Hyderabad: Former Indian cricketer Mithali Raj believes that Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) batting unit has been performing below par this season and that has been the reason for their poor results so far in the competition.
The ongoing IPL season has turned out to be a nightmare for RCB as they have managed to win only one match out of seven they have played so far and are at the bottom of the points table. Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik have been impressive for the franchise this season amassing runs consistently. Kohli has scored 361 runs with an average of 72.20 while Karthik is providing the team with some stellar finishes by racking up 226 runs at a monstrous strike rate of 205.45.
Reflecting on the RCB's performance in the ongoing season, Mithali Raj, a Star Sports Telugu Expert, has opined that the franchise hasn't clicked as a batting unit yet and they can try opening the innings with Will Jacks and sending Faf du Plessis to bat at No.3.
"In my view, Bengaluru did not click in batting as a whole this time. Virat Kohli is performing brilliantly as an opener. When someone is consistently scoring in one position, it is not correct to leave that position. If Bengaluru wants, they can send Jacks to partner Kohli instead of du Plessis," Mithali told ETV Bharat in an exclusive interaction.
"Because Jacks plays aggressively, he can score more runs in the power play. If du Plessis comes to bat at number 3, he will play according to the conditions in the middle overs with his experience. With the move, the team will have a good balance," added Mithali, who has played a whooping 232 WODIs.
Shivam Dubey has been in good touch this edition and he has scored 242 runs so far in the tournament with a strike rate of 163.51 for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The left-handed batter has been finishing the innings for CSK. Mithali thinks that if he bowls some overs for the franchise, India can have a good all-rounder for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
"The Chennai team has that chance. Dubey also bowls in domestic cricket. But we have not seen much of it in the IPL. In this season, he has been brilliant with the bat but hasn't bowled so far. But if the team gives him a few overs keeping in mind the T-20 World Cup, it seems that Team India has a good all-rounder," added Mithali, who has 7,805 runs.
Mithali also commented on India's campaign in the upcoming T20 World Cup saying that the Indian side will need someone to bowl from the other end along with Jasprit Bumrah.
"(Mohammed) Siraj is unable to find his rhythm. Compared to him, Arshdeep (Singh) is bowling a bit better. But we need to find a good pace bowler as soon as possible to bowl with Bumrah from the other end. Some of the young pacers (like Mayank Yadav) are doing brilliantly this season. It would be good to give such people a chance," she concluded.
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