RCB head coach Ray Jennings thinks the absence of bowler Zaheer Khan is a problem for the team.
Royal Challengers Bangalore coach Ray Jennings believes that being without fast bowler Zaheer Khan is adversely affecting the franchise’s results.
Zaheer hasn’t featured at all in this year’s IPL after suffering a side strain in the week before Bangalore’s first match.
RCB lost their last Twenty20 encounter in the tournament to a final-ball defeat against Chennai Super Kings on Saturday, a loss Jennings feels perhaps could have been avoided if his Indian bowler was playing.
“You are always going to miss any guy with that amount of experience because he has done is so often and he can actually handle the pressure,” the head coach said on ESPNcricinfo.
Zaheer was the Royal Challengers’ second highest wicket-taker at the 2012 IPL and his presence has been missed, although their batting attack of captain Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle has been making up for the bowling inadequacies.
The veteran Indian is currently in his second spell at Bangalore, after playing for the side in 2008 and in his 42 matches for the Royal Challengers he has taken 44 wickets.
Before the tournament had even started Kohli had expressed to the franchise owners that the bowling options needed to be addressed and no fewer than four seamers were bought in during February’s IPL auction as a result.
Yet even with so many fast bowling options in the side RCB are still missing Zaheer, a problem that might worry both their skipper and Jennings as the side bid to make the last-four of the 2013 competition.
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