Smarting from their seven-wicket loss to Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bangalore will be determined to redeem their pride in front of home fans when they take on Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here tomorrow.
As RCB skipper Anil Kumble admitted, their performance at the Eden Gardens was below par in all departments of the game.
Their batting was unimpressive as they huffed and puffed to a niggardly 135. Their bowling came apart at the seam as Manoj Tiwary tore into their attack like a hurricane.
To add to their brimming on-field woes, RCB fielding was shoddy, highlighted by Sreevats Goswami's blundering glove work.
If RCB want to raise the performance bar as they had belatedly done in South Africa last season, they have to get their act together quickly before their hopes of making it to the semifinals is blown away at the very start of competition.
Except Jacques Kallis, who resolutely batted through the 20-over innings, the rest of the RCB batters came a cropper. Much was expected of Goswami, Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey, but the talented triumvirate fell to impetuous strokes.
Unless these youngsters and English-import Eoin Morgan, who would be eager to stabilise his place before Ross Taylor arrives, provide the thrust at the top, it will be difficult for RCB to overcome Kings XI Punjab's robust challenge.
