IPL 2019: Analyzing the best playing XI for RCB

IPL fever is slowly catching up, with all the fans gearing up for the biggest T20 extravaganza in the world. Though all the teams look star-studded and well-balanced, selecting the best possible XI is a challenge for every captain.

Despite being one of the most loved franchises in the IPL, Royal Challengers Bangalore have failed to win the trophy so far. That's mostly been due to their inability to build a balanced team that can perform consistently throughout the tournament.

But they managed to bridge several gaps in their lineup in the IPL 2019 auction, by including quality players like Marcus Stoinis, Shivam Dube and Shimron Hetmyer. As RCB take on the mighty CSK in the series opener, let’s have look at the best XI they can field for the first game.

Openers: Virat Kohli and Parthiv Patel

Undoubtedly the best batsman in the side, Virat Kohli needs to play as many overs as possible at the top. Kohli has scored 4948 runs in 11 editions of IPL at a strike rate of 130.8, to emerge as one of the best players in the league.

RCB would rely heavily on their skipper’s ability to play long innings to reach the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how Kohli manages his workload this IPL keeping the upcoming World Cup in mind.

Virat and Parthiv Patel in Action

Parthiv Patel has turned into a seasoned T20 opener and can provide some much-needed solidity at the top. The veteran wicketkeeper batsman has amassed 2475 runs at an average of 22 in the IPL so far, and will be a key partner to Kohli at the top.

Middle Order: Marcus Stoinis and AB de Villiers

Virat Kohli and Marcus Stoinis sharing a light moment

The highly-rated Marcus Stionis has a decent strike rate of 125.96 in his short IPL career. He can bowl 4 overs in the middle, which gives some much-needed balance to the RCB squad.

Kohli has termed Stoinis an impact player, and will definitely include him in the playing XI. The challenge remains for RCB to show enough faith in Stoinis and let him adapt to Indian conditions.

Ab de Villiers

AB de Villiers is the key in RCB's not-so-solid middle order. De Villiers has won many games single-handedly for his team, and can shift gears quickly in the slog overs.

ABD has an envious strike rate of 150 in the IPL so far, and can team up with Kohli to chase down any score.

RCB's batting line up looks formidable, owing to the presence of two best batsmen of the current generation - Kohli and De Villiers. Time and again these two have teamed up to destroy the opposition bowlers and chase down targets which seemed impossible.

RCB fans will be looking forward to watching the two legends in action again in Chinnaswamy stadium.

All-rounders: Shivam Dube, Colin de Grandhomme and Gurkeerat Singh Mann

Picking the young left-hander Shivam Dube for 5 crore marked a shift in strategy for RCB in the auctions. The Mumbai all-rounder has impressed everyone in his short first-class career with both ball and bat, and will be looking to fill the Indian all-rounder slot in RCB.

Dube has played only 15 T20s till now, where he has scored 202 runs and scalped 14 wickets. If nurtured well, he can become a long-term prospect for RCB and the Indian national team.

An explosive all-rounder from New Zealand, Colin de Grandhomme was added to the RCB squad last year and he will be looking to have an impactful IPL this year. With a strike rate of 146 in the IPL, he can provide firepower to the team in the late overs and can be a handy medium pacer in the middle overs.

Gurkeerat Singh Mann

Gurkeerat Singh Mann, the right-handed all-rounder from Punjab, has played 3 ODIs for India and will be keen to make a comeback to the national team.

Being an off-spinner, Mann can provide variety to RCB's bowling line-up and can make it into the squad ahead of Pawan Negi. It will be interesting to see how Kohli uses Mann in the squad full of all-rounders.

The middle order has been RCB's problem in every edition of the IPL, and lacks finishers like Andre Russell or MS Dhoni. The team management has to show faith in young Indian players like Shivam Dube and Gurkeerat Singh Mann and back them up for a longer period of time in order to fix this problem.

There is enough flexibility in the team owing to these three all-rounders. As the tournament progresses, Kohli can replace any of them for an extra batsman like Shimron Hetmyer.

Spinners: Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal

The 19-year-old Washington Sundar can bowl economically in the power plays and is a handy batsman down the order. His record with RCB hasn't been spectacular till now, and it will be interesting to see how he bowls alongside Yuzvendra Chahal in this year's edition. It will be Sundar’s golden opportunity to earn an India call-up.

The young Tamil Nadu spinner has taken 12 wickets so far in 18 matches, and was a star performer for Rising Pune Supergiant in his debut season. Kohli will be expecting Sundar to support Chahal in the spin department and contribute with the bat if the need arises.

RCB's spin twins

A proven war horse, Chahal is the mainstay of the RCB bowling attack and is almost certain to play all matches. He has the ability to break partnerships and contain the run flow in the middle.

Chahal has scalped 82 wickets in 70 IPL matches till now. RCB will be some more magical googlies from Chahal to trap the opposition batsmen.

Fast bowlers: Tim Southee and Umesh Yadav

Tim Southee has 27 wickets in 37 IPL matches so far. The New Zealand veteran is a proven new ball bowler and had performed consistently during his stint with Mumbai Indians. We have to wait and see if he can provide the edge up front for RCB this season.

RCB be will be looking for consistent performances from Umesh Yadav

The best Indian pace bowler in the RCB squad, Umesh Yadav has been a little inconsistent with his performances in the IPL. However, he can surprise batsmen with his pace and in-swinging deliveries.

Umesh's ability to bowl consistently above 140 kmph and to pick multiple wickets in a spell would earn him a place in the playing XI. Umesh will be looking to improve his economy rate of 8.32 in this season.

There are other talented players on the RCB bench such as Moeen Ali, Shimron Hetmyer and Natha Coulter-Nile, who can come in and replace the first-choice players at any time. It will be interesting to see if Kohli shows faith in young guns like Himmat Singh and Prayas Barman in this edition.

The batting lineup still revolves around Kohli and De Villiers and their ability to chase down any score. We have to wait and watch whether the new-look RCB can live up to the expectations in the 12th edition of the IPL.