Having suffered a six-wicket loss in their campaign opener, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will hope to get their act together when they take on a confident Punjab Kings in their first 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) match at home on Monday.

While RCB lost their season opener to defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Chepauk, PBKS secured a win over Delhi Capitals by four wickets in Mullanpur on Saturday.

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Accordingly, the Faf du Plessis-led outfit will look to address their bowling weaknesses and ring in a few early changes to its combination.

RCB’s bowlers struggled to find their rhythm in their previous match, with the pacers, Mohammed Siraj, Alzarri Joseph, and Yash Dayal failing to deliver the goods. While Siraj and Dayal conceded runs at around 9.5 runs per over and 9.3, respectively, West Indian Joseph proved to be the costliest, leaking 38 runs in 3.4 overs at 10.3. Cameron Green, the pace-bowling all-rounder tried to control things by varying his pace, but he too conceded nine runs per over.

In the scenario, the RCB team management could be tempted to try one of Lockie Ferguson and Reece Topley in the XI. RCB’s problems aren’t limited to their pace attack but their spin battery, comprising Mayank Dagar, Karn Sharma, and Glenn Maxwell too failed to capitalize on the sluggish pitch conditions at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

Back in their home conditions at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, known for its high-scoring encounters, thanks to the shorter boundaries, the RCB team management will have to strategically plan out their combination against am aggressive Punjab outfit.

While the batting department showed decent form despite putting up a ‘below-par’ total of 173 for six against CSK, RCB will hope for their middle order to take the responsibility of setting the tone. In the first match, the lower middle order put under a stern test with Dinesh Karthik and Anuj Rawat putting their hands up to propel the side to the sizeable total. The home side will now expect the senior pros in Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis, and Glenn Maxwell to step up and not leave the rebuilding job to the finishers in the side.

On the other hand, Punjab Kings will look to carry on their form and take advantage of the home side’s vulnerabilities. Having said that, Punjab have their own set of challenges, with their death bowling yet to come to terms to the requirements of the format. Harshal Patel, who has plied with trade for the RCB till last season, will look to use his familiarity with the conditions and marshal his new side’s death bowling.

With only a day’s gap between their two matches, it’s unlikely that Punjab would tinker with their winning combination, but with a belter on offer, the visitors could probably swap Shashank Singh for the hard-hitting Prabhsimran Singh in the XI and opt for another Impact Player.