Acquiring more bowling options to support pace spearhead Mohammad Siraj will be Royal Challengers Bangalore's top priority at the upcoming IPL auctions, the team's Director of Cricket Bobat said on Monday. RCB have retained 18 players, including star batter Virat Kohli, skipper Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, and Siraj, and released 11 players. Those who have been released include the trio of medium pacer Harshal Patel, Sri Lanka leg spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, and Australian quick Josh Hazlewood, depleting the team's bowling resources.
In a media release, Bobat said, "Mohammad Siraj is a core part of what we do, so supporting Siraj with some more bowling options, including overseas bowling options, is going to be a real priority for us moving forward.”
He further added, "Then we have got a core of local spinners, which I think is quite strong. Some of them got some opportunities over the last year or two, and they might play more leading roles moving forward.”
In order to strengthen their middle-order top-heavy side, RCB traded Australia all-rounder Cameron Green for Rs 17.5 crore from the Mumbai Indians.
"We have got a strong core of retaining players, and we have got a very powerful top order. Part of the decision-making that we had around our player release decisions was to try and strengthen the middle order, and bringing Cameron Green was a fantastic move."