IPL 2020: 3 impact players who can be match-winners for RCB this year

BCCI recently announced that the 13th season of the IPL will commence on 29 March. The curtain-raiser will see defending champions Mumbai Indians face off against last year's runners-up Chennai Super Kings in a duel which is often dubbed the 'El Clásico' of the cricketing universe.

All the teams are set to organize preparatory camps in the upcoming days to get their teams game-ready for the new season. After finishing at the last position in the points table twice in the last three years, the RCB team management will be hoping for a better showing this year.

RCB will kick-start their IPL campaign on 31 March, when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders. Here is a look at RCB's squad for the upcoming season.

Squad for IPL 2020: Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Gurkeerat Mann, Devdutt Padikkal, Aaron Finch, Yuzvendra Chahal, Chris Morris, Pavan Deshpande, Parthiv Patel, Joshua Philippe, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Kane Richardson, Dale Steyn, Isuru Udana, Moeen Ali, Pawan Negi, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahamad

The Bangalore-based franchise made some interesting purchases during the auction, securing the services of elite players like Aaron Finch and Dale Steyn. On that note, here are three players from the RCB squad who have the potential to be match-winners this year.

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#3 Aaron Finch

Aaron Finch

RCB have been struggling to find a destructive opening batsman since the departure of Chris Gayle in 2018. Virat Kohli and Parthiv Patel have opened the batting in a majority of the matches since then, but without much success.

With the addition of a renowned T20 player like Aaron Finch to the squad this year, RCB's opening batting woes look sorted. Finch has been in red hot form in the shortest format of the game recently, and he will look to carry the same form into IPL 13.

Also see – IPL 2020 schedule

Despite being known for his exploits in T20 cricket around the globe, Finch hasn't been very successful in the IPL so far. He will look to rectify that record and help RCB in their pursuit to win their maiden IPL trophy.

Finch has a highly impressive strike rate of 155.87 in T20I cricket, which amply demonstrates his big-hitting abilities.

#2 Chris Morris

Chris Morris celebrating after picking up a wicket

South African all-rounder Chris Morris will in all likelihood play a crucial role for the RCB team in the upcoming season. He is expected to handle the death overs bowling responsibility, the one area in which RCB have been abysmal over the past few years.

Morris has the ability and variety in his bowling to do damage at the death. He can consistently deliver yorkers, slower balls and bouncers to prevent the opposition batsmen from scoring quick runs.

Morris also gives them the balance in the lower middle order as he can hit some lusty blows at the fag end of the innings. With his all-round abilities, he has the capability to be a match-winner for RCB in both the batting and the bowling departments.

#1 AB de Villiers

AB de Villiers

AB de Villiers has been a part of the RCB squad for almost a decade now. He along with Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle have been the linchpins of RCB's batting lineup during the last decade.

De Villiers is vastly experienced in the T20 format and is one of the most destructive hitters the cricketing universe has ever seen. He has been playing in different T20 leagues around the world in the recent past, with consistent results.

De Villiers is contemplating coming out of international cricket retirement, so that he can play for South Africa in the T20 World Cup later this year. In that context, the IPL will be the perfect platform for him to prove his form on the global stage.

De Villiers' performances will play a very important role in RCB's progress in the upcoming season. He and Kohli will look to anchor the innings in the event of a collapse, or hammer the bowling attack if a solid platform has been set.