3 players that RCB wrongly underutilized in IPL 2023
Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign came to an end following their six-wicket defeat to the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final league stage encounter.
The three-time finalists ended with 14 points after 14 matches and finished at the six position in the points table.
Despite largely repairing the squad in the 2022 mega auction, the team's balance continued to be the probing issue. The bulk of the runs were scored by the trio of Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell, while the middle order failed to impress.
The crop of uncapped Indian players largely failed to make the most of the opportunity while even the veteran batter Dinesh Karthik could not make much of an impression down the order.
In the bowling department, RCB were hurt by the late arrivals of overseas stars Wanindu Hasaranga and Josh Hazlewood and their subsequent injuries later on. Mohammed Siraj was their lone bright spot with the ball as he vanquished the demons of his disastrous 2022 in some style.
RCB struggled for momentum throughout the tournament and a case could be made for a certain set of players, who arguably could have been used more by the franchise, in a bid to overturn their fortunes.
On that note, here are three players who were underutilised in IPL 2023 by RCB.
#1 Finn Allen
The New Zealand international has become one of the most promising opening batters of late, but is yet to make his IPL debut.
He was on the sidelines throughout the last season as well, despite RCB constantly battling woes in terms of their opening department.
This time around, while the opening partnership between Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis flourished, there were glaring issues in the middle order.
An argument could be made with the help of a scenario where Allen opened the innings with du Plessis, leaving Kohli and Maxwell to bring a little stability in the middle order.
The presence of three overseas batters would have been compensated by a Indian-heavy bowling unit as well.
The young explosive batter might have thrived batting at the Chinnaswamy Stadium as well, but will have to wait on the sidelines for a maiden appearance in the league.
#2 Manoj Bhandage
Manoj Bhandage emerged as one of the most exciting buys for RCB at the IPL 2023 mega auction. The local player has a T20 career strike rate of 154 since making his debut in 2019.
The 25-year-old was touted to make his debut in the 2023 season, especially with RCB repeatedly facing issues with their middle and lower-middle order. RCB were unable to finish their innings well across multiple occasions and fans were far from pleased with Bhandage not availing opportunities despite the team's obvious struggles.
The pinch hitter might be in the running should he be retained for the next season, granted that he continues to perform in the domestic circuit.
#3 Shahbaz Ahmed
The left-arm all-rounder was a valuable addition to the RCB setup and was a regular starter across the previous two seasons. However, in the 2023 season, despite racking up nine appearances, he only bowled seven overs.
The combination of playing conditions, match-ups and luxury in bowling options rendered Shahbaz Ahmed on the sidelines. He struggled adapting to the Chinnaswamy Stadium as well, but might have made a difference had he availed more chances with either the bat or ball across the season.
The all-rounder, however, did not have the best of campaigns with the bat. He was influential in the middle order in the last season and forged a solid chemistry with Dinesh Karthik at the back end of the innings.
Will the franchise make some major changes to their squad after the IPL 2023 season? Let us know what you think.