Kohli Plays Major Part in RCB's Success, But Last Year Their Bowling Unit Also Came To Fore: Kumble

The 19th edition of the TATA IPL is set to begin on March 28, with all 10 teams gearing up for the marquee tournament. Speaking on JioStar's 'TATA IPL: Out or Out of the Park', JioStar experts Anil Kumble and Cheteshwar Pujara shared their views on RCB's team performance in the 2025 season, MS Dhoni's batting position, and the debate over the greatest team in TATA IPL history.

"Virat plays a major part in RCB's success. But if you look at last year, whenever RCB were successful, their bowling unit also came to the fore. I feel Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar certainly contributed a lot. The two spinners, Krunal Pandya and Suyash Sharma, were also a surprise package. The bowling unit performed exceptionally well for them to win the trophy. So, I think the fans will certainly throng the Chinnaswamy Stadium to watch Virat Kohli. But I'm sure the fans will also be proud that they have a really strong bowling unit that can defend."

"MI is very close to, or almost the same as CSK when you talk about the greatest team in the IPL, because you can't really distinguish one from the other. CSK has always been consistent with their selections. They go for people who have been there and done that. Only last year did we see a few youngsters come through. Whereas MI has gone slightly out and looked at players whom nobody had seen before, some who had done well at the domestic level. So people like Hardik, Krunal and Jasprit all came through those ranks. And then we saw what happened. Recently, you had the likes of Nehal Wadhera, who has now moved to PBKS, but performed really well for MI."

"I don't see a point in MS Dhoni batting at Number 8 or 9, because he has the potential to turn games around single-handedly, something no other batter in the CSK team can do. If he bats for only five or ten balls, imagine what Mahi bhai can do if he plays 25 or 30 balls."

"I've been in the CSK setup. In that environment, players are very comfortable, it's like a family. When you're in that setup, there is clarity about what is expected of you as a player. Loyalty also comes into the picture because most of CSK's players, if you look at the history, once a player is part of that setup, he stays there for a long time. There is a transition in the team now, so there is a bit more preference for young players."