Ahead of their first game in Sharjah, a ground with a flat pitch and small boundary dimensions, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) head coach Simon Katich is feeling upbeat over his team's chances of winning.
Before the face-off with the power-packed Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) line-up on Monday (October 12), Katich said his team boast of the right balance to counter the opposition and the conditions on offer.
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Sharjah has built a notorious reputation of being a high-scoring ground this tournament, with batters under pressure to post above par scores and the margin of error significantly smaller for the bowlers.
Katich, however, believes his team have what it would take to come out unscathed.
"The thing about Sharjah is that there has been a spectrum of scores, there have been a couple of 220 scores, but the last game between Rajasthan and Delhi saw a score of 180 there," Katich said in a video posted on the official Twitter handle of RCB before Match 28 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020.
"So it will all depend on the moisture in the wicket or how it is prepared. We have the right sort of balance to play on that wicket, few batsmen are looking forward to the short boundary."
"The guys know that even playing here in Dubai, there have been some high-scoring games here as well. Realistically, when the grounds are small, guys can still hit them ten rows back with the power they have. I think the bowlers are getting used to that part of the game," he added.
It is feared the RCB bowling attack, still considered their second-best strength, will have their task cut-out versus the likes of Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Dinesh Karthik, Eoin Morgan & co.
But the team's Director of Cricket, Mike Hesson, said there are plans in place to restrict KKR's dangerous batsmen and it's a matter of executive those in the real game scenario.
"We have watched a few of the matches that have been played in Sharjah. The last surface wasn't that easy, the challenge for any side is just to adapt to the conditions quickly and that's with both bat and ball."
"Obviously, we have plans from the bowling point of view as to how we will attack KKR. From a batting point of view, it is just about assessing conditions," Hesson said.
Coming into this game on the back of a morale-boosting victory over Chennai Super Kings (CSK), RCB are fourth in the points table with four wins in six outings, including two losses.
(Inputs from ANI)
