Bangalore Team’s Performance in TATA IPL 2025
2
Matches
2
Won
0
Lost
100
Win %
Expected Playing XI and Impact Sub
Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar ©, Liam Livingstone, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Dar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood and Suyash Sharma
Top Fantasy Picks from the Team
Virat Kohli – The Indian batting superstar remains a run-machine in the league and was the Orange Cap winner of the last season as well. His batting form has also picked up in the build up to the tournament.
Phil Salt – The English wicketkeeper was destructive at the top of the order for Kolkata in 2024 and will enjoy the conditions at Chinnaswamy. He will be key to Bengaluru getting off to a flying start.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar – The veteran fast bowler proved himself to be invaluable for Hyderabad for a decade. He will bring his bag of tricks to the Chinnaswamy track and look to keep the opposition batters quiet in the powerplay with his swing.
Josh Hazlewood – The Australian pacer has enjoyed fruitful stints with Chennai, Mumbai and Bengaluru in the past and with his experience, can prove to be just the man Bengaluru need to partner Bhuvneshwar Kumar at the start of the innings.
Liam Livingstone – The last 18 months have been a bit of a rollercoaster ride for the English all-rounder who sprung back to form in the last few months after enduring a few quiet months with the national team which also saw him getting dropped. However, his ability to hit big hits puts him in a role similar to the one essayed by Glenn Maxwell in the previous few seasons for Bengaluru.
Bangalore’s Schedule for TATA IPL 2025
SWOT Analysis of Bangalore
Bengaluru’s auction strategy baffled many but there was a clear departure from the past as they chose to not stack their batting lineup with superstars as they did in the past. Instead they made effort to bring bowlers to the squad who have done well in the tough conditions that Chinnaswamy’s pitch presents.
Strengths – The batting lineup, despite not having a lot of foreign superstars as it used to in the past, is packed with names who can take the match away from the opposition on their own. The addition of batters like Salt, Livingstone and David make it a batting lineup worth watching out for.
Weaknesses – The franchise’s decision to appoint Rajat Patidar as the captain has drawn mixed response from fans as Patidar doesn’t come with a stellar captaincy record. Moreover, captaining a team full of T20I superstars without having played a T20I himself can make it a challenging prospect for Patidar, especially with the kind of expectations that fans would have of him.
It will be interesting to see how the team’s attempt to really solidify its bowling lineup without relying on superstar names pays dividends. Names like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood and Krunal Pandya might not instill fear in the opposition batters’ hearts but as a unit, they can do a very tidy job, especially on a pitch like that of Chinnaswamy.
Bangalore Team in TATA IPL 2025
In 2024, Bengaluru made a dramatic last-minute dash to the playoffs after a dismal start to their campaign. However, the trophy still eluded them, leading to some big decisions being made ahead of the 2025 season. The team parted ways with Faf Du Plessis and retained only three players ahead of the auctions, including superstar Virat Kohli. The fans were anticipating a return to captaincy for Kohli but the management chose to appoint Rajat Patidar as the skipper ahead of the season. On the auction table, the team made some big buys by getting Josh Hazlewood back for more than 12 crores while also dishing out 11 crores on two wicketkeeper batters – Jitesh Sharma and Phil Salt. Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be seen donning red and blue after spending more than a decade with Hyderabad. It would be interesting to see how Rajat Patidar, who is yet to make it to the national team in the shortest format, will lead the Bengaluru side to the trophy that has so far proved unconquerable.
While he won’t be seen captaining the side, Virat Kohli will still be the main draw as far as the Chinnaswamy is concerned. After battling poor form in Australia, Kohli played a number of match winning knocks in the Champions Trophy and would look to reprise his 2024 form for Bengaluru when he amassed 741 runs at an average of more than 60.
Brief history of Bangalore
Bengaluru is one of the eight original teams that the league began with which played the first ever game of the tournament when they hosted Kolkata at their home ground M. Chinnaswamy stadium. The short boundaries and the flat surface of the stadium allowed Brendon McCullum to pile up 158* which set not only the tone of the league, but also for matches on this ground, where batters often make merry and bowlers struggle.
While the team has made it to the final on several occasions, the cup has still eluded them. The team, however, has remained a consistent presence in the top four of the points table and also enjoys one of the biggest fan bases among all franchises. The team began its journey on a rocky note when it finished second last in the inaugural season led by Rahul Dravid. In the next season though, they made it to the Final when the captaincy was handed to Kevin Pietersen and, subsequently, to Anil Kumble.
The team’s signing of Virat Kohli before he even played for India proved to be a huge decision in the years that followed as the batter turned into one of the biggest superstars of Indian cricket. His stardom combined with the team’s penchant for signing names like Chris Gayle and AB De Villiers meant that the team enjoyed massive support in the 2010s. While the other superstars have left, Kohli has remained a part of the franchise for all the 17 years and even captained them for eight years. Under his captaincy, the team made it to the Final for the last time when they lost to Hyderabad in 2016. Despite a change in leadership in 2022, when Faf Du Plessis took over the captaincy, the teams fortunes didn’t change and despite a couple of playoffs appearances, they failed to lift the trophy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Bangalore’s captain for the TATA IPL 2024 season?
When was the last time Bangalore made it to the final of the tournament?
Bangalore made it to the final of the 2016 edition where they lost to Hyderabad.
