Rajat Patidar backs his pace bowlers ahead of the Royal Challengers vs Gujarat Titans (RCB vs GT) Qualifier 1 match of the ongoing IPL 2026 season. The RCB captain claims that their main strength lies in their bowling attack.
With the new ball, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been brilliant for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, taking 24 wickets from 14 games so far in this season. Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood also has significant contributions this season for RCB.
At the pre-match press conference in Himachal Pradesh, Rajat Patidar said that they will keep attacking with the ball from the beginning of the innings. Their main priority will be to take the top wickets of the Gujarat Titans as soon as possible.
“Our strength is bowling… The way we bowl in the power play, I think, will be very crucial. Everyone in the team knows that we are not here to defend; we are here with the mindset of attacking. We will look for early wickets. That is what we have done so far,” Rajat Patidar told the reporters.
“Doing the same thing again and again, I think it will make a difference. That is what Bhuvi, Hazlewood, and Rasikh (Salam) are doing. We hope that we will continue in the same process," Rajat Patidar added.
RCB pacer vs the top order batters in IPL 2026
Bhuvneshwar Kumar has claimed 9 opener’s wickets so far in his season. The 36-year-old dismissed 1st position batters five times for an average of only 1.8. Sai Sudharshan, GT’s one of the most reliable batters, also lost his wicket against the seamer cheaply. Pathum Nissanka, Sahil Parakh, Sudharsan, Ryan Rickelton, and Priyansh Arya are among the openers who were dismissed by Kumar in the early stages of an innings. Among the second-positioned batters of the batting line-up, GT skipper Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Fin Allen, and Prabhsimran Singh went off guard against the fast bowler of RCB this season.
However, the other star pacer of the team, Josh Hazlewood’s IPL 2026 stats are not so impressive in comparison to Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s bowling stats. The Aussie star has so far picked 12 wickets from 11 matches. Hazlewood has dismissed 5 openers so far in this season, in exchange for a costly average.
Rasikh Salam, another RCB pacer, so far contains better overall stats compared to Josh Hozlewoon. The uncapped Indian seamer has bagged 14 scalps in 10 matches so far. Aiden Markram and Travis Head were the two batters who lost their wickets against Salam. Nicholas Pooran, Ishan Kishan, and Naman Dhir, who mostly bat in the number three position, went off guard against this RCB quick.
The benefits Bengaluru will get if they defeat GT
If Bengaluru manages to win tonight, then they will enter the final straightaway. The final match will be held on May 31, which means that by defeating GT, Bengaluru could get some extra days for recovery sessions as well.
“Win Qualifier 1, and you go straight through. But honestly, that hasn't really been the conversation in our camp. From the very start of the season, our focus has simply been on winning every game. If we win here, the team will get a good break before the final, which is important, and I think everyone is looking forward to that,” Rajat Patidar said.
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