"RCB must be glad that they are playing only three games in Chennai" - Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra has said the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) would be delighted about playing only three matches on the spin-friendly Chepauk surface in IPL 2021.

RCB will start their tournament with three matches in Chennai. They will play a couple of matches in Mumbai followed by four encounters in Ahmedabad, before finishing their league phase campaign with five games in Kolkata.

We may be travelling all over the country, but our heart will always be in ನಮ್ಮ Bengaluru ❤️#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/zKbZfUgJlM

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) March 11, 2021

During a discussion on Star Sports, Aakash Chopra replied in the affirmative when asked if RCB will be happy to play most of their matches on the true wickets at the Eden Gardens.

He added the Virat Kohli-led side will be even more elated at playing only three games in Chennai although they are all tough encounters.

"They will enjoy playing at Kolkata. I am glad and they must be glad as well that they are playing only three games in Chennai. Unfortunately, they are running into teams that are very solid. First is Mumbai Indians, second is Sunrisers Hyderabad who are going to enjoy a lot in Chennai," said Chopra.

The cricketer-turned-commentator believes that a poor start to the tournament could derail RCB's campaign in IPL 2021.

"So, Royal Challengers Bangalore might start slowly. That's my concern and this is one team that we have seen that wheels come off a little quickly if the campaign hasn't started with a bang and if they don't hit the ground running, it becomes an issue," added Chopra.

After playing the tournament opener against the Mumbai Indians and their second match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad, RCB will cross swords with the Kolkata Knight Riders in their final encounter at Chepauk.

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"RCB don't have too many Indian batsmen in the mix" - Aakash Chopra

Devdutt Padikkal was RCB's highest run-getter in IPL 2020 [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra highlighted RCB are thin in the Indian batting department, with Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli the only prominent names.

The 43-year-old signed off by stating that the three-time runners-up need to reconcile themselves to the fact that they may not get off to a flying start in the tournament.

"They don't have too many Indian batsmen in the mix. Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli, two guys, and one is playing his second season. The other acquisitions are either overseas or really unknown Indian entities in someone like an Azharuddeen or Sachin Baby. So when you look at those guys you find yourself acknowledging that you might not start very strongly but that's okay," concluded Chopra.

RCB will hope that Padikkal continues with the excellent form he displayed for Karnataka in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. They will also look towards AB de Villiers and Glenn Maxwell to provide the required firepower in the batting department.

We had to double check the stats for average. We honestly thought that was a typo😉DDP, need we say more?🤷‍♂🤷‍♀@devdpd07#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers pic.twitter.com/hKg3WYbDG5

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) March 13, 2021