Only that team wins in IPL, in which the right player with form is selected with balance and given a chance. Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has recently selected his playing eleven for RCB, in which he has made a change which has become a point of debate on social media.
Actually, Ashwin took the biggest decision regarding number 3, where he gave place to England's fast bowler Jacob Bethel and kept Venkatesh Iyer out of his team. Bethel is the same player who made headlines by scoring a century against India in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Bethel has shown his talent in IPL also. In the two matches played so far, he has scored 67 runs and has emerged as a strong middle order option for RCB. Ashwin believes that the foreign power of Royal Challengers Bangalore looks the strongest in IPL 2026. He said on his YouTube channel that players like Phil Salt, Bethel, Tim David and Romario Shepherd can make any team strong.
He also said that the initial absence of Josh Hazlewood is not a loss for RCB, but it can be an opportunity, because the team can give a chance to both Salt and Bethel and after Hazlewood's return, a decision can be taken on the basis of form.
Ashwin looked quite confident about this team led by captain Rajat Patidar. He believes that RCB is no longer dependent on just one or two players, but the team has both depth and options. Ashwin said that RCB has the potential to win another title in the next two years. The balance of the team is excellent and it has the potential to reach the top-2. Talking about bowling, he said that the team has flexibility. If needed, Jacob Duffy can be included in place of Mangesh Yadav or Hazlewood, if fit, can be included.
Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Jacob Bethel, Rajat Patidar (captain), Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mangesh Yadav, Yash Dayal.
Impact Player: Suyyash Sharma
