IPL 2024: Royal Challengers Bengaluru strongest predicted playing XI against Kolkata Knight Riders

RCB ( Photo source : X / Twitter )

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will be up against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 10th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Both the teams would be looking forward to winning the game which would mean a lot for the players and the fans. The match is set to take place at M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru, which is known to be a nightmare for the bowlers. RCB and KKR share an underrated rivalry in the IPL and the fans of both teams would want to win the game at all costs.

Both teams are on the back of a thrilling win. While KKR defeated SRH by just four runs at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, RCB overcame PBKS by four wickets. KKR has a good set of finishers. They have loaded the likes of Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, and Andre Russell who bat lower down the order and finish the innings for their team. But it is their middle order which has not been able to fire in the last couple of seasons. It has been a key reason for their bad performance in 2022 and 2023 respectively.

The likes of Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer, and Venkatesh Iyer need to fire with the bat. At the top order, KKR has had one opener who performed well. In 2023, it was Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Jason Roy. They seem to have Phil Salt in 2024 who did the job against SRH. With the ball, KKR has a good variety in their attack. With the new ball, they have the left-right combination of Mitchell Starc and Harshit Rana. In the spin department, KKR has the likes of Varun Chakravarthy, Suyash Sharma, and Sunil Narine.

Here is the predicted XI of RCB for the game against KKR in the IPL 2024:

Openers – Faf Du Plessis and Virat Kohli

Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli. (Source -Twitter/X)

Faf Du Plessis has been in the best form of his life with the bat in the IPL in the last couple of seasons. The star batter has been aggressive at the top and smashed the bowlers without any mercy. He will also be the skipper of RCB and would be hoping to make good decisions which could impact the game. At the other end, RCB is likely to open with Virat Kohli. The home side has a lot of options to open alongside Faf. The likes of Cameron Green and Rajat Patidar can open as well.

However, RCB is likely to stick with its opening combination. The duo of Faf and Virat formed the best opening pair in the IPL 2023. While Faf smashes the bowlers for fun at the start, Kohli can take his time and consolidate from his end. The star batter has shown intent in the powerplay overs and attacked some of the best bowlers in the world. The duo can have a say on the result of the match with their fiery starts. Both batters are experienced and have played a lot in Bengaluru.

Middle order – Rajat Patidar, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat

Rajat Patidar ( Photo Source : X / Twitter )

In the middle order, RCB is likely to continue with Rajat Patidar at number three. He was one of the breakthrough stars of the IPL 2022 and scored a fantastic ton against LSG in the Eliminator game. While Rajat has not been as impressive in the league till now, he can come good against KKR. RCB bat deep down the order and has Dinesh Karthik and Anuj Rawat as their designated finishers, who can win the matches on their own. They have been good in both the games so far.

Against CSK, RCB were reduced to 78/5 at one stage. That was when the duo of Anuj and Karthik framed a 96-run stand for the 6th wicket. Against PBKS, Karthik finished the game with a brilliant cameo of 28*(10). While Karthik bats at number 6, Rawat is likely to come in at number 7. In addition to that, Anuj will also keep the wickets for RCB. The 3-time finalists also have some good options in the middle order like Suyash Prabhudesai who can step up when needed.

All-Rounders – Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Mahipal Lomror (Impact substitute)

Cameron Green. (Source -IPL)

RCB have a good set of all-rounders. Glenn Maxwell is their premier overseas player who can smash the bowlers for fun in the middle overs. He can also be handy with the ball and break partnerships. In addition to that, the Australian is a very good fielder. While Maxwell is likely to bat at number 4, Cameron Green might bat at number 5. The fellow Australian of Maxwell has not yet fired with the bat for RCB. But he can come good in the upcoming games.

While Green would also be handy with the ball and brilliant in the field, RCB would get Mahipal Lomror as the impact substitute. While batting, he is likely to come in at number 8 and smash some runs. With the ball, Yash Dayal can make an impact as the substitute. If necessary, he can bowl a couple of overs as well. In addition to these players, RCB have some players who can be good in dual roles. The likes of Will Jacks and Manoj Bhandage can be trusted to deliver the goods. 

Bowlers – Mohammad Siraj, Yash Dayal, Alzarri Joseph, Mayank Dagar

Mohammed Siraj. (Photo Source: BCCI/IPL)

With the ball, RCB have a lot of good options. In the powerplay overs, Mohammad Siraj will take the new ball. To assist him is an impressive Yash Dayal. The left-right combination has worked well so for for RCB, Dayal, in particular, has been very impressive with his unique angle and the ability to swing the ball. Siraj has a very good record at home since 2023. The right-arm pacer will have the additional responsibility of handling the deathovers.

RCB also have a good pacer like Alzarri Joseph. The West Indian has been expensive in the league so far. If he goes expensive in the next couple of games, RCB have the options of playing Lockie Ferguson and Vijaykumar Vyshak. In the spin department, RCB have found a gem in Mayank Dagar. While he was a bit expensive against PBKS, the slow left-arm orthodox spinner bowled a very good spell against CSK where he was miserly. RCB would hope Dagar to provide some wickets in the middle overs phase. 

RCB’s strongest playing XI against KKR: Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat, Mayank Dagar, Mohammed Siraj, Yash Dayal, Alzarri Joseph.

Impact Player: Mahipal Lomror

Also Check: Kolkata Knight Riders strongest predicted playing XI against Royal Challengers Bengaluru