Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) were criticised for their strategy at the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction. They did not splurge on Rishabh Pant or KL Rahul which was heavily speculated before the bidding extravaganza. After the mega auction, there were reports that Virat Kohli will lead RCB again but the RCB COO Rajesh Menon in an exclusive interview with Sports Today revealed that they have multiple leaders in the team and nothing is decided yet.
“Currently we have not decided anything. We have multiple leaders in the team. 4-5 leaders are there. We have not deliberated what we need to do. We will deliberate, and we will come to a conclusion," Menon told Sports Today.
Kohli is the third-most experienced captain in IPL history. He has captained RCB in 143 games with a winning percentage of 48.56. He led RCB to final in the 2016 edition where they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).
RCB fans and several former cricketers were baffled by the franchise's auction strategy. Their most expensive pick in the auction was Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood at Rs 12.50 crore. Their most expensive overseas batter was England opener Phil Salt. They also invested in young England all-rounder Jacob Bethell who had an underwhelming run in the T20I series against India.
Menon explains auction strategy
Menon explained that they picked the bowling attack keeping their homeground, M Chinnnaswamy Stadium in mind. He also said that RCB managed to assemble one of the best teams in the league.
“We were very clear in terms of what kind of gaps we have and what all we need to fulfill and what is the Indian core that we require to build, and if you want to play in M Chinnaswamy (Stadium), what kind of bowling attack we require. And that is what we did," he explained.
“If you see Day 1, it was low-key for us. People thought we were not participating in the auction, but at the end of Day 2, everybody, right from fans to experts, felt saying what we have done is the best because we have covered all the gaps, and I think we have got one of the best teams," he concluded.
RCB finished fourth on the points table last season but were knocked out in the Eliminator clash. It will be interesting to see how their playing XI turns out in the next season.