Ranking RCB's three best overseas combinations for IPL 2024

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), the perennial underachievers of the Indian Premier League (IPL), have no better inspiration to challenge for the title this season than to reflect upon what their women's team achieved on Sunday, March 17.

The women's team beat Delhi Capitals Women in the WPL 2024 final at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi by eight wickets to clinch their maiden title. This should inspire their men's team to push beyond their limits, play out of their comfort zones and seek glory that will translate into positive results by the end of the tournament.

To do so, however, RCB need to figure out the best overseas combinations. In this article, we bring to you the three best combinations that RCB can use for IPL 2024.

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#1 Combination A - Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Lockie Ferguson

This combination is perhaps the best that RCB can afford to field in this season of the IPL. While skipper Faf du Plessis is a guaranteed starter, they will want to go with the big-hitting Glenn Maxwell, who knows the Indian subcontinent extremely well.

Maxwell is known for tearing opposition bowling attacks into shreds, and his expertise will be widely sought. Cameron Green is expected to give a lot of heft and muscle power in the middle order. He can also bowl fast-medium, which will come in handy for RCB.

In the bowling department, RCB will want to go with Lockie Ferguson for his raw pace. Combined with Mohammed Siraj, Ferguson will be deadly to face.

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#2 Combination B - Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Will Jacks, Reece Topley

Skipper Faf du Plessis is more or less a guaranteed starter. [RCB]

With du Plessis and Maxwell guaranteed in the playing XI in virtually every game that they play, RCB may look to play the likes of Will Jacks and Reece Topley instead of Cameron Green and Lockie Ferguson.

Apart from being a clean striker of the ball, Jacks is also a more-than-handy off-spinner, who can be trusted to bowl a few quiet overs in the middle phase.

Topley, with his left-arm seam, is bound to add a lot of variety to the RCB pace bowling attack. A T20 specialist, Topley is also known to do extremely well when handed the ball in the death overs.

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#3 Combination C - Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Tom Curran

Bringing Cameron Green back into the side, RCB may choose to float him up and down the order. One of the greatest things about Green is his versatility.

Although he is a designated all-rounder, he can also be expected to open the innings in case du Plessis and Virat Kohli want to shake things up a tad. And as stated earlier, Green's bowling adds a lot of variety to the side.

The fourth foreigner, replacing Reece Topley, could be Tom Curran, who is renowned for his change of pace and variety with the ball in hand. Curran is also a more than handy batter, who can hit the ball a long way when push comes to shove. Although this combination is rather unlikely, RCB may choose to use it when things go south.