Last Updated on 9 months ago by Charbel Coorey
Cricket News: 4 players RCB should retain for IPL 2022 | Which players should RCB look to retain for the IPL 2022 season?
The perennial underachievers of the Indian Premier League, Royal Challengers Bangalore, will look to build a strong and balanced squad in the upcoming Mega Auction before IPL 2022.
RCB had a pretty balanced squad in IPL 2021 but they lost to KKR in the Eliminator. The likes of Glenn Maxwell and Harshal Patel stepped up to the plate and led the way for RCB in IPL 2021. But like all teams, RCB too can retain a maximum of four players for IPL 2022 before going into the auction.
The RCB management will have to look at various aspects as Virat Kohli has already announced that he’ll step down as captain. Also, the great AB de Villiers has recently retired from all forms cricket so he will be a major absence as well. So, which four players RCB should retain for IPL 2022?
Players RCB could aim to retain for IPL 2022:
1. Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli has been at RCB from the start of the Indian Premier League. He is the face of RCB and there’s no doubt that he will be the first player RCB will retain for IPL 2022.
Kohli is the highest run-scorer in IPL history with 6,283 runs in 207 matches at an average of 37.39. Virat is one of the best batters in all the three formats. He scored 405 runs in 15 games at an average of 28.92 and striking at 119.46 in IPL 2021. He clearly wasn’t at his best but he is a champion player and shouldn’t be underestimated at all. Virat now can play freely as the workload of captaincy is off his shoulders.
2. Glenn Maxwell
Glenn Maxwell, after struggling for a few years, finally performed up to expectations in IPL 2021. He scored 513 in 14 innings at an average of 42.75 and strike rate of 144.10.
Maxwell was the backbone of RCB’s batting unit and scored runs very consistently particularly in the middle overs – an area of concern for RCB in previous years. RCB used him really well by assigning him the role of number four and allowing him to play his natural game. He is one of the most aggressive batters in the shortest format and RCB should retain him for IPL 2022 especially with AB now retired.
3. Harshal Patel
Harshal Patel had a phenomenal campaign in IPL 2021 with the ball. He was the highest wicket-taker with 32 wickets in 15 games – a record for an Indian in a single IPL season. His economy rate was 8.14 with a strike rate of 10.5, which are terrific numbers considering he regularly bowled at the death.
He was exceptional in this period with his dipping slower deliveries and yorkers. Harshal picked wickets whenever the captain needed him to. He recently made his debut for India in T20is and continued his good form. Plus, Harshal is more than handy with the bat as well.
Death bowling has been an issue for RCB for quite some time now and Harshal seems to have fixed that issue for them. His economy in overs 16-20 in IPL 2021 was just 8.73 in 31.1 overs. His strike-rate was just 7.5 during that phase. Harshal with his outstanding performance has secured his place in RCB for at least one more season as RCB should retain him before going into the Mega Auction.
4. Mohammed Siraj
It will be a really tough call to pick between Mohammad Siraj and Yuzvendra Chahal. Chahal has been one of the best players for RCB in the last few years, but Siraj has improved a lot in recent seasons.
Chahal picked 18 wickets in IPL 2021 while Siraj was brilliant in IPL 2021 leading the bowling attack with plenty of intensity. He bowled well with the new ball and in the death overs as well, with his economy rate the key feature. He picked four wickets in the first six overs in 15 matches of IPL 2021 at an economy of 6.44 while he took six wickets in the death overs at an economy of just 7.53.
Siraj alongside Harshal Patel can be a very lethal combination in the death overs, in addition to Siraj’s ability in the powerplay. He picked 11 wickets at an economy of just 6.78 after 15 matches in IPL 2021. Siraj and Chahal for RCB’s 4th retention could divide opinion, but RCB should retain Siraj as a good Indian fast bowler is very valuable in the IPL.
These were our four players that RCB should retain for IPL 2021. Virat, Maxwell, Harshal, and Siraj is a very solid core of players. Harshal and Siraj will be an excellent pace bowling duo for RCB in the future, allowing them to use an overseas slot for an all-rounder or good batter.
Thanks for reading.
Written by Robin Rounder. Follow Robin on Twitter today.
