Royal Challengers Bangalore, the team that has never won the IPL, are hunting for a new captain for the 2022 season. Their former captain, Virat Kohli had announced during IPL 2021 that he would relinquish captaincy at the end of that season.
Despite boasting of a fairly decent captaincy record, Kohli was unable to lead the franchise to the silverware. Since being appointed RCB’s permanent captain in 2013, Kohli captained in 140 games, winning 66 and losing 70. A win percentage of 48.52 is not among the best in the tournament, but is not among the worst either. Under Kohli, RCB reached the playoffs three times in nine seasons, which includes a runners-up position in 2016.
With the bat, captain Kohli boasts of an incredible record. With 4881 runs, Kohli is the highest run-scorer among all the captains in the tournament. But with him having decided to relinquish captaincy, let’s look at three players who can lead RCB in IPL 2022.
Faf du Plessis
Swashbuckling South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis was acquired by RCB for Rs 7 crore at the 2022 auctions held last month. The right-hander was the second-highest run-getter in IPL 2021 with 633 runs - only two runs behind teammate and Orange Cap holder Ruturaj Gaikwad. A year before that, Du Plessis was the leading run-scorer for CSK. With 100 IPL matches and 2935 runs, du Plessis brings with him plenty of experience to be the frontrunner for RCB’s captaincy post.
His captaincy records in international cricket have also been impressive. Du Plessis has won 62.5% of the matches he has captained in across formats. He has 18 wins in 36 Tests, 28 wins in 39 ODIs and 25 wins in 40 T20Is.
Glenn Maxwell
Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who was bought by RCB for a whopping Rs 14.25 crore in 2021, was retained by the franchise ahead of the 2022 season. The big-hitting batsman delivered the goods for RCB last year, finishing the season with 513 runs from 15 matches.
Maxwell leads the Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League, and was the captain of the Punjab Kings in 2017. These two captaincy experiences, along with the experience of playing 207 international games and 346 T20s, can help the Aussie bag the job of RCB’s captaincy.
Dinesh Karthik
Wicketkeeper batsman Dinesh Karthik was roped in by RCB for Rs 5.5 crore at the recent auction. This will be Karthik’s second stint with the Bangalore-based franchise, having previously played for them in 2015.
Karthik, who captains Tamil Nadu in domestic cricket, has also led KKR for two years. In his first year as KKR’s captain, the side finished among the top four in the points table. If RCB are looking for an Indian captain, then Karthik is the best choice for the job.
In addition to playing 213 IPL matches since the tournament’s inception, Karthik also brings with him the experience of representing India in 152 games across formats.
