New Delhi, April 19 (IANS) Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar feels that Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) should be worried about the kind of surface they are getting at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium which resulted in their third straight loss at the home venue in the IPL 2025 season.
RCB lost to Punjab Kings by five wickets in a rain-reduced encounter where the home batters were reduced to 95/9 in 14 overs on Friday. Arshdeep Singh, Marco Jansen, Yuzvendra Chahal and Harpreet Brar bagged two scalps each.
In reply, Nehal Wadhera’s 19-ball 33 decorated with three sixes and as many fours powered Punjab to its fifth win of the season. The result kept RCB waiting for their first home win of the season.
Bangar also highlighted that RCB need to recalibrate their batting approach to get things back on track in home fixtures.
“They’d be worried, to be honest, with the kind of surfaces they’re getting. Who would’ve expected the amount of bounce that was on offer on this pitch? Nobody expected that. If that continues, this is no longer a batting-friendly surface or venue. RCB may need to recalibrate their batting approach to get things back on track in home games,” Bangar said on JioHotstar.
While breaking down RCB’s batting collapse, Bangar expressed disappointment with how Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma and Krunal Pandya lost their wickets at a crucial juncture of the match. The veteran also lauded Tim David for his half-century off 26 balls to steer the side to 95/9 in 14 overs.
“A couple of early dismissals were understandable – they were trying to set a good score, and in a rain-curtailed game, you don’t really have a clear idea of what’s enough. But the way Livingstone and Jitesh got out, and you’d expect a little more from Krunal Pandya as well – those three were disappointing. At one point, they were in danger of being bowled out for under 50. Credit to Tim David though – he held on and made a bit of a match out of it with a well-composed drift,” he said.
With eight points in seven matches, RCB sit at fourth spot in the points table and will take on Punjab Kings in the reverse fixture at the New PCA Stadium, New Chandigarh on Sunday.
–IANS
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