RCB coaching staff excited about what overseas players have to offer

Royal Challengers Bangalore are all excited about their overseas prospects for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League. Head Coach Simon Katich and Director of Cricket Operations Mike Hesson, speaking to the media on the eve of RCB’s first practice session spoke about how RCB’s foreign imports are in good shape and are going to come handy in the next three months of high-octane cricket.

“Between Simon, myself and Virat we have spent an awful lot of time looking at the way we want to build the squad and play the game. We are well aware of history but it’s more about making sure we have got a squad that is balanced and strong in all conditions. A squad that can fight in the phases where the game’s on line,” said Mike Hesson.

Talking about Aaron Finch’s inclusion in the team, Hesson said that the Aussie's experience against the spin and his leadership skills are going to come handy. 

RCB will start their training at the ICC Cricket Academy in Dubai on Thursday and according to head coach Katich, the biggest challenge for the team will be the harsh weather conditions.

“The first challenge will be the extreme heat we are experiencing here. Players are used to it in India but it will certainly be a challenge given that they have not played cricket for a long time. They are coming back from a big break (which can affect) not only from the skills point of view but also from the mental side of the game.”

Katich also revealed how there might be a change of plans given the ground conditions in the UAE. “We were planning for half of the games at the M Chinnaswamy stadium, which is a very good batting wicket. The history of the grounds indicates the par scores are lower here.”

RCB has emboldened their bowling by roping Chris Morris, Isuru Udana, Kane Richardson and Dale Steyn. Steyn was bought back at the auction after being released earlier.

“Death bowling under pressure, we wanted to make sure we got it covered. We went into the auction with a lot of thought into that. We made sure we have some experienced finishers there,” said Hesson.

“The likes of Udana, Morris, Richardson, Steyn have also developed other skills. The likes of Umesh Yadav and Mohammad Siraj are a year wiser. Navdeep Saini has got international experience. We got (Yuzvendra) Chahal who is exceptional with leg-spinners and has a nice mix of spinners. We are not so much reliant on our batting and have a balanced unit,” he added.

“AB took part in an exhibition match only weeks ago. He was a standout player there, practically just coming out of his living room. He has played a good level of franchise cricket around the world in the last 12 months. He is refreshed. He is one among the group literally jumping to get back into training. 

Steyn… we saw him return (from injury) six months ago, he was in exceptional form. He had a good T20 league in South Africa where he was one of the top wicket-takers. He is not ready to retire yet and is keen to make a contribution,” said Hesson to allay the concerns arising out of the fact that the two senior South Africans have not had enough cricket leading up to the tournament.