RCB might break Virat Kohli-Faf du Plessis' opening pair, believe ex-India players

Former India National Cricket Team players Aakash Chopra and Saba Karim have discussed the possibility of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) breaking the opening pair of Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.

Kohli has been opening the innings for the RCB with Faf du Plessis in the recent past and the duo have been exceptional together. While Faf du Plessis is all but confirmed to continue as an opener for the franchise in IPL 2024, there is a possibility of Kohli moving one spot down to No.3, where he has been highly successful as well.

Virat Kohli recently made his comeback to India’s T20I setup for the Afghanistan series after being out of the action in the format since the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 loss against England National Cricket Team. The return of Kohli for Afghanistan T20Is was a clear message given by the selection committee that the veteran batsman will also feature in the playing XI at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, which will be held in the USA and West Indies.

Kohli is expected to bat at the No.3 position for the team considering Rohit Sharma will open with the man-in-red-hot-form Yashasvi Jaiswal in the marquee tournament. Keeping this in mind, Aakash Chopra has floated around the idea of Kohli also playing the same No.3 role for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 before the marquee tournament.

Cameron Green can open the batting, right? What if Virat Kohli decides to… – Aakash Chopra

During a recent interaction on Sports18, Aakash Chopra discussed the possibility of Faf du Plessis opening the innings with Cameron Green and Kohli moving down to the No.3 spot.

“I feel that Virat Kohli will play at No. 3 in the World Cup. Can he open for RCB as well in IPL 2024? Cameron Green can open the batting, right? What if Virat Kohli decides to do the job that he would do for the national team in the World Cup – bat at No. 3? Is there a possibility?” Aakash Chopra asked during the Dharamsala Test while speaking to Sports 18.

Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Saba Karim shared his take on this matter, saying that Cameron Green is certainly an option to partner Du Plessis, who was going through a lean patch in SA20 2024.

“RCB have to think about their strategy. If you look at Faf du Plessis’s numbers in SA20 this year, it’s not that great. It can become an issue there.

“So, keeping all these in mind, I think RCB need their domestic players to step up. They can’t just trust their KGF to do it. So if Virat Kohli bats at No. 3, Cameron Green can go to open the batting. There are chances of promoting domestic talents also up the order. RCB have to work on these things,” Saba Karim said.

Talking about Virat Kohli’s numbers, he has scored 3611 runs in 98 matches as an opener in IPL at an average of 43.51 and a strike rate of 135.45, while 2815 runs have come off his bat at No.3 at an average of 35.19 and a strike rate of 123.79.