Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s aspiration to win their first IPL (Indian Premier League) title was once again thwarted after they were eliminated from the tournament by the Rajasthan Royals. The two teams clashed at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in the Eliminator, where the Royals emerged victorious, ending RCB’s campaign.
RCB’s journey to the playoffs was nothing short of a rollercoaster. The team struggled significantly at the start of the season, winning just one of their first eight matches. This dismal performance had them on the brink of being the first team to exit the tournament. However, a remarkable turnaround saw RCB win six consecutive matches, allowing them to maintain a superior net run rate compared to the Chennai Super Kings and secure the fourth spot in the group stage.
Despite their resurgence, RCB’s hopes were dashed by the Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator. Led by Sanju Samson, the Royals defeated RCB by four wickets to advance to Qualifier 2. In the aftermath of the defeat, RCB’s head coach, Andy Flower, praised the team’s resilience and fighting spirit throughout the campaign.
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“I think our guys have fought brilliantly over the last 10 weeks to come back from our first half of the tournament. It was a great effort and I certainly would pay tribute to Faf du Plessis for his captaincy and Faf and Virat for the way they’ve led from the front as role models and professional sportspeople. But also the way they’ve played,” Andy Flower remarked, according to ESPNcricinfo.
When asked about the franchise’s plans for the next IPL season in 2025, Andy Flower mentioned the need for strategic recruitment, particularly focusing on acquiring highly skilled bowlers. He emphasized that simply having pace bowlers would not be sufficient to succeed at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
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“As far as recruitment for next year, it’s a bit early to talk about that. Quite frankly, I don’t want to talk about that yet. I do think though the Chinnaswamy has some particular qualities that we need to be able to exploit. You certainly need highly skillful bowlers at Chinnaswamy. Simply pace is not going to be the answer there. You need skillful, intelligent bowlers and people that can bowl to really specific plans at Chinnaswamy,” Andy Flower explained.
This reflection on the season and the strategic insights for the future underscore the challenges and the continuous evolution required for RCB to finally break their title drought.
