Belatedly getting into the groove with back-to-back victories, Royal Challengers Bangalore would look to continue the momentum when they take on Kings XI Punjab in an IPL 2019 match on Wednesday. RCB must be all fired up after posting one-run win over a formidable Chennai Super Kings and would be desperate to keep the juggernaut rolling. Having survived a brutal assault at the hands of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the last game, they should have gained some confidence.
However, their bowling remains a worry despite the arrival of Dale Steyn. RCB’s bowling was exposed once again in the last match here when Dhoni almost pulled off the impossible chasing 162, needing 26 runs off the last over bowled by Umesh Yadav.
Kohli and Co. will hope to post another win this season against KXIP, who are placed fifth in the points table with 10 points. Ravichandran Ashwin’s outfit will be coming out all guns blazing, especially after losing their last match against Delhi Capitals by just two runs at Feroz Shah Kotla. KXIP would want to consolidate their position in the points table with the help of hard-hitting West Indian Chris Gayle, K L Rahul and David Miller — all of whom would be looking to capitalise on RCB’s weak bowling.
Expected playing 11:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli, Parthiv Patel, AB de Villiers, Colin de Grandhomme, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Moeen Ali, Dale Steyn, Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Pawan Negi
Kings XI Punjab: Lokesh Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Sarfaraz Khan, David Miller, Mandeep Singh, Sam Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Andrew Tye, Murugan Ashwin, Mohammad Shami.
FPJ’s dream 11: Virat Kohli, Parthiv Patel, AB de Villiers, KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Moeen Ali , Ravichandran Ashwin, Dale Steyn, Mohammad Shami, Navdeep Saini
Captain tips: Someone among Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Ab de Villiers should be selected as captain.
With PTI inputs