Before embarking on a journey of six games on the road, Royal Challengers Bangalore will want to make the most of home advantage, insofar as these things matter in the IPL.
“Our aim is to win tomorrow and finish at the top of the table before leaving,” Tillakaratne Dilshan said at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here, ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Pune Warriors India. “We have to play away from home for the next 15 days (sic) and we need to adjust to their conditions as soon as possible.”
Dilshan returned to the side against Rajasthan Royals on Saturday, having flown home after the first two games following injury.
“I came here with lot of confidence, having scored a lot of runs in the Bangladesh ODIs. But unfortunately, I could not score runs in the first two matches here. I’m disappointed after I got out for 25 against RR; I’m looking forward to getting a big score in the coming matches,” he said.
Dilshan also welcomed the return of Saurabh Tiwary, who played his first game this season against RR.
“We had just one left-hander at the top (Chris Gayle). In Tiwary, we have another, which balances the team and strengthens the middle order,” he felt.
Agarwal out
The Sri Lankan confirmed that Mayank Agarwal, who fractured his finger in the field at Chennai and hasn’t featured since, would miss the rest of the tournament.
RCB held no fear of Pune’s bowlers, Dilshan declared. “Besides two pacers (Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ashoke Dinda), they have three spinners. They would have a tough time bowling on this pitch, which helps fast bowlers. We have seen these Pune bowlers getting smashed by Kings XI Punjab yesterday. So, I think we can also do the same by quickly adjusting to their kind of bowling,” he said.
