The Royal Challengers of Bengaluru- The RCB Its About TIME !! #IPL
15 MAY 2015- RCB v SRH -Must win game for RCB to stay in the title race. RCB had a very bad record at Hyderabad and one can never forget the most heartbreaking loss to Deccan Chargers in the year 2012 which eventually led to missing out on finishing in top 4 and CSK (Dhoni's LUCK) qualified. Something similiar was happening in 2015 match too. Rain Curtailed match and Warner and ex-RCB Player Moises Henriques ripping apart the RCB Bowling. As a Frustrated (Loyal too) fan I had tweeted saying RCB will surely lose and were making fun of themselves by dropping simple catches. Guess the tweet hit the raw nerves of some RCB fans and SID Mallya replied saying I shouldnt call myself a FAN of the team. Angrily more so frustrated I replied "Yes, I am not the fan of this team anymore". Deep inside myself was still praying for RCB victory and wanted them to win and proceed to the Play Offs. Being a Team Owner Sid Mallya might have been right in saying that to me but as a FAN from the beginning of IPL it was difficult to keep getting disappointed by the team's loss in crucial matches. Recently having watched SRK's Fan I can relate and say to the owners or players ' FAN hoon, Tu Nahi Samjhega" ! When the target was curtailed to 81 in 6 overs and Gayle started the way only he can and when Kohli hit the last six (Warner's Lagaan Moment) I jumped in joy with my cousins and just screamed with Joy!! RCB qualified into the playoffs, defeated RR in eliminator but lost to CSK in SemiFinals !! But 2015 was year to remember for RCB Fans and we knew 2016 would be something special.
Auctions 2016- RCB picks Watson and Binny and then do a master-stroke in the end by picking Badree. As a Batsman myself I was excited. Excited would be an understatement. I used to boost of with my friends and just say to them Look at our top 4 - Gayle, Kohli, ABD and Watson!! A nightmare for bowlers. We knew this year will be RCB's year to win the IPL. RCB has always been entertaning and this year by being the only team having an home and away jersey makes this team even more lovable.
April 12, 2016- RCB begin their Campaign vs SRH at Chinnaswamy!! I was one among the few lucky ones who witnessed the masterclass of Kohli and ABD Live in the stadium. Sarfaraz is the secret weapon RCB has to unleash this year. 227 in 20 overs and some decent bowling with smart captaincy RCB comfortably thrashed SRH by 45 runs (Deficit reduced thanks to David Warner's breathtaking innings).
April 17, 2016- RCB vs DD. It was a sort of homecoimg for Dravid ! Everyone expected RCB to bat them out of the game and they did that till the 17th over. Once Watson and Kohli were dismissed the runs scoring became very slow. More than the batsman worried at the centre, it was the RCB bowlers who looked more worried when the score to be chased was 191. The first over of DD Batting saw one of the best catches ever in the cricket field taken by two brilliant fielders (Not so Young) Watson and Wiese!! RCB were in the game till Samson was dismissed but lost the plot once De Kock and Karun Nair counter attacked. Bowling came under heavy scrutiny and RCB lost the match.
As a RCB fan we are used to this from past 8 editions of IPL. RCB have always gained momentum only in the latter half of the tournament. This year too their bowling looks average but they are a batting Powerhouse. RCB's X factor will surely be Shane Watson and Badree (Once Fit). However its time that RCB start playing the brand of Cricket they play or they want to play ( #PLAYBOLD). Allan Donald hasnt had a great record as a bowling coach. He was with PWI when Gayle smashed 175 against them. He was the SA coach when England chased down 230 in WT2016 and now he is with RCB and DD has chased down 191 easily. He needs to focus more on the basics with the bowlers. Emphasis on Line and Length is priority as RCB bowlers were all over the place vs DD. Harshal Patel needs to take his bowling and his place in the side very seriously. Kohli has reaped a lot of faith on youngsters like Chahal, Patel and Sarfaraz and they need to repay his faith by performing on the field. Aravind and Binny - Two Karnataka Boys need to step up and consider themselves to be an important part of the team and must look to perform in such a way that they are noticed by Indian Team Selectors. Jadhav as a keeper is average but he needs to bat freely and play calm. KL Rahul can be looked as an alternative keeper. ABD as a keeper with Binny/Mandeep as extra batsman would be great but its highly unlikely that this will happen.
RCB Top 4 - GAYLE , KOHLI, ABD & WATSON- They have huge pressure to perform but they have to for RCB to win 1PL 2016. I might sound foolish but I would like to see Watson opening with Gayle for one match and Kohli at 3 and ABD at 4 . ABD and Kohli are two best finishers we have in the team. However if they get dismissed before the 15th over then the last 5 overs wont yield more than 35 runs if Sarfaraz fails too. For Gayle to come into form it will be better that he doesn't take the strike when he bats and stays at the non striker end even if its for one ball. Gayle is vulnerable when he always faces the first ball of the match. ABD and KOHLI are the two pillars around which Watson and Gayle have to fire. I'm sure atleast one match all 4 will fire and that match will be in the history books of IPL (Will feel Sorry for the opposition that day)
IT's ABOUT TIME- RCB start playing as Favorites and play BOLD. Being a player isnt easy especially when they have loads of expectations around their shoulders. However as a fan , I have always waited for the moment for RCB and Kohli lifting the IPL Trophy and Gayle and ABD doing the Gangnam ( Now - The Champion) dance. Hope 2016 is the year for RCB. KKR has won it twice, MI has won it twice and CSK has won it twice. The only deserving team to have not won IPL is RCB. My support for RCB will last forever and will support them even if they win or lose but without being diplomatic and being a bit selfish, I would love to see RCB win IPL 2016.
#BLEEDRED #PLAYBOLD #RCB4LIFE #AAAARRRCCCBBBBEEEEE
A TRUE FAN
PS: RCB- On Behalf of most of the fans, We want RCB to win most number of matches this IPL as we eagerly want to watch the #YAFTERPOTTY (After Party) organised by our very own Mr.Nags (#RCBInsider). #Peas #WAAR
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