IPL 2024 RCB vs LSG Preview - Royal Challengers need a performance to lift the home crowd

Key match stats

Pitch Stats – M Chinnaswamy IPL records

Pitch stats from the 10 most recent IPL matches played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium

Team form RCB vs LSG

RCB: LWL
LSG: LW

Recent meetings: IPL 2023 - RCB won by 18 runs, LSG won by 1 wicket

Weather

General Forecast: Dry and Clear
Chance of dew: Low

Preview RCB vs LSG

For much of Friday's game here at the M Chinnaswamy, you could hear a pin drop, such was KKR's dominance in their run chase. The usually vocal Bengaluru crowd sat po-faced and dejected as The Knight Rider's batsmen went about making the RCB total of 182 look well below par.

Actually 182 on what looked like a dry surface probably wasn't quite such a bad total but it would have required an excellent bowling performance to defend it and that seems something that RCB are struggling to deliver so far this season.

An area of strength for Bengaluru last year was taking wickets in the powerplay but to date in IPL 2024 they've struck just twice in that phase of the game and are conceding 10.4 runs an over in the process. That would require improvement for any side but for RCB, the added concern is that they don't appear to have the bowlers to pull it back around in the middle overs.

Their big money signing in Alzarri Joseph looks like a bit of a one trick pony at the moment and batsmen are filling their boots. I did mention in my season preview for RCB that while I thought that Joseph could be effective in that middle over 'enforcer' role that he might struggle without high quality slower bowlers around him. He's also not going to be helped if RCB continue to prepare fairly dry and slow surfaces (as they did against KKR) where pace on the ball is exactly what the batsmen want!

If it's a similar pitch today then I would be surprised if RCB didn't make a couple of changes to their bowling attack while their batsmen are hardly in prime form either. How much longer before a player like Will Jacks who has been very consistent in tournaments around the world over the last couple of years gets his chance?

LSG completed their first win of the season against PBKS despite the visitors putting together a century partnership in their chase. In contrast to RCB, LSG showed how to utilise a genuine pace option in that middle over phase with Mayank Yadav announcing himself to the IPL with 3 wickets.

As we've seen with other young pace bowlers in recent years, Umran Malik for example, a couple of match winning performances gets everyone very excited and what follows is the bowler getting hit for runs, losing their confidence and ultimately losing their place. Unlike RCB, LSG do have the slow bowling options to support Mayank Yadav and not be reliant on him bowling 4 overs if it's not his night. It will also be interesting to see how they utilise him on this Bengaluru pitch if it plays in the same way it did on Friday.

We had some really close finishes across the opening round of matches this season but things have been a little more one sided of late. What everyone will be hoping for is the kind of rollercoaster finish that we had to the same fixture here last season when Nicolas Pooran's 62 from 19 balls helped LSG recover from 23/3 to ultimately go on to win the game by 1 wicket off the final delivery of the match. More of that please!

RCB vs LSG head to head

LSG bowling vs RCB batting

A concern for RCB at the moment will also be the form of Faf du Plessis. When your side is losing and you're struggling to make runs yourself then the pressure begins to increase quite quickly, especially at a franchise like the Royal Challengers where expectations are high. He wasn't in great form during the early part of the SA20 this year before finding runs in the later half of the tournament, can he turn it around in IPL 2024?

Naveen Ul-Haq all dismissal in T20 cricket vs du Plessis

Naveen Ul-Haq has dismissed du Plessis twice in the powerplay before including the last time these 2 met in SA20 eliminators. The Afghan might enjoy bowling on this surface if it continues to be dry with his range of cutters and slower balls an effective weapon.

KKR opted to bring the left-arm spinner Anukul Roy into their XI for the last match played here and it's a tactic that RCB will have to get used to given the imbalance of right and left handers they have in their squad. While it's not a bowling performance that will live long in the memory, Roy's 2 overs for just 6 runs helped to ensure that RCB couldn't gain sufficient momentum in the first part of their innings despite some big overs.

Maxwell T20 head to head vs Krunal Pandya

Expect LSG to utilise Krunal Pandya in much the same way while they also opened the bowling with fellow left-arm spinner Manimaran Siddharth against PBKS, suggesting that they might have 8 overs of left-arm spin with which to torment the RCB batsmen with in this game.

RCB bowling vs LSG batting

This match represents a home coming for several of the LSG batsmen who have worn the colours of RCB in the past including, KL Rahul, Marcus Stoinis and Devdutt Padikkal. However, of the former Royal Challengers it is Quinton de Kock who has most enjoyed batting in T20s at this stadium even though this would be his first appearance here since 2019!

Qdk T20 record at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium

It was a curious decision by LSG to have KL Rahul fit enough to bat but not fit enough to field and captain the team against PBKS. Clearly they want to manage his injury that saw him miss part of the recent Test series with England but they'll certainly want him available for this match as he looks to continue his form against the leader of RCB's bowling attack, Mohammed Siraj.

KL Rahul T20 head to head vs Mohammed Siraj

If LSG's top order can lay a good platform, then we know from experience, including the game here between these 2 sides last season, that they have the firepower to accelerate later in the innings.

Bowling at the death was an issue for RCB and in particular Mohammed Siraj last season. However, he's bowled 3 overs 1 for 15 at the death so far this season and they may need his skills to help limit LSG's hitting again tonight.

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All stats used in this blog are from my own databases which are freely accessible below
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