IPL 2019: Probable First Match Playing XIs of all eight teams

#2. Royal Challengers Bangalore

23/3/19 - Chennai Super Kings (Away)

Virat Kohli

Royal Challengers Bangalore come into yet another season of the IPL with renewed hopes of lifting the coveted trophy with a star-studded team boasting of the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. This year, though, RCB seemingly drifted away from opting for established names in the auction and invested in young and upcoming talents like Shimron Hetmyer, Shivam Dube and seventeen years old, Prayas Ray Barman.

The Royal Challengers look well-balanced on paper although their nemesis has always been bowling and death bowling in particular. For the first match against defending champions CSK, RCB will have to back the trio of Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee and Mohammed Siraj in the pace department with Nathan Coulter-Nile and Marcus Stoinis unavailable due to national duty. Navdeep Saini and Pawan Negi are also an alternative to Mohammed Siraj, after impressing in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2019 for Delhi.

Parthiv Patel should ideally open the batting alongside Virat Kohli with the fearsome duo of AB de Villiers and Shimron Hetmyer following him. Big money signing, Shivam Dube is set to make his RCB debut next Saturday while Colin de Grandhomme's recent surge in form puts him in pole position to assume the finisher's role.

Akshdeep Nath and Gurkeerat Singh are also potential options worth looking into depending on Dube's match fitness. Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal are expected to form a potent spin duo and they would look to extract as much turn as possible from the Chepauk wicket.

Possible XI: Virat Kohli(C), Parthiv Patel(WK), AB de Villiers, Shimron Hetmyer, Shivam Dube, Colin de Grandhomme, Washington Sundar, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj/Pawan Negi and Yuzvendra Chahal.

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