Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis has explained that the franchise's primary focus at the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction was to build a team that improves performances at their home ground in the upcoming edition.
Du Plessis said that RCB strategically acquired players to achieve an optimal team balance during the IPL auction in Dubai on December 19 while executing six bids.
"After the last season, we felt like we needed to improve at home. One of the things that we did really well was to succeed away from Chinnaswamy," Du Plessis said in a statement.
"So, we put our heads together and what that looks like to be better at home and how can we get better, in what ways can we improve? "It's definitely the auction (way to improve) and the process of the last two months has been solely around planning to be better at home and the type of bowlers and batsmen that will be successful at home," he added.
With a formidable top-order comprising the likes of Du Plessis, Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell and Rajat Patidar, RCB bolstered their squad by trading in Australia all-rounder Cameron Green from Mumbai Indians (MI) before the auction.
Besides, RCB also enhanced their bowling unit by adding West Indian pacer Alzarri Joseph (Rs 11.5 crore), New Zealand fast bowler Lockie Ferguson (Rs 2 crore), and England's Tom Curran (Rs 1.5 crore).
RCB also added Indian left-arm pacer Yash Dayal (Rs 5 crore) and spin all-rounder Swapnil Singh (Rs 20 lacs), along with wicketkeeper Saurav Chauhan (Rs 20 lakh) from Gujarat Giants (GT) to complete a 25-member squad.
Chauhan hit the headlines in the 2023 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy when he scored an explosive 18-ball 61.
"We spent a lot of time talking about RCB and where we wanted to take the franchise. I think it's always really important that you do your homework and make sure you look at every area and talk it through," Du Plessis said.
RCB head coach Andy Flower expressed happiness with the team's acquisitions.
"It's really a strong top four with Virat (Kohli) and Faf (du Plessis), (Rajat) Patidar and (Glenn) Maxwell," he said.
“Cameron Green who gives us that power somewhere in that top five”, the 39-year-old concluded.
(Inputs by PTI)
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