Royal Challengers Bangalore have been woeful in this edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). They are the only team in the IPL without a win after suffering their fifth straight defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Friday. But there is some good news for the Virat Kohli-led outfit.
Australian pacer Nathan Coulter-Nile is expected to join the RCB squad on April 13 (according to a report in ESPNCricInfo). Both Marcus Stoinis and Coulter-Nile were expected to join the Bengaluru-outfit after the Pakistan limited-overs series in UAE.
However, Stoinis joined up with RCB before the Rajasthan Royals clash with Coulter-Nile opting to have a rest. Even Jason Behrendorff joined recently the Mumbai Indians’ squad and took 2 wickets against Chennai Super Kings in their last match. However, there are no updates regarding his status as no report or confirmation has come regarding his whereabouts.
Now Coulter-Nile will be available for selection before their match against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali on April 13. RCB opted to retain Coulter-Nile even though he missed the 2018 IPL season due to injury. This season also he has missed 5 matches for RCB and will again leave India on May 1 to return to Australia. Cricket Australia has made it mandatory for all World Cup-bound players to return to the country by May 1 and now RCB will have Coulter-Nile for just over two weeks. Stoinis will also leave the RCB camp before May 1.
RCB are languishing at the bottom of the IPL table with 0 points from their first 5 matches. They looked set for their first win of the season on Friday but they were undone by blitzkrieg from KKR’s Andre Russell. Now they will play the Delhi Capitals at home on Sunday.
