IPL 2023: 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order. The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have yet to achieve their dream of winning the elusive IPL trophy, even after another season has passed.
In their last league match against the Gujarat Titans (GT), the dream ended for the team due to a brilliant century by Shubman Gill. Although they remained in contention for the playoffs until their last league match, they faltered significantly.
IPL 2023: 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs
The management’s use of certain strategies and tactics throughout the season raised concerns among not only cricket pundits but also their fans.
Throughout this season, RCB faced a recurring issue with their middle order. As per the 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, Historically, RCB has relied heavily on a handful of star batters to carry the team, resulting in a top-heavy lineup.
The focus of this article is on 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order and hindered their progress, ultimately preventing them from qualifying for the playoffs.
RCB’s Middle Order: The Reason Behind Their Failure to Qualify in 5 IPL Seasons
5) 2017
As per 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, RCB’s heavy reliance on the top three batsmen, Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, and AB de Villiers, resulted in an excessive dependency on them to score the majority of the runs.
Due to the re-laid Chinnaswamy pitch that season, which heavily favoured spinners, the trio faced difficulty in adjusting as they were used to the previous pitch’s pace and bounce, where the ball came nicely onto the bat.
Due to the injury of their designated No. 4 KL Rahul, RCB had a weak middle order consisting of Kedar Jadhav, Pawan Negi, Stuart Binny, and Mandeep Singh, who failed to perform. Their combined average was 20.00, with a strike rate of just 114.71 throughout the season.
4) 2014
One of the 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, When RCB acquired Yuvraj Singh for a significant amount in the mega auction, it appeared that their persistent middle-order issues would be resolved. However, the team chose to use Yuvraj in the lower middle order, which resulted in his all-round abilities not being fully utilised.
RCB disrupted the entry point of their power hitters by pushing every batsman out of their positions by one or two slots to make room for a rookie Sachin Rana.
Their middle-order batting had a hard time getting started, scoring at a strike rate of only 129 and averaging 22.76 that season. As a result, they were only able to win five matches.
3) 2008
During a particular season, RCB faced significant criticism for putting together a team of players whose primary skills were not suited for T20 games. In 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, Although the team was filled with well-known players at the time, the team’s structure and the roles assigned to specific players failed to impress anyone.
When we examine their middle order, we can see that it comprises renowned players such as Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Jacques Kallis, Virat Kohli, Rahul Dravid, and Mark Boucher.
However, with an average of 17.59 and a strike rate of 126.85, the selection did not seem to be justified, and as a result, they struggled significantly in the league, ultimately finishing seventh on the table.
2) 2012
In 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, When Daniel Vettori and Vinay Kumar are consistently batting at No. 7 in almost every match, it is reasonable to assume that the team’s strategies are in a poor state and their middle-order is struggling significantly.
“Your best batsman should face the maximum number of balls in a T20,” the cliche saying goes, and RCB took it more seriously than others.
The team lacked role clarity as more than two batsmen frequently played out of their designated positions.
Mayank Agarwal was played at 6 and AB de Villiers was pushed to 5, but this strategy did not work well, except for a few matches where individual brilliance helped them win. Their middle order had an average of only 28.68 and a strike rate of 129.07 that season.
1) 2023
According to 5 Seasons When RCB Failed to Qualify for Playoffs Due to Their Middle Order, If three batsmen from a team are among the top 10 run-getters of a tournament, it indicates that the team has performed well with contributions from multiple players. However, if those three batsmen mostly bat in the top 3 or top 4 and score more than 75% of the team’s runs in the tournament, it raises concerns about the team’s middle order.
In IPL 2023, RCB experimented with various domestic players in their middle order, but unfortunately, none of them were able to impress with their performances.
The fact that only one half-century was scored by a player other than the top three batsmen – Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli, and Glenn Maxwell – suggests that the middle order did not perform well in the tournament.
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