Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
How surprising is that despite having some of the best players in world football, Netherlands have never lifted the FIFA World Cup? In cricket, how surprising is that despite being blessed with a bunch of talented cricketers over the years, South Africa has never lifted the ICC World Cup?
Perhaps, the strength of a team is not necessarily justified by the personnel involved in it. In a team sport, what matters is the collective effort of everyone, not the glam and charm of one or two individuals. This is perhaps the reason that, despite having bought some of T20 cricket’s hottest prospects in every season, Royal Challengers Bangalore have no trophy to show for after twelve years of Indian Premier League.
Let us know more about Royal Challengers Bangalore in detail:
#Owners
Royal Challengers Bangalore once had Vijay Mallya associated with the side. They are currently owned by United Spirits Limited, which happens to be the world’s second-largest spirits company by volume. They have their headquarters in Bangalore itself. Mahendra Kumar Sharma is the chairman of the company, whereas Anand Kripalu is the managing director-cum- chief executive officer.
#Brand
Royal Challengers Bangalore derive their name from one of USL’s best selling liquor, Royal Challengers. The logo features the initials of the Royal Challenge in the middle, with a roaring lion at the top. They initially started out with the red and gold combination for their kit, but are currently using the black and red combination.
Their earliest theme song was called ‘Jeetenge Hum Shaan Se’. However, they had a new and enormously popular anthem in ‘Game For More’ in 2009. Their current anthem ‘Play Bold’ is available in six different languages – English, Kannada, Bengali, Telugu, Punjabi, and Marathi.
#Seasons
Royal Challengers Bangalore have never managed to get their hands on the IPL trophy, but they have come agonizingly close on more than one occasion. The first of such occasion was in 2009 when the reached the semis for the first time.
In the semi-final, they defeated Chennai Super Kings. However, they couldn’t repeat that achievement against Deccan Chargers in the final. They made it to the semis once again in 2010, but this time suffered a defeat against Mumbai Indians. RCB finished on the third position by beating Deccan Chargers in the 3rd place playoff.
They were very consistent in that period and had their best ever league outing in 2010 when they topped the group phases. They lost in the first qualifying match for the finals against Chennai Super Kings but got the better of Mumbai Indians in the second attempt. However, they eventually failed to win the tournament as Chennai Super Kings defeated them in the final.
The three seasons from 2012 to 2014 were very ordinary, but things changed once again in 2015. This time, they made it to the eliminator and even defeated Rajasthan Royals in that game. But Chennai Super Kings stood in their way once again and outsmarted them in qualifier 2.
RCB’s one of the most promising seasons came in 2016 when they finished the league phases in the top two. They defeated Gujarat Lions in qualifier one and engaged in a very evenly-paced final against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Unfortunately for them, David Warner’s side had the last laugh as Virat Kohli had to settle for the second place. Since then, the only way for RCB has been downwards, and they have failed to enter the playoffs again. The Challengers have finished last in two of the last three seasons.
#Key Players and Coaching Staff
Royal Challengers Bangalore always had Virat Kohli in their ranks. In the 2009 season, they were blessed with mesmerizing performances from two legends of the game in Jacques Kallis and Anil Kumble. They both were superb again in 2010, and RCB’s brilliance in that period is mostly because of performances from these two veterans.
The 2011 season saw the arrival of the Universe Boss – Chris Gayle. The big West Indian was in red hot form in that season, and so was Sreenath Aravind with the ball. But Bangalore’s best individual performance came from Virat Kohli in 2016.
The skipper scored 973 runs in that edition of IPL, whereas Yuzvendra Chahal was amazing with the ball. Even now, these two Indian stars remain the two most important players of the team. Bangalore has made some exciting additions to their side this year, by signing the likes of Aaron Finch and Chris Morris.
RCB has appointed Simon Katich as their coach this year, while former Kings XI Punjab coach Mike Hesson has been appointed as the director of cricket operations. Mithun Manhas will be assisting Katich, whereas Shanker Basu is the strength and conditioning coach of the team.
