The Royal Challengers Bangalore have high spirits woven right into their names. The team owned by liquor baron Vijay Mallya has been a buoyant lot, keen to stand out as champions who play with an incredible spirit. But winning teams require more than just a positive attitude. They need a rock solid temperament. And it doesn’t get any better on that front than Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid and Jacques Kallis – known for their steely grit. This team is a perfect combination of old foxes like Kumble,Dravid,Kallis,Boucher and young guns like Virat Kohli, Ross Taylor,Cameron White,Manish Pandey,Dale Steyn and the list goes on.
Performance in IPL 2009:
After a terrible first IPL, being second from the bottom of the table, they entered the second IPL with tags like “test team” and “party team”. The only hope of Royal Challengers was their new captain Kevin Pietersen whom Vijay Mallya bought for a whopping price of $1.55m and a twenty 20 specialist Jessie Ryder.
They started the tournament by sealing an emphatic 75 run victory over the defending champions Rajasthan royals. But it was followed by a poor show of four consecutive losses which pushed them to the bottom of the table again. The team had lost 4 of their six encounters, after which KP was called away for the Windies tour.
But then, out of the ashes, rose RCB, a new and flamboyant team under the charismatic Anil Kumble. The team had four breath-taking consecutive wins that drove them into the semifinals. Kumble led the team with a great heart and under his leadership for the first time RCB looked like a perfect team. In the semifinals they met Chennai Super Kings which had been terrific throughout the season and RCB dominated them in all disciplines to make their way to the finals. There they met the Deccan Chargers who bettered them in the slog overs to win the title.
People under Spotlight:
Manish Pandey: Being the first Indian to score a century in IPL in the last match against DC brought him into lime light.
Anil Kumble: This person with his impeccable leadership skills led the team to the finals, he also stood second in the list of leading wicket takers.
Ray Jennings: This is the man behind screen for RCB’s success in this season. His coaching styles made noticeable impact on the players.
Jacque Kallis: This South African all-rounder stood for the team in tough times and helped the team with his all round abilities.
New Players to the team for IPL 2010:
Eoin Morgan: This T20 specialist is a fascinating hitter and was bought by RCB for 225,000$ which was said to be the “Cheap and Best” sale for this season.
Steven Smith: He is an Australian all-rounder with very little experience.
Ashok Menaria: He is the captain of the Indian U19 team and a believable all-rounder.
Pros of the team:
Anil Kumble’s strong leadership will be a good plus point to the team.
The depth in their batting line-up will be quite helpful to the team.
Cons of the team:
Inconsistent bowling is the primary weakness of the team.
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