Royal Challengers Bangalore who still haven’t announced their captain will be looking to replicate the success of the last couple of seasons when they reached the playoffs. Since the arrival of Mike Hesson in their team management, they have made the playoffs in IPL 2020 and IPL 2021. RCB had retained three players before the Auction – Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, and Mohammed Siraj. They made some big buys on Day 1 as they bought the likes of Faf Du Plessis, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Josh Hazlewood.
Apart from that, they got some good domestic players and some solid backups for their overseas players. RCB has managed to make the playoffs in the last couple of seasons but still hasn’t managed to win the trophy. They will be desperate to win the trophy this season. They have a great mix of eight overseas players and so it would be difficult to pick four overseas players for RCB. So, let us have a look at the four overseas players for RCB who could be the first-choice ones.
1. Glenn Maxwell
Glenn Maxwell is the only overseas player retained by RCB and so he would be one of the four overseas players for RCB. Some experts feel that he should be the captain of the RCB franchise but with some availability issues around him, he might not be the captain for this season. Maxwell who had struggled in the IPL in 2018 and 2020 finally managed to deliver for RCB.
He was brilliant at the No.4 spot as he scored 513 runs at an average of 42.75 and a strike rate of 144.1. Not only with the bat but he also picked up some crucial wickets with the ball in hand. RCB fans would be hoping that he continues his form from IPL 2021 in IPL 2022.
2. Faf Du Plessis
Royal Challengers Bangalore managed to get CSK’s prolific run-scorer Faf Du Plessis at 7 CR in the Mega Auction. Being an experienced player, Faf would surely be one of the four overseas players for RCB in IPL 2022. There are talks that he has been bought because he has leadership qualities and might take the captaincy duties as well.
Faf Du Plessis was just two runs short of being the Orange Cap Holder in the last season and if he could perform like that then it would be great for the RCB franchise. He has a lot of experience which will come in handy as the rest of the RCB batting line-up is fairly inexperienced.
3. Wanindu Hasaranga
Wanindu Hasaranga was in demand in the Mega Auction as two teams were really interested in getting him in their team. Eventually, RCB won the bidding war with Punjab Kings and got Hasaranga for a whopping 10.75 CR. Hasaranga was part of the IPL in the last season but couldn’t make a significant impact.
Having said that he has been brilliant at the international level and he is currently No.4 in the ICC Rankings. Some experts consider him as the second-best leg-spinner after Rashid Khan in T20 cricket. He also has finishing abilities with the bat and so he will be one of the four overseas players for RCB in IPL 2022.
4. Josh Hazlewood
RCB has two Indian quicks in Mohammed Siraj and Harshal Patel. The one overseas quick who would partner with them is Josh Hazlewood from Australia. Hazlewood missed the first half of the IPL season last year but in the second half, he picked up 11 wickets in just 8 games and was terrific in all three phases.
Hazelwood and Siraj could be a great combination in the powerplay especially if there is some movement on offer in the initial overs. The opposition batsmen wouldn’t like to face this opening spell. Hazlewood is getting better and better in the shortest format and so it would be exciting to watch him bowl in IPL 2022.
