RCB relying a bit too much on Karthik, need top-order to score big: Dirk Nannes

Both Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have been in good form of late and have made steady progress in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 table. SRH have notched up four back-to-back wins after losing their first two matches, while RCB have won four of their last five games and seem to have a settled unit at the moment.

Karthik has scored 210 runs this season already, striking at 205.88 and has on more than one occasion, bailed RCB out of a precarious occasion. Former Australia and Netherlands pacer irk Nannes, reckons that he will not be able to do that every game and as a result has called for RCB’s top-order, mainly Virat Kohli, to fire.

“RCB are relying a bit too much on Dinesh Karthik. I don't think you can expect someone like that to prop up your late innings [consistently],” Nannes said on Cricket.com. 

“You need Virat making runs, you need top-order making big scores. It's time for Virat to score. T20 cricket is such a beast of thing, where you think you feel like batting pretty well, you whack a thousand balls in training and still find a way to get out like he did the other night.”

As far as RCB’s overseas players are concerned, Nannes recons they have found the right balance.

“The captain [Faf du Plessis] and [Glenn] Maxwell pick themselves. [Wanindu] Hasaranga has been excellent, but not taking enough wickets. But that's okay. His numbers are not fantastic but he's still such a vital cog in the team,” Nannes opines.

“[Josh] Hazlewood is dominating. He is such an improved T20 bowler over the last few years. He's so cagey with the way he delivers the ball. He bowls changes of pace that are so subtle. How is [David] Willey really going to knock him out of the team? You've got a guy who has played three games and taken eight wickets. You can't get rid of that. The team is so settled now. Once they are full strength, the team pretty much picks itself.”

Shifting focus to SRH, Nannes says he is interested in seeing how they fare when they are forced to set a target as they have won all six tosses and have always elected to bowl first.

“They like to wing it. Their game works like that. Their bowling is good, they are miserly, keep team to par or just under-par scores and then they chase it down easily when the ball is skidding on at night. They are used it. So, why wouldn't you keep doing that? You're going to try and do it every single time,” Nannes, a former RCB player himself, said.

“The first time you lose the toss and set the total first, that will set the cats among the pigeons. There will be a different atmosphere around the team and I'm really interested to see what happens and how they react to that.”

Nannes is also pleased with the fact that all of SRH’s wins have been a team effort, but singles out Rahul Tripathi as their MVP this far. Tripathi has scored 205 runs at 51.25 to go with a strike-rate of 173.72.

“The beauty of what they have done is they have shared it around. It's tough to pick just one person. Rahul Tripathi, who is averaging 50 and striking at 173, Markram has been dismissed just once, striking at 150. That's just remarkable,” Nannes said.

“Then you have the emergence of Umran Malik. He's been an excitement machine. Natarajan is brilliant in just taking wickets and bowling important overs. Bhuvi [Bhuvneshwar Kumar] and [Marco] Jansen have been excellent. Probably Tripathi for me. I think with the bat he stood out when others haven't.”