RCB Director of Cricket Bobat explains rationale behind getting Joseph, Dayal on-board
Dec 19, 2023
Dubai [UAE], December 19 : Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) Director of Cricket said that West Indies pacer Alzarri Joseph was one of the franchise's targets because of his high pace, high release point and bounce.
Joseph was bagged by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction on Tuesday.
"We are delighted to have Alzarri [Joseph]. From our perspective, he was in our top three targets. From an overseas pace bowling perspective, you are always trying to navigate through the auction order, which makes things slightly tricky. We made a good judgment call, I think, to bring forward our interest in Alzarri and to have a good go at him because he is a player that we really like now with Alzarri, he bowls at a high pace, he has got a high release point, so he gets bounce. We know bounce is important at the Chinnaswamy [Stadium]," said Bobat in a press release by RCB.
"He has also got fantastic death bowling skills. You look at his record and he stacks up against anyone at the death. He is also someone that is playing regular international cricket all around the world and franchises all around the world. So he is someone that can adapt to conditions and surfaces. And he is someone also that the captain knows really well. So Faf [du Plessis] and him have a really good relationship and they've got a real trusted dynamic between them," he added.
He has taken 32 wickets in 19 T20Is with best figures of 5/40. Overall, this WI star has taken 121 wickets in 101 T20s with the best figures of 6/12. His figures of 6/12 are the best-ever in IPL history, which came for Mumbai Indians against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2019. He most recently played for Gujarat Titans in the IPL and has 20 wickets across 19 matches in the league.
On Yash Dayal, the uncapped pacer who played for Gujarat Titans (GT) last year, Bobat said that the team liked his left-arm pace angle and how he moves the ball up front.
"We want to make sure we have got the right battery of bowlers domestically that can supplement the likes of Alzarri. Obviously, we have got Cameron Green as well. So we think we have got a really nice balanced attack with real variety. And we want to make sure that we have got variety whenever we step out on the field from a pace bowling perspective. So we have got enough bounce, we have got enough pace, we have got [Mohammed] Siraj, who's a champion swing bowler, up front, and we have got a left-arm angle. So it is us putting together our arsenal to take on the opposition," concluded Bobat.