Shot selection is the focus as RCB aim to end home hoodoo, says skipper Rajat Patidar ahead of clash against RR.
Shot selection is what RCB will be looking to improve as they face the Royals tonight at the Chinnawamy.
The only team without a home victory this season is RCB, which stands in sharp contrast to their road record of five victories in five games. They lost the toss and were sent in to bat on challenging tracks, lost early wickets and scored below-average totals, and then found it tough to defend as the dew made batting easier for their opponents during the chase. This pattern has been present in all three of their losses in Bengaluru.
The story is revealed by the numbers. Their only batters with a half-century at home this season are David and Livingstone. They have nine away scores of 50 or higher. This season, RCB’s strike rate of 117.28 is the second-lowest among all clubs, and their top six average just 13.94 at home.
On grounds that aren’t the batting beauties Bengaluru used to deliver in past IPL seasons, RCB may have been guilty of exerting too much pressure too early in the powerplay. In home games, they have lost a wicket every 12 balls on average during the powerplay. And out? a wicket in the powerplay for every 60 balls. The intention has been the same. Not too much in the way of prizes.
Their most recent home game, a 14-over match against Punjab Kings that was cut short due to rain, made the problems clear. Virat Kohli mistimed a pull to the lone fielder patrolling the leg-side boundary; Livingstone and Krunal Pandya also fell to short deliveries; Phil Salt top-edged a bouncer off Arshdeep Singh after RCB lost the toss.
“Absolutely, you are right, the shot selection matters,” Patidar said, when asked about RCB’s approach at home. “Because this time the wickets are two-paced wickets and the bounce is varying, so I think the bowlers are getting a lot of help, the way their ball is dipping, the way they are getting the bounce, so I think the more we focus on hitting [behind] square of the wicket, the better it will be.”