IPL 2018: 3 tactical changes RCB should for the game against KXIP

With Royal Challengers Bangalore, there is no dearth of entertainment. But there certainly is a dearth of wins, resulting in an empty trophy cabinet after a decade despite acquiring some of the greatest players of the shortest format of the game. This year as well, Virat Kohli's men have begun on a poor note.

They lost their first game against Kolkata Knight Riders, and by the glimpses of it, their side needs some tweaking so as to make them look intimidating. On the eve of their 2nd match of IPL XI against a high-flying Kings XI Punjab, let us see how the red brigade can register their first victory of the campaign:

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#3 Playing 3 spinners

In this year's IPL, some of the teams like KXIP and CSK are playing 3 front-line spinners. Their last opponent, KKR went with 3 spinners as well, but Kohli chose to stick with 2. But the plan of having a pace-heavy bowling lineup didn't work, and they should look out for a spin alternative in Pawan Negi.

The once-upon-a-time millionaire Pawan Negi had an exceptional economy rate of just over 6.12 runs last year and picked up 16 wickets in 12 games. Besides that, he can come in pretty adroit with the bat, which is testified by his strike rate of nearly 130 and average of around 18. Left-arm pacer Kulwant Khejroliya, who had a pretty bad outing in the last game, can be sacrificed for Negi.

#2 Playing an extra all-rounder

Bangalore went with 2 overseas batters in the last game, but that decision proved costly. Quinton de Kock is not going to a supreme phase, and he should be sacrificed for the Kiwi all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme. de Grandhomme is known for his hard-hitting ability and can do a formidable job with the ball in hand.

His last year's economy rate was a bit over 8 runs per over, and strike rate was over 135. He has improved a lot as a cricketer over a year, and his international T20 strike rate of over 150 shows exactly why the Harare-born cricketer can be lethal. By including him in the team, RCB can get their skipper Kohli to open the innings alongside Brendon McCullum.

#1 Promoting Sarfaraz Khan up the order

When Sarfaraz Khan came out to bat in the last game, around 5 overs were remaining to be bowled. Khan's IPL career strike rate of over 160 is exceptional, but he struggled to hit the ground running from ball 1. This is understandable, as he is returning to the big stage after a long gap. The end result was that he ended up scoring just 6 runs from 10 balls, a performance that is miles apart from our perception of the pocket-sized dynamo.

To get his natural flow back, Khan should be sent up the batting order to the number 3 or at least the number 4 position, but not below that. RCB used up their retention quota on him, and he is an important member of the team. On that account, getting his rhythm back is of utmost importance to RCB.

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