Head coach Andy Flower on Monday admitted that Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s top-order batters have not fired in a desired manner, and hoped for them to find their rhythm sooner than later.
Except for Virat Kohli, who made two fifties in three matches so far in IPL 2024, others like skipper Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green and Rajat Patidar have not been among runs for RCB.
“Our top five batsmen are yet to fire. There are big scores on offer at Chinnaswamy. So, once our big batsmen start scoring runs, I think we’ll see some of those big scores. I have absolutely no doubt about that,” Flower said in his pre-match press conference ahead of RCB’s match against Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday.
In the last two matches, the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch offered some grip to the bowlers, particularly in the first innings.
Flower also expected to see a track that keeps its character throughout Tuesday’s match.
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“To be honest, I expect the pitch to be a reasonable pitch tomorrow night. We scored 184 here a couple of nights ago and that was chased down in 17 overs. So, there are big scores on offer and particularly the venue being a little smaller. The ball travels here on the field too,” said Flower.
Unlike Chepauk for Chennai Super Kings or Wankhede Stadium for Mumbai Indians, the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium is not precisely a happy hunting ground for Royal Challengers.
Out of the 84 matches it has played here, RCB has won 40 and lost 41 games with three others ending in no results.
Flower was mindful of that stat.
“What we really need to do is to work out when we can attack and when we need to defend. This is a difficult place to defend no doubt, especially if the dew comes. But we don’t want the toss to be a huge factor. We want to be in control of all our skills and our tactics. We’ve got to get that right,” he added.
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