Despite not being able to win a single Indian Premier League (IPL) title so far, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) enjoy a humongous fan base.
The RCB fans are one of the most royal sets of fans in IPL and they would be waiting with baited breath, in hope and anticipation, that the franchise lifts its maiden title.
The Royal Challengers Bangalore team have always been perennial underachievers.
Despite boasting some big names in their roster, they have always fallen short.
However, for the past 3 seasons they have been qualifying for the playoffs and that is a positive sign.
Glenn Maxwell will be returning after a long injury layoff and former captain Virat Kohli is in red-hot form.
These are extremely positive signs for the franchise and they would be hoping to end their trophy drought and win the IPL for their fans.
Maxwell’s replacement Will Jacks has been ruled out of IPL 2023 and Michael Bracewell has been named as his replacement.
Josh Hazlewood’s fitness remains a big headache and if not for the Australian speedster, RCB have the likes of Reece Topley and Avinash Singh.
In this article, we take a look at Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB’s) strongest playing XI in IPL 2023:
IPL 2023: RCB Best Predicted Playing XI
Openers: Faf Du Plessis and Virat Kohli
The opening combination of the Royal Challengers Bangalore franchise is a no-brainer.
The duo are an extremely lethal pair and come with individual excellence and brilliance.
Virat Kohli has been in the thick of runs and has been an absolute warrior for the Indian cricket team.
He has smashed 5 centuries since December 2022 in international cricket and would be looking to continue his blistering form in IPL 2023 as well.
Skipper Faf Du Plessis on the other hand had an impressive SA20 League tournament and would be looking to continue his rich vein of form.
In the 11 games he played in the inaugural edition of the tournament, Faf scored 369 runs.
Middle-order: Glenn Maxwell, Rajat Patidar and Mahipal Lomror
The middle-order of RCB looks quite potent. RCB will be bolstered by the presence of Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell.
There were clouds of uncertainty hovering over his participation in IPL 2023 after a freak leg injury in November 2022. But he is back.
Rajat Patidar smashed the fastest century by an Indian in the history of IPL in the Eliminator of IPL 2022 versus Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
Mahipal Lomror is a talented uncapped southpaw and would be hoping to have a good season.
Lower-order: Dinesh Karthik (w/k), Wanindu Hasaranga, Shahbaz Ahmed
Dinesh Karthik had a fiery IPL 2022 and because of that he earned a place in the Indian squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2022.
Wandindu Hasaranga too is a gem of a player in the RCB squad and he bagged 26 wickets in 16 wickets and absolutely bamboozled the opposition batters.
Shahbaz Ahmed is a promising Indian all-rounder and he recently made is India debut and would be brimming with confidence.
Bowlers: Josh Hazlewood, Mohammad Siraj and Harshal Patel
RCB have plenty of options in the spin-bowling department in the form of Shahbaz Ahmed and Wanindu Hasaranga.
The pace trio of Josh Hazlewood, Mohammad Siraj and Harshal Patel look pretty lethal and capable of springing up fabulous performances.
If Hazlewood isn’t fit, then Reece Topley would be taking his place.
RCB Strongest XI for IPL 2023
Faf Du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik (w/k), Shahbaz Ahmed, Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Mohammad Siraj, Josh Hazlewood
IPL 2023: RCB Full Squad
Faf du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Suyash Prabhudessai, Rajat Patidar, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat, Finn Allen, Glenn Maxwell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, David Willey, Karn Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Mohammed Siraj, Josh Hazlewood, Siddarth Kaul, Akash Deep, Reece Topley, Himanshu Sharma, Michael Bracewell, Manoj Bhandage, Rajan Kumar, Avinash Singh, Sonu Yadav.
Also read: IPL 2023: 3 Reasons Why Faf Du Plessis Might Have A Good IPL Season
