‘Think outside the box’ – RR bowling coach Shane Bond slams his bowlers after another 200-plus leak

Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) bowling coach Shane Bond lashed out at his bowlers after they conceded 229/4 against the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Saturday, May 9.

This was the fourth time in a row that the Royals’ bowlers leaked 200-plus runs. The home side eventually lost the match by 77 runs after getting bowled out for just 152. Bond admitted that his men had been outplayed. He also mentioned that execution wasn’t on point from his bowling unit.

“We just haven’t played well enough in conditions that we know. We’ve been outplayed by our opposition. I look at bowlers, they just have to be better, right? You’ve got to think a bit outside the box. There’s two things: decision-making and execution. I think tonight, you would have probably noticed that execution just wasn’t consistent enough for long enough,” Bond said while speaking at the post-match press conference.

On Saturday, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, and Brijesh Sharma finished with economy rates of 15.3, 13, and 11.8, respectively. While Archer and Deshpande went wicketless, Brijes did manage to pick up a couple at the back end of the innings.

Shane Bond explains what bowlers need to change

The former New Zealand seamer opined that the bowlers need to spend more time with analysts and plan where to bowl to each batter.

“And I think if you look across the board in the IPL, that’s just been the case. The batsmen, they’re coming out, they’re playing ultra-aggressive, and putting pressure on bowlers. So as a bowler, you’ve got to ask, well, ‘what can I do differently?’ [They] have got to spend more time with the analysts knowing exactly where each batsman’s going to… the zones they’re going to score at,” said Bond.

The Christchurch-born also stressed that bowlers need to add new skills to their repertoire, taking a cue from the batters, who are playing new shots to stay ahead of the game.

“I may have to bowl off a shorter run and a longer run. I’ve got to be able to come around the wicket and bowl on both sides. So, when you see the bowlers are doing the same thing, game after game after game after game, getting the same result, then my question would be: you’ve got to be doing something different and developing your game. You look at batsmen now, they’re playing the uppercut, they’re reversing, they’re scooping. They’ve developed a range of shots,” the 50-year-old said.

“So a bowler has to develop their range of skills as well. I think it’s a great opportunity for any bowler to go: ‘if I can do that, then I can elevate myself into, you know, a lot of money and be a superstar.’ I just don’t think you’ve consistently seen that across the board. It’s certainly not easy for the bowlers, but you can either fear it, fear what’s going on out there, or see it as an opportunity to get better and maybe put your name up in lights,” he concluded.

After slumping to back-to-back defeats, the Royals have slipped to No. 5 on the points table. They will return to action on Sunday, May 17, when they take on the Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.