The Royal Challengers Bangalore were beaten in the Indian Premier League final for the third time last season which means they are still aiming for their maiden title at the tenth attempt. Once again the Royal Challengers begin a campaign as the favourites to win the event, a tag which has hampered them in the past.
Stats
Last Season: Runners-up (2nd in Regular Season)
Captain: Virat Kohli
Key Players: Virat Kohli & AB de Villiers
Best Odds: 4/1
Predicted Finishing Position: Playoffs
Fixtures
Wednesday April 5 – Sunrisers Hyderabad (a)
Saturday April 8 – Delhi Daredevils (h)
Monday April 10 – Kings XI Punjab (a)
Friday April 14 – Mumbai Indians (h)
Sunday April 16 – Rising Pune Supergiants (h)
Tuesday April 18 – Gujarat Lions (a)
Sunday April 23 – Kolkata Knight Riders (a)
Tuesday April 25 – Sunrisers Hyderabad (h)
Thursday April 27 – Gujarat Lions (h)
Saturday April 29 – Rising Pune Supergiants (a)
Monday May 1 – Mumbai Indians (a)
Friday May 5 – Kings XI Punjab (h)
Sunday May 7 – Kolkata Knight Riders (h)
Sunday May 14 – Delhi Daredevils (a)
Auction
Most expensive signing: Tymal Mills
Other notable signings: Billy Stanlake, Pawan Negi
Strengths
The strength of this side is very much in their batting. Their batting is so strong that the likes of Travis Head, Sarfaraz Khan, Sachin Baby and Mandeep Singh might not get much of a look in this season. Although the batting is their strength they will need Virat Kohli to recover from his early injury quickly and AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle to stay fit throughout the tournament.
Weaknesses
The home venue is probably the biggest issue for the Royal Challengers because ultimately all of their matches there turn into high scoring shootouts. With the money they spend on their batsmen they have leaked a lot of runs with the ball which has caught them out in the big moments. They will need someone to stand up at the death on a ground which is impossible to defend.
Betting
As with the Sunrisers Hyderabad I have taken a batsman and a bowler from the Royal Challengers outright and while I would have no problem taking Shane Watson to be the top team batsman for this side I backed him outright on the provision that he is the man who will open the batting in Kohli’s absence.
At the time of writing we don’t know if he will definitely open the batting so with that in mind I’m happy to leave team bets for Bangalore alone pre-tournament.
Tips
No Bet
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