Royal Challengers Bangalore acquired Indian all-rounder Harshal Patel (INR 10.75 CR), Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga (INR 10.75 CR), Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood (INR 7.75 CR), South Africa’s veteran batsman Faf du Plessis (INR 7 CR), who are the top buys among the 19 players bought by the team at the Tata IPL Mega Auction 2022.
In its endeavour to build a bold brigade for excellence in the upcoming IPL season, RCB also added steel and resolve to the squad with the additions of veteran India wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik (INR 5.50 CR), wicketkeeper-batsman Anuj Rawat (INR 3.40 CR), left-arm orthodox bowler & left-hand batsman Shahbaz Ahamad (INR 2.40 CR), West Indies all-rounder Sherfane Rutherford (INR 1 CR), India all-rounder Mahipal Lomror (95 L), New Zealand right hand wicketkeeper-batsman Finn Allen (INR 80 L) and Australia pacer Jason Behrendorff (INR 75 L).
Solidifying the squad further, RCB added more depth, acquiring England left-arm medium-fast bowler David Willey (INR 2 CR), right arm medium-fast bowler Siddharth Kaul (INR 75 L), leg-spinner Karn Sharma (INR 50 L), all-rounder Suyash Prabhudessai (INR 30 L), left-arm medium-pacer Chama Milind (INR 25 L), right-arm medium bowler Akash Deep (INR 20 L), Karnataka U-19 all-rounder Anneeshwar Gautam (INR 20 L) and left-hand wicketkeeper-batsman Luvnith Sisodia (INR 20 L).
Speaking about the strategy at the Tata IPL Mega Auction 2022, Mike Hesson, Director of Cricket Operations, RCB said, “We are very happy with the way our squad is shaped with the new inclusions around the retained talents. It is a really balanced team of overseas and domestic players. We have managed to cover all our bases with multi-dimensional skill sets and that was the key to our strategy getting into the auctions. Majority of things went as per plan considering the auction dynamics, we managed to check off all the criteria that we had set out to achieve for the RCB team. The strategy was to define dedicated roles for players, who we identified, and to strategically go after individual players, managing the purse wisely. We also successfully managed to get some of our RCB players back which was always an important part of our game plan. It is certainly an achievement with the way auction dynamics plays out and the budget remains to be a constraint, but we are very happy with the outcome. We also looked at the availability and how fast all these players just get into the groove and the preparations to form a playing XI. We are certainly excited for the upcoming season and believe we have got the arsenal to put up a quality show.”
Elaborating on the squad following the Tata IPL Mega Auction 2022, Sanjay Bangar, Head Coach, RCB said, “We are quite satisfied with our haul at the auctions to form a balanced team. Our plan was to bring stability and at the same time, have variations owing to the changing situations in a T20 tournament. We aimed to have a solid role for each player that we pick along with some back-ups in the same form. We have achieved a well-rounded pool of talents from international and domestic cricket. The addition of Faf du Plessis adds real strength to the batting department. He is a proven performer, a seasoned campaigner and has delivered at the highest levels. We were looking at someone who can solidify our top order and his inclusion into the team solves just that, with diverse experience of playing across formats gives us options, not only in terms of opening the batting line but also with leadership skills. Josh Hazelwood brings a great arch to the bowling department. He has been in the circuit for quite some time, showing us every time what he does the best and brings a wealth of experience in the T20 format. Wanindu Hasaranga is a wrist spinning all-rounder who can bat at 7, and we were looking closely at picking a quality leggie in the spin department. The fact that he can contribute with the bat as well is a great value add. We required a good No. 6 and a finisher, who we have found in Dinesh Karthik. Harshal Patel did exceptionally well in the last season and was a natural choice for us to go that mile on the bid. We are very happy to have him and some of our players return to the RCB family and we couldn’t be happy to reinvest in players who we have seen develop over the years. We are now eagerly awaiting the start of our preparations with these talents and get onto the real execution on the field for an exciting season ahead.”
Speaking about the Tata IPL Mega Auction 2022, Prathmesh Mishra, Chairman, RCB said, “We are very pleased with the squad that we have assembled over the two days at the Tata IPL Mega Auction 2022. We have got some seasoned players who we have witnessed giving eclectic performances in the recent cricket tournaments and talented youngsters who have shown tremendous potential with their consistent efforts in their rising cricket career. We were very clinical in our plans and have ensured players who have a fearless attitude and embody our philosophy of Play Bold to get on this journey with us and enjoy their stint at RCB playing their style of cricket. We look forward to an exciting season of cricket entertainment with these exceptional bunch of players.”
