Royal Challengers Bangalore will not have too many pleasant memories of its previous engagement in the Champions League. A year ago this Saturday in Durban, the side foundered miserably against Chennai Super Kings.
Dale Steyn, Bangalore's hope with the ball, concussed himself attempting a catch that evening, not bowling at all, while captain Anil Kumble went for a wicket-less 38 in his four overs. Things, however, have changed since, and drastically so.
Steyn is gone, so too the Karnataka bunch of Manish Pandey, Robin Uthappa and Vinay Kumar. Only Virat Kohli remains of the eleven that took the field; Kumble watches over the side, but from beyond the boundary, in his role as chief mentor (Ray Jennings likening him to “the calm after a hurricane” earlier this week).
Barely recognisable
RCB today is barely recognisable from its pre-auction avatar. Chris Gayle is now the overarching figure, having carried the side to the final of the IPL, and if his mood in the build-up to this tournament is to be treated as any sort of omen, a fine campaign is in the offing.
The Jamaican made a 32-ball 75 in a warm-up game against a locally-assembled Karnataka XI on Monday, hitting the ball out of the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium twice.
But the greater worry for the home side, when it faces Warriors at the same venue on Friday night, will be scoring quick runs in the event of Gayle's failure.
That responsibility will lie with Kohli, RCB's second-highest run scorer in the IPL earlier this year, and A.B. de Villiers.
Saurabh Tiwary, the franchise's big-money buy at the auction, has underperformed but Jennings has argued that the left-hander did not get too much time at the crease. Given the (rather significant) absence of Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammad Kaif may feature more often than he did in the IPL.
Daniel Vettori has indicated that the side will look to field a five-bowler attack, with Dirk Nannes in the vanguard. The Australian should lend some much-needed strength to a bowling group that, with the exception of Vettori and S. Arvind, appeared lightweight in the IPL.
Nannes's inclusion, however, means that Tillakaratne Dilshan could find himself on the bench. Twenty-year-old Mayank Agarwal thus looks set to debut in the Champions League, opening alongside Gayle.
Most of the discussion in connection with Warriors has centred on the absence of Davy Jacobs, an explosive opener and the regular captain.
While the right-hander was instrumental in the side's run to the final in the last edition of the Champions League — where he was the team's highest run-scorer by a distance (286 runs at 47.66, and a strike rate of 145) — his efforts in South Africa's Pro20 tournament earlier this year have been less than impressive (88 runs in 11 matches), a point current captain Johan Botha made earlier.
Jennings, with his knowledge on the subject, will not take the South African outfit lightly. Coach Piet Botha revealed that young J.J. Smuts was likely to open with Ashwell Prince.
Capable batsmen
Colin Ingram and Mark Boucher are capable batsmen and while J.P. Kreusch's name may not be recognised in Indian households, his all-round efforts have been critical to Warriors' domestic success.
The bowling group, though, with Johan Botha, Wayne Parnell and Juan Theron, looks more accomplished. Makhaya Ntini will miss the fixture while Nicky Boje's involvement is not certain either.
Both captains have recognised the importance of winning the opening match of a short tournament, and while Warriors may possess no international stars in its ranks, RCB could have it difficult.
