The Royal Challengers Bangalore! They did it again. A rousing win followed by a humiliating loss. Looks like that’s become some kind of template. Every year for the last 15 years, I looked forward to each IPL saying: this will be RCB’s season. Well, they flatter to deceive. At least, they are consistent with that.

They started well against the Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday. Left-arm seamer David Willey and leg-spinner Karn Sharma hushed the boisterous Eden Gardens crowd into silence with telling strikes, only for Shardul Thakur to rescue KKR with a blistering knock.

The sloppy slog overs of RCB

Even in IPL 2023, the death-over carnage surfaced in the fine win against five-time champions Mumbai Indians in the season opener. The last four overs bled 60 runs, but that didn’t matter since captain Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli had the chase under control.

The game against Kolkata was lost in the last four overs, as Bangalore bowlers leaked 57 runs. That included death-over specialist Harshal Patel, who had a poor outing giving away 38 runs in three overs.

Had the RCB bowlers restricted KKR to under 175, they would have had a chance. Maybe not! The batting display was equally pathetic. After the 44-run opening stand between Du Plessis (23) and Kohli (21), the wheels came off. Michael Bracewell and Dinesh Karthik pottered around for a while and never looked like taking charge.

RCB’s batting resources

The capitulation also calls for a reexamination of the RCB’s batting resources. Rajat Patidar is injured, so Shahbaz Ahmed and Anuj Rawat (who came in as the impact player) must step up. Maybe, Du Plessis and head coach Sanjay Bangar should consider 24-year-old Suyash Prabhudessai’s claims too. RCB will require consistent contributions from overseas batters Bracewell and Glenn Maxwell if they have to nurture ambitions of making the playoffs.

The 81-run loss to Kolkata brutally exposed Bangalore’s shortcomings. It’s only the second game of the season. There’s enough time to address the flaws and mount a challenge for the last-four spot. The sooner, the better. Or else the RCB quest for a maiden IPL title will continue.

Shyam A. Krishna

@ShyamKris_

Shyam A. Krishna is Senior Associate Editor at Gulf News. He writes on health and sport.