Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Saturday (August 21) announced three replacement players for the UAE leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 as they signed Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera and Tim David. They have replaced Adam Zampa, Daniel Sams and Finn Allen.
The franchise has reportedly been hit with another pullout as pacer Kane Richardson won’t be part of the season as well. Richardson has also been ruled out of the season. The right-arm pacer was one of the players who had pulled out of the first phase of IPL 2021 before the season was suspended.
Richardson is part of Australia’s T20 World Cup squad but will miss IPL. He had joined the franchise for Rs 4 crore in IPL 2020 auction but withdrew from the season last year. In IPL 2021, he only played one fixture before flying back.
RCB are likely to include George Garton as Kane’s replacement. An uncapped player at the highest level, Garton has played 37 T20s since his debut in 2016. He has been part of England’s ODI squad. He entered IPL 2021 auction with a base price of Rs 20 lakh but went unsold. The left-arm pacer was part of Southern Brave, who won the tournament, in The Hundred.
Meanwhile, RCB’s players have started assembling in Bengaluru and will leave for UAE on August 29. Virat Kohli and Mohammed Siraj are in England and will join the team’s camp in UAE a few days before the start of the tournament.
With 5 wins from 7 matches, RCB are placed at the 3rd spot in the points table. The Kohli-led side was sitting at the top spot at one stage and will hope to finish in the top two. RCB kick off their campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders on September 20.
