JOIN USThe Royal Challengers Bangalore might have produced a much-needed win here on Tuesday but they were still not free from problems. AB de Villiers, Samuel Badree and Tymal Mills have picked up injuries and it will be a huge test for the Challengers’ bench strength in the upcoming matches.
“Badree, Mills and AB are injured. We are fortunate that we don’t play till April 23 and we have some recovery time. We are hopeful the three players will be fit soon. We do have an extended time before the next game and we are reasonably confident that they will be fit,” said coach Daniel Vettori at the post-match press conference here on Tuesday.
Vettori felt the hectic schedule of the league had nothing to do with players frequently getting injured.
“I think the guys enjoy playing repeatedly because they are getting more opportunities. They have more games to compete and try and win games for their teams. Sometimes extended breaks can make you rusty. But yes, if you can stay injury free then it will be great but if you can’t then it does make things difficult,” he offered.
Yuzvendra Chahal, with figures of 3/31, was RCB’s standout performer against the Gujarat Lions and his timely wickets helped the visitors prevail in a hard-fought contest. The dangerous Dwayne Smith and Suresh Raina fell prey to Chahal early in the innings and RCB inched closer to a win when the 26-year-old took the all-important wicket of Brendon McCullum.
Chahal dealt the Lions’ assault with great craft, drawing appreciation from his coach.
“I have been lucky enough to have worked with Chahal for the past four years. The way he bowled in the Champions League final (2011) was the reason why we wanted to get him into RCB. He is competitive and skilful.
“I think those two qualities make a spin bowler formidable and he is positive and confident of what he is doing. If you can succeed in a stadium like Chinnaswamy then it means you are special and we saw that again today with his performance,” Vettori noted.