IPL 2022: Royal Challengers Bangalore Predicted Playing XI For The First Match Of The Tournament

For the last two consecutive seasons, Royal Challengers Bangalore have managed to reach the playoffs in IPL. However, they would be disappointed to not have reached the final on either occasion. Ahead of a new season, AB de Villiers won’t be available for them. And, the onus for scoring the bulk of the runs will be on the likes of Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell.

Royal Challengers Bangalore have also managed to buy the services of Faf du Plessis and Dinesh Karthik, both of whom will further strengthen the batting unit. RCB also spent heavily to bring the likes of Harshal Patel and Wanindu Hasaranga back into the team.

In the bowling department, some of the prominent buys include Josh Hazlewood, Jason Behrendorff, David Willey to name a few. All in all, RCB have managed to compile a pretty solid squad on paper. In this article, let’s take a look at our predicted playing XI of Royal Challengers Bangalore:

IPL 2022: Royal Challengers Bangalore Predicted Playing XI For The First Match Of The Tournament

Openers: Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis

In the absence of Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli should open the innings for RCB this season. His form depends a lot on the team’s fortune in the tournament. If Virat Kohli gets his prime touch back, RCB would be confident of reaching the finals.

He will have a new opening partner in Faf du Plessis. The South African captain was brilliant for CSK in the last two editions and RCB would be hoping that he could carry on his good form ahead of a new season.

Middle-Order: Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, and Dinesh Karthik

Ab de Villiers is not in the team and Virat Kohli isn’t in the best of form. Therefore, the team will be banking heavily on Glenn Maxwell to score runs consistently.

To strengthen the middle-order, they have invested in the likes of Mahipal Lomror and Dinesh Karthik. Both can score runs at a good rate and give the team those finishing touches in the slog overs. It will be interesting to see how well the duo fares with the bat in the upcoming edition.

All-rounders: Wanindu Hasaranga, Shahbaz Ahmed, and Harshal Patel

Royal Challengers Bangalore broke their bank to acquire the services of Harshal Patel and Wanindu Hasaranga. Both are useful assets for the side. Both provide different skill-sets and both are likely to be part of the playing XI from the very first game. Hasaranga needs no introduction in world cricket.

He has been exhibiting sensational performances consistently for the last couple of years. He will be a player to watch out for in the upcoming edition of the tournament. Harshal Patel picked the most wickets in the last edition and the franchise would be expecting him to create a similar impact in the upcoming season as well.

Bowlers: Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj, and Karn Sharma

Royal Challengers Bangalore have a powerful bowling attack this year. Their fast bowling attack includes the likes of Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj, and Harshal Patel. Hazlewood and Siraj are likely to share the new ball for RCB. As for spin, Karn Sharma is likely to share the spin bowling duties with Shahbaz Nadeem.