Follow UsRoyal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)’s tale of the Indian Premier League 2024 is worth repeating. The franchise started the tournament in the worst possible manner and were in a freefall after losing seven of their first eight games. When it seemed that getting knocked out was just a matter of time, they did the impossible.
Needing six wins out of six to qualify, RCB won their first five games. And needing to beat arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the sixth game to qualify, the Faf du Plessis-led RCB pulled off one of the most memorable comebacks in IPL history, making their way into the playoffs.
New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson, who was part of the dressing room, narrated the behind-the-scenes of this famous comeback.
“A tough start for the team [RCB] that year, and at times, we were only losing by small margins. And we know in the IPL how small moments can change the entire game with the runs that are scored, and taking a great catch or getting wickets throughout can change the course,” Ferguson said in a Desert Vipers’ press conference.
“So, probably hard to nail down exactly what it was, but certainly, from my point of view, I learned from Faf [du Plessis] and Andy [Flower] how they've managed that situation. The RCB fans are vocal and passionate because they want a team to win. It was great learning and understanding in a team struggling to control the environment, encourage players, and change that winning way in the middle of a competition where you don't have a lot of time to make adjustments,” he added.
The New Zealand pacer also revealed that IPL 2024 was tough for the bowlers. The average run rate increased multi-fold, and scores over 220 almost became the norm in the competition.
“For fast bowlers and bowlers in general, the IPL last year was pretty challenging. It was a lot of runs scored. So adjustments needed to be made, and sometimes, they're just small adjustments that actually build pressure from both ends. So we found a bit of a formula with the team last year into the back end, and you can see how just a small bit of confidence can change a team. But again, that didn't happen by mistake,” he added.
Ferguson revealed that despite RCB’s struggles, the dressing room atmosphere was even and composed during the entire competition. He credited skipper du Plessis and Virat Kohli for that.
“It was certainly led by Faf, and his demeanour throughout the competition was very similar, whether we were losing or whether we were winning, it didn't matter. He was a very even leader. Also, Virat was the same, and his conversations in the changing rooms were controlled. We knew that we were short in a few areas at the start of the competition and then we tried to adjust them and managed to do that and have some success and just roll with that.”
In the end, RCB’s fairytale run came to an end when they crashed out of the competition in the Eliminator against Rajasthan Royals (RR), who eventually lost to SRH in the other playoff clash. But that doesn’t take away one bit of their inspirational and commendable turnaround in IPL 2024.
