The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 got off to a rocky start for the Faf du Plessis-led Royal Challengers Bangalore. In the five games, they have managed to win just a couple of games and lost three times. Despite their top order putting in excellent performances in the tournament, the rest of the batting lineup has failed to do much for the team. Talking about the same, former Indian fast bowler, Zaheer Khan came forward to point out a major flaw in the side’s batting lineup.

The 44-year-old opined that if Dinesh Karthik is unable to regain his form, the problems could persist throughout the tournament. During a recent chat on JioCinema, Zaheer Khan said, “The way Faf and Max batted, especially with Virat Kohli getting dismissed early, we understand the pressure they were under.”

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He further added, “In the middle order or to finish, if Dinesh Karthik cannot perform like the way he used to play previously, then these issues will persist all season long as the rest of them are inexperienced.”

In Chennai Super Kings’ recent game against Bangalore, Devon Conway was one of the best performers in the game. Batting first, the four-time champions posted a whopping 226 runs on the board, and Conway’s contribution (83 off 45) in the first innings was crucial for the visitors.

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Former India cricketer Parthiv Patel came forward to heap praise on Conway’s performance, and said, “His batting usually goes this way, he takes some time to settle in at the start but after that, if he plays, he plays for a long time. You need a batter that can score 83 runs on 45 balls and someone who plays on one end for 14-15 overs and maintain the strike rate. We spoke about his lack of contribution on this front prior to the game but whenever he has contributed, he has put CSK in a winning position, which is why they persist with him.”