The fear for a team which has an individual player who produces outstanding performances game after game is over-dependence. Royal Challengers Bangalore will have to pass that test if they have to go all the way in IPL4.
The red and gold brigade have to prove they are much more than Chris Gayle. The first time the opening batsman failed in the tournament, RCB lost on Tuesday, although Kings XI Punjab skipper Adam Gilchrist was unstoppable. After their 111-run defeat, RCB captain Virat Kohli was at pains to convince that his team's batting is good enough to cope when Gayle fails.
"Gayle has been brilliant but we have the middle order to do well in case he has an off-day. AB and I have also done decently in the tournament," he said.
For the first time in eight matches, Gayle failed to make an impression, getting out for a seven-ball duck. Kohli felt the loss could be a blessing in disguise.
"The defeat came at the right time for us and it is a reality check. It gives us a chance to regroup and reassess our plans before the playoffs. It is a chance for us to correct some faults in our game and move forward," he said. "It is impossible to win every game in cricket and it is good that this happened before the playoffs."
{{/usCountry}}"The defeat came at the right time for us and it is a reality check. It gives us a chance to regroup and reassess our plans before the playoffs. It is a chance for us to correct some faults in our game and move forward," he said. "It is impossible to win every game in cricket and it is good that this happened before the playoffs."
{{/usCountry}}Gilchrist was all praise for Praveen Kumar for standing upto the challenge against Gayle by producing a maiden over.
"We had some 40 plans against Gayle and I'm happy that one of them worked tonight. Kumar was brilliant to bowl a maiden over against him. That wicket gave us the early momentum while defending and we exploited it," Gilchrist added.