Royal Challengers Bangalore is one of the most popular teams in the IPL. They have not won the title over the course of the last 15 seasons but the craze for the franchise just keeps on growing. Virat Kohli was the leader of the pack from the 2013 season to 2021.
In the IPL 2022 though, Faf du Plessis was handed over the leadership baton and RCB did pretty well to finish third in the season.
As we approach the 16th season now, RCB would like to iron out the flaws in the auction to take those final couple of steps further and lift the IPL trophy for the first time in the history of the competition.
In every season, some players stand out with their performances and some fail to deliver. So, it is important for every franchise to find the right balance and understand which players can give them maximum benefit in the role they will do for the team.
Let us now dive deeper into the probable team composition of RCB for the IPL 2023 and try to analyze various permutations and combinations they would be looking at to build a solid unit for the all-important IPL 2023.
Here are the 5 players that have been released or traded by RCB ahead of the auction for the 2023 season
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Jason Behrendorff
The tall left-handed seamer from Australia has been traded to Mumbai Indians by RCB ahead of the auction. He was bought by RCB for INR 75 Lakh ahead of the 2022 season but failed to get a game in the whole season.
Jason Behrendorff has previously represented Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings in the IPL and is particularly known for his exploits with the new ball. However, with David Willey already in RCB’s squad, the decision to trade Jason Behrendorff is quite a practical one.
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Sherfane Rutherford
The hard-hitting left-handed batter from the Caribbean has also been released by RCB. He played only three games in the 2022 season for RCB and could not make much impact.
RCB already has more or less settled middle order with quality overseas players. Also, Sherfane Rutherford could not score many runs in the 2022 CPL and that would have also contributed to the decision of releasing him.
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Chama Milind
Chama Milind is a left-arm medium pacer from Hyderabad who was bought by RCB ahead of the 2022 season. However, he could not find a place in the playing XI for the whole season. In the six matches he played in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2022, he took only 3 wickets which could be a factor in releasing him ahead of the auction for IPL 2023.
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Aneeshwar Gautam
A talented young all-rounder from Bengaluru was part of the victorious Indian U-19 team in the 2022 U-19 World Cup. He is a left-handed batter and bowls left-arm orthodox spin and has been a consistent performer at the junior level.
RCB bought him in the 2022 mega-auction but the youngster could not find a place in the playing XI. Also, the presence of more experienced and proven performers like Shahbaz Ahmed who brings a similar kind of skillset to the table made it difficult for Gautam to break into the playing XI. He has been released from the RCB squad now but you can expect the youngster to work hard on his game and excel in his cricket career in the future.
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Luvnith Sisodia
Luvnith Sisodia was picked in the mega-auction ahead of the 2022 season by RCB as a backup wicketkeeper in the squad. However, the left-handed batter was ruled out of the whole 2022 season due to an injury and was eventually replaced by Rajat Patidar.
Now, RCB has decided to release Luvnith Sisodia as they already have two wicketkeeper batters Dinesh Karthik and Anuj Rawat in their squad. Also, Luvnith has not been able to score many runs for Karnataka in the domestic season which has decided against releasing him from the squad pretty straightforwardly.
Here are some of the important players that have been retained by Royal Challengers Bangalore for the IPL 2023
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Faf Du Plessis
Faf du Plessis was elected as a captain of RCB ahead of the 2022 season and under his leadership, RCB finished third in the IPL 2022. He is an experienced player and knows how to win IPL trophies as he has done it before during his time with Chennai Super Kings.
With the bat, Faf is a reliable batter at the top of the order and knows how to mold his game according to the conditions. In the 2022 IPL, Faf du Plessis scored 468 runs at an average of 31.20 in 16 games and over the years has been the most consistent overseas batter in IPL. He is surely the one who RCB will bank on and they would hope that he takes them to their maiden IPL title in the 2023 season.
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Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli has been the poster boy for Royal Challengers Bangalore for over a decade now. He came into the RCB setup in the inaugural season as a talented teenager and since then has been the pillar of RCB’s batting line-up. Virat, however, had a poor 2022 IPL as he struggled to get the timing and fluency in his batting. King Kohli though is now back in form and expects him to come out all guns blazing in the IPL 2023.
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Glenn Maxwell
‘The Big Show as he is fondly called, Glenn Maxwell is a crucial player for Royal Challengers Bangalore. He is a game-changer with the bat and can chip in with his handy right-arm off-spin as well which makes him a complete package and an x-factor player for RCB.
Maxwell scored his 301 runs in the 2022 IPL at a strike rate of 169.10 and RCB fans would hope that he clicks for them this season. He is an experienced player too who can pass some valuable wisdom to the youngsters in the RCB team and will surely play a big role in the upcoming 2023 season.
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Wanindu Hasaranga
Wanindu Hasaranga is one of the hottest properties in T20 cricket at the moment. His leg breaks have bamboozled batters all around the world whether it is in international cricket or IPL and he will remain an integral part of the RCB line-up for the 2023 season.
He was also the second-highest wicket-taker of IPL 2022 with 26 wickets in 16 games. Along with his bowling, Wanindu’s batting is also pretty handy in the lower middle order and that makes him an important asset for RCB.
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Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik was one of the main reasons why RCB managed to reach the playoffs in the IPL 2022. He was their savior on more than one occasion, delivering some spectacular finishing punches with 330 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 183.33.
His performances were so outstanding that he was recalled into the Indian team on the back of a brilliant season and expect DK to deliver some more impactful finishing touches in the IPL 2023.
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Rajat Patidar
Rajat Patidar’s performance in the IPL 2022 was a pleasantly surprising gift for RCB management and their fans. He could not find a place in the playing XI in the initial part of the 2022 season but when he got the opportunity, he grabbed it with both hands scoring a century and two fifties along the way.
A domestic batter scoring runs and taking responsibility is a great sign for RCB going forward. He has also been included in the Indian squad recently because of his consistent performances across formats and RCB would like to see Rajat putting up a strong performance in the IPL 2023.
Our final team composition of RCB in the 2023 IPL
Royal Challengers Bangalore did pretty well in the 2022 season and one cannot expect them to make wholesome changes in their team ahead of the 2023 season. They went with the combination of Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis at the top of the order and Rajat Patidar at number 3 in the latter part of the last season and it could very well be their way this season too.
However, they can also go with Finn Allen at the top of the order alongside Faf and then Kohli at 3 followed by Rajat Patidar and 4 and Maxwell at 5. Shahbaz Ahmed and Dinesh Karthik are expected to play the finisher role with some help from Wanindu Hasaranga.
Also, if they can buy an overseas all-rounder like Ben Stokes, Cameron Green, Sam Curran, or Sikandar Raza that would balance their team further.
In the pace department, it will be Harshal Patel alongside Mohammad Siraj and Josh Hazelwood and spin duties would be in the hands of Wanindu Hasaranga and Shahbaz Ahmed.
Thus, overall RCB surely looks like a well-balanced unit and if they can click as a team, they might go the full distance and lift the trophy in the 2023 IPL.
