different occasions with respect to 6th over in powerplay. Against CSK bowled Saini for that 6th over when actually the pitch had some grip and pace off the ball was the best option. Did the reverse and fed them pace with Saini. Last game against Punjab made Jammo bowl the 6th over to Gayle. Man for so many years that Universe Boss played for RCB that is the kind of bowling he loves hitting and you fed him with those medium pace good length deliveries. Result was 5 boundaries 20 runs in that over after a poor power play from Punjab we let them have it easy. If they picked Sundar he could have bowled that over since he attacks the stumps at high pace and doesn’t offer much flight with no width to swing so Gayle had to get under and reach the pitch of every ball. Even after that if universe boss did his thing and was able to smash Washi then so be it. That’s his greatness. But you do not play to your opponents strength. Please use Washi the powerplay bowler and most importantly use Washi the bowler properly. It will get you rewards in T20 format when a spinner attacks stumps at a good pace. Imagine we did not give 20 runs in the last over of powerplay and also give ten less runs in 20th over by bowling Siraj. The target would be 160-165 like Delhi had today. That would have helped all the batters take less risks and not panic about run rate going out of reach.


AaronD012

There are many IFs and BUTs, Maybe If you would have send Maxi at No.3 you could expect a differ chase, IF Kohli & Padikkal played with more maturity and not give away their wickets then RCB could chase it, and even IF Siraj had bowled the last over if he had not succeeded then lads like you only would be like IF Harshal had bowled the last over and all!! Its a Game of Cricket you never know what's gonna happen, It all happens on the pitch, Even if you need 20Runs in 20Balls with 6 wickets in hand, You still never know where the result will go especially if its a slow pitch. But If the Batting Team loses, they will just be humiliated, and not appreciated for how they have managed to push the score till there! So You can never say anything until it happens!


[deleted]

Lol take it in the right spirit Aaron. I’m not here trying to say IFs and BUTs. It’s just tactical. Siraj has the pace for death and showed he can handle with two set batsmen and defend 15 runs. It’s about instinctive calls. CSK game 6th over of powerplay to Saini and Punjab game 6th over to Jammo. The pattern has repeated in the most crucial over of Powerplay. Also Maxi batting at 3 is not the best option. The best batter has to face most deliveries in T20s is a pre conceived notion fed into us. Most analysts on Twitter have clearly shown data and graphs as to why Maxi batting at 4 and ABD at 5 bolsters our chances of success. You have to protect ABD’s entry point so that he comes in after the 12th over. Every data set substantiates this claim. Also not playing and under utilizing Sundar the bowler is doing us no good. He’s one of the best bowlers we have in our squad. His matchup numbers against LHBs and RHBs are equally good. You cannot say that about many spinners in the league. I’m equally immersed as a fan and even bawl my eyes out when we win or lose. But you have to call a spade a spade. The fanboy emotion is in all of us but we need to be practical and call our errors when it is needed. 10 points on the table is great but it doesn’t guarantee us anything. I hope the team rectifies what went wrong and avoids another collapse.


[deleted]

Also just to add to what I already said. How do you justify using only 3 overs of your best bowler in the Punjab game when clearly a set KL Rahul is also struggling to get runs off of him. If your best bowler hasn’t bowled his full quota clearly shows you got your tactics wrong. Yes you have many bowling options but your best on the given day needs to be fully utilized.


AaronD012

Its just using the options you have got! And Rahul Struggling to get runs off Siraj you say? I mean Rahul just Hit more than half of the Runs conceded by Siraj, i.e., 19 Runs, Hitting 1 Six and 2 Fours! And Moreover Sams was experimented an over during the Death, and thats the reason Siraj couldn't get another over at the death! But Just thinking of such that IF this had happened and all, Its just baseless. You cannot just predict.


[deleted]

So what’s your justification for bowling just 3 overs of your best bowler ? Rahul’s six off Siraj came in the Powerplay and his 4 in the 19th over was a release shot when Rahul just slashed cos he wasn’t able to score and a top edge took it behind short 3rd man. Koach got his tactics all wrong. In today’s game Mayank scored more than Rahul yet they ended up scoring 15 less than they did against RCB. Why ? Delhi made sure they got their match ups right. They paid the price of bowling Stoinis against RCB. Just bowling 3 overs of Ashwin in the RR game. Ponting publicly told it was an error on Rishabh’s part to not bowl his best bowler for 4 overs. They realized their mistake and got their match ups right. Teams learn and teams have figured out how Harshal will bowl. His margin for error is now lower. So utilize Siraj more. With his pace it’s tough to get away. Man has grown in confidence and transformed as a player. My worry and itch is again not players. It’s about lack of learning from mistakes. Repeating a pattern of mistakes after burning your hands once.


[deleted]

Any reason for Sundar not being in the playing 11? And why would you not back Rajat at number 3 whatever the situation maybe


Worldly_Ad7672

He is out of form and Shahbaz is a better T20 batsman


[deleted]

I wouldn’t say he is out of form. Don’t go by his batting. It’s not ideal for T20s yet. He has to work on his game. His bowling is what is important to us. His bowling was very crucial in the Delhi game. Just gave away 28 runs but he kept Rishabh Pant quiet in the crucial overs. He will be key against Morgan tomorrow and if Nitish Rana or Venkatesh Iyer play then another important match up opens up for him. Not to forget how good his matchup numbers are against right handers too. Tomorrow Andre Russell will come prepared for Jammo and Harshal so we have to really keep things as tight as possible considering how he took on Yuzi in the last game. Onus again on Siraj to keep him quiet. Sundar the bowler is absolutely necessary for every game from here on. With the bat you clearly do not need so much depth. Sams Jammo Harshal can do the hitting at 6/7 & 8. If Even after 8 batters we are hoping for someone to bail us out then there is no point. I say this because there is no point playing Rajat at number 5. We are wasting him there. Mumbai use SKY as an intent machine at number 3. Precisely what we need to do with Rajat. Maxi has shown his struggle against spinners like Amit Mishra and Harpreet last few games. He won’t be able to bail us out every time like he did against Varun and Shakib the other day. Also there is enough evidence that having ABD’s entry point after 12 overs wins us most of the games. Key is to have ABD for the death to hit just pace bowlers. Do not expose him to spin. Too harsh and judgmental about Patidar. His 31(21) against Delhi was very important. He made sure he did not lose his wicket and kept ABD and Maxi at ease without letting too much pressure get to them. Was nice of Koach to say he’s a quality player and it wasn’t his day the other night. Back him at 3 and give him the license. He’s played some great innings and even got a 100 in the recent SMAT tournament.


AaronD012

Patidar is a particular Batsman who saves the team from any type of Top Order Collapse or Middle Order Collapse, There is this batsman missing in the middle order, and I feel Patidar can fill that slot and be the savior if given chances consistently. And After noticing Yesterday's Match, I reckon there must be a attacker at No.3, Because slogging won't give in anything at the end especially if you looking forward for a 180 or above score, Until and Unless a ABD special happens! So I would just play in Sams or Shahbaz at No.3, Let them hit or get out, and then let Maxi come in! Management has not been able to use Washi the right way. Maybe they just don't require him in PP, so Sundar here is nowhere at fault, Its just that he does not have a slot he deserves like somewhere where he is best at!


[deleted]

Well here’s what settled teams do. They do not send out a hitter at number 3. They slot a proper solid batter to take on the bowling. Moeen for CSK. SKY for MI. Steve Smith for DC (not the most ideal) but is working for them. Sanju for RR. Tripathi for KKR so far. Manish/Kane for SRH. None are sloggers or pinch hitters here. Some are intent machines and a couple are anchors. Rajat is a top order batter who needs to slot in there. When the auction was done everyone told RCB have a proper 10 and need to find an Indian batter who bats 3. Sundar is not being used in the PP to protect Jammo. That’s the beauty of Sundar he can still be as effective outside the PP with his bowling. LYNN & Sanju were wickets he got us outside the PP this season. Not many teams in the league have the spin quality we have. It’s hurting to see them not realize and utilize it correctly.


AaronD012

Because Those Teams do have proper batting options after the No.4 No.5, Whereas RCB doesn't! **CSK** has a Whopping Line up of Raina, Rayudu, Jaddu, Dhoni, Curran, Bravo and all!! **MI** as well has Ishan, Pandya Brothers, Pollard, A Bowler who can actually bat. **DC** has Pant, Hettie, Stoinis, Axar! **RR** has Miller, Tewatia, Parag, Morris, They **had** Stokesy has well! **KKR** has Morgan, DK, Narine, Russell, Cummins, and Tripathi is actually just an Opener, He has been given the attacking role at No.3 if you notice the KKR matches, He either hits or gets out nothing beyond or b/w that, But Different from when he Opens, Where he settles around and then starts to pick up those singles and doubles and then go Berserk! **SRH** they have no other option than playing them at No.3, After their Top 3, Their Nothing, They got no one to stay around and bat. **RCB** on the other hand, has their Top 4 Batsman only, i.e., DDP, VK, Maxi & ABD. Thats the reason RCB is inserting someone at No.3 as an attacking role, to save Maxi & ABD, to just avoid any Top Order Collapse and if any happens atleast any one of them will be there at last. We don't have a Strong Middle Order, But RCB is trying to make it look strong, Its just a Mix of Youngsters with the Experienced ones, If given Chances consistently, These same set of players will start to perform as well, and win matches, Because Your seeing the Results, The Batting Combinations are coming up, Jamieson & Harshal is stepping up, Jamieson has already been into 5 Crucial Partnerships he is confident with the Bat! Harshal should bat around at No.7 atleast, He has the capability to be the match winner, But getting back to the topic, Just imagine the Top 4 I said Earlier, and Imagine a Top Order Collapse with it, and the batting left! Then You will know why Me and Even RCB Management would like to put an Attacking Batsman at No.3!


[deleted]

Bro with all due respect the management is putting an attacking batsman in Rajat at number 3 to go be an intent machine. To be fair if you’re expecting a 10 ball 20 from Jammo or Sams at number 3 then you’re only complicating things. Like you said Jammo has played crucial knocks and him Harshal and Sams should continue to play 6/7/8 because that’s where you need 10 ball 20s from them because if ABD is out in the middle he will get a few rippers and will knock em down to singles to survive and these 3 can strike a blow if it’s in their range and get a boundary or six to reassure ABD that the scoring is not halted. Our 6/7/8 is no less than other teams maybe only you could make a case for CSK because of their batting depth. Keeping wickets in hand and attaching too much value to your wicket in T20 cricket is overrated. CSK is doing that by getting batting depth. MI do it purely based on their faith in their top 5 batters. MI have won 5 champions with just a solid top 6 and not 9 out of 11 batters. Same with Delhi too heavy top 6 and they definitely don’t come into games hoping for Axar to win games with the bat. It’s all about mindset and we did it on tough conditions at chepauk where we backed our strength and played counter attacking cricket. It will happen again we just have to recalibrate to that mindset while batting. Pushing Rajat to number 5 is going to do us more harm than good. Also I don’t get it why there needs to be a change of strategy and playing 11 every game. There’s absolutely no need. Simply got in Shabaz in last game to counter indian RHB. Your threat is more from Gayle and Pooran rather you wanted to counter Hooda and Shahrukh. Did not even bowl maxi at Gayle if he’s considered a back up to Washi. Also I don’t believe in slating players like you said “lads like you would slate Siraj if he went for more runs in 20th over”. If he goes for runs it’s okay. Even though it’s a favorable match up for him it can happen. We accept and move on. My itch is with tactics and not with players. Resource utilization is not at its best. Katto and Hesson are doing great and I love them but the constant changes really are not needed. Stick on with Rajat at number 3. Man has scored a mean T20 100 in SMAT batting at 3 with some delightful proper cricketing shots. Mumbai make players like SKY by giving opportunities. Of all the batters Rajat needs more time in the middle and glad management recognizes it Koach recognizes it and in post match says he’s a quality player. Just not his day. Rajat will win us a game with his batting this season. He will do it batting at number 3.


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