Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has shared his views on Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s bowling line-up and hinted that the team might face problems this season. With Josh Hazlewood unavailable for the first few matches and Yash Dayal suspended for the seasonAccording to Chopra, the defending champions may face more pressure in their bowling department.
RCB’s preparations are in full swing ahead of their opening match on March 28 against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Both teams trained intensively and tested different combinations before the new season. Amidst these buildups, Chopra posted a video on his YouTube channel discussing his analysis and RCB’s likely playing XI.
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RCB bowling unit to face challenges
Last season, Hazlewood played a key role for RCB, picking up 22 wickets in 12 matches at an average of 17.54. However, due to recent injuries, the Australian pacer will miss the opening phase of the tournament.
Dayal also contributed significantly, stepping up in the death overs and taking crucial wickets. In the match against CSK, Yash Dayal dismissed MS Dhoni with a classic yorker while conceding just 18 runs in his three overs. However, the franchise confirmed that it will miss the entire tournament due to personal reasons.
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Apart from that, Krunal Pandya and Suyash Sharma had taken a total of 25 wickets in the previous IPL season. However, with both Yash and Josh unavailable, the main responsibility now shifts to Suyash, Krunal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Chopra doubts whether the trio will be able to shoulder the responsibility and deliver the same bowling performance as last year.
“I feel there might be some minor issues in the bowling. I can see it already. Krunal Pandya and Suyash Sharma did very well last year. It surprised everyone because I felt there was a slight weakness but both of them did really well,” said Aakash Chopra.
“However, can they do it in the second year? If two or three games don’t go well, do you try to remove Suyash and bring in someone else? Those are the questions that may arise and now that Josh Hazlewood and Yash Dayal are not there, there may be more pressure on the bowlers,” he added.
Can Mangesh Yadav replace Dayal?
Newly recruited left-arm all-rounder Mangesh Yadav could be an alternative for RCB’s bowling line-up. The youngster from Madhya Pradesh was bought for 5.20 crores in the IPL 2026 auction.
He is a left-arm pacer and a capable lower-order batsman. He is seen as a replacement for Yash Dayal and is expected to bring structure and balance to the bowling line-up. However, Aakash Chopra mentioned that Yadav may not immediately replicate Dayal’s impact.
“I heard that the new player Mangesh Yadav is very good. I really hope he performs well but expecting the same things from him as you expected from Yash is not always easy. So I definitely see a challenge in the bowling unit,” he said.
Towards the end of the video, Chopra predicted that veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar could end up as RCB’s top wicket-taker this season.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
25 March 2026 19:59 IST
