Discover the best all-time XI of Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL history, featuring legendary players and unforgettable performances. Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) is one of the most exciting teams in IPL history. While their batting lineup has always been strong, their bowling has often fallen short. Although RCB hasn’t won the IPL title yet, they have been runners-up three times (2009, 2011, and 2016). The team has a massive fan base across India, mainly because of Virat Kohli.
Rahul Dravid was the first captain and icon player of the team in IPL’s first season. Over the years, RCB tried different captains like Kevin Pietersen and Anil Kumble before Virat Kohli became the long-term captain. Kohli, along with AB de Villiers and former player Chris Gayle, has been the backbone of RCB’s batting for years. The team plays its home matches at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
RCB has always been a tough team to compete against. In the past, players like Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Chris Gayle, and Anil Kumble were part of the team. Today, they have top players like Virat Kohli, Yuzvendra Chahal, and AB de Villiers. Among the teams that haven’t won the IPL trophy yet, RCB is one of the most successful, as they have come close to winning several times.
10. Chris Gayle
Chris Gayle has been one of the key players for RCB and is considered the most successful T20 player ever. He has scored over 13,000 runs in T20 cricket and is known for his explosive batting. After some poor seasons with KKR and going unsold in the 2011 auction, RCB picked him as a replacement for Dirk Nannes, who was injured.
Gayle completely changed the game for RCB. In the 2011 season, he scored 608 runs in just 12 matches, with an average of 67.55 and a strike rate of 183.13, helping RCB reach the finals. He followed this with 733 and 705 runs in the next two seasons, winning the Orange Cap in 2011 and 2012. He also holds the IPL record for the most sixes, with 326.
Gayle set many records in the IPL, including the highest individual score of 175 not out off 66 balls, the fastest century (in just 30 balls), and the most sixes in a single inning. He scored 22 centuries in T20 cricket, 5 of which were for RCB, and totaled 3420 runs for the team. He is the second-highest scoring overseas batsman in IPL history.
9. Virat Kohli
When talking about the highest-scoring batsman in IPL history, no one stands out more than the Indian captain, Virat Kohli. He led India to victory in the 2008 ICC U19 Cricket World Cup and hasn’t looked back since. Kohli joined the RCB team in 2008 and became the captain in 2013.
Kohli is the only player to have played for the same team in every IPL season. While he hasn’t won an IPL trophy with RCB, he has been incredible with the bat. He has scored 5,412 runs for RCB in the IPL, making him both the team’s and the league’s top scorer. His runs came at an impressive average of 37.84 and a strike rate of 131.61, especially considering he started playing IPL at just 19 years old.
In the 2016 IPL season, RCB finished as runners-up, and Kohli set a record by scoring 973 runs in 16 matches, with an average of 81.08. He won the Orange Cap and the Most Valuable Player Award that year. In 2018, RCB retained him for 17 Crore INR, the highest for any player that season. Even with Rahul Dravid included in this all-time XI, Kohli will be the captain of the team.
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8. AB De Villiers
After mentioning Gayle and Kohli, it’s impossible not to talk about AB de Villiers. AB is a unique batsman known for his 360-degree shot-making and powerful hitting. He’s also an amazing fielder who can pull off stunning moves on the field. On his best days, AB can win matches all by himself. He can switch between traditional batting and creative shots, making him stand out from most players.
AB had a great season with Delhi Daredevils in 2009 before joining RCB in the 2011 auction. This started the famous Gayle-Kohli-De Villiers era at Chinnaswamy Stadium. He became one of the most reliable and dangerous batsmen in IPL history, scoring over 300 runs in all but one season since joining RCB. He is 9th on the list of all-time highest IPL run-scorers.
As a finisher, AB has been outstanding, with memorable hundreds in Mumbai in 2015 and Bengaluru against Gujarat Lions in 2016. Alongside Virat Kohli, he has achieved five 100+ partnerships and two 200+ partnerships, the only pair in IPL to do so. In 2016, he scored 687 runs, finishing third in the season’s top run-scorers.
7. Jacques Kallis
Jacques Kallis is one of the greatest all-rounders in cricket history. His stats in all formats are remarkable and inspire young cricketers. He is the only player to score over 10,000 runs and take more than 250 wickets in both ODIs and Test matches. Although Kallis was in his mid-30s when the IPL started, he still managed to score over 2,000 runs and take 50+ wickets before retiring.
Like Rahul Dravid, Kallis played for RCB from 2008 to 2010. During his time with the team, he scored 1,271 runs at an average of 33.44 and took 30 wickets. He is RCB’s fourth-highest run-scorer, behind Gayle, Kohli, and De Villiers. Interestingly, he also bowled the most maiden overs (4) for RCB.
Kallis had his best IPL season for RCB in 2010, scoring 572 runs at an average of 47.66, including 6 half-centuries. He also took 13 wickets that season with his medium-fast bowling. Even though he retired from the IPL six years ago, he is still the 24th highest run-scorer and 36th highest wicket-taker in the league’s history.
6. Parthiv Patel
No batting line-up is perfect, and while explosive players like Russell or Pollard would be ideal finishers, Parthiv Patel is given this role in this hypothetical team. Patel has played for many IPL teams in his career. Besides RCB, he has represented Chennai Super Kings, Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Mumbai Indians.
In the 2014 IPL Player Auction, RCB bought him. Before IPL 2015, they traded him to Mumbai Indians. Later, in the 2018 IPL Auction, RCB brought him back for the eleventh season. Parthiv Patel has scored 731 runs for RCB, making him their third-highest Indian run-scorer, ahead of players like KL Rahul, Yuvraj Singh, Manish Pandey, and Robin Uthappa.
Parthiv is most effective during powerplay overs, as he uses the pace of the new ball to hit past the fielders. In this line-up, he bats lower because of the strong top-order players. Since he plays well against pace bowlers, he could score crucial runs in the death overs.
5. Mitchell Starc
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have often been criticized for relying too much on their top-order batsmen, and this is also seen in this lineup. Mitchell Starc earned his spot over Dale Steyn due to his better average and strike rate. Starc has only played for RCB in the IPL.
In the 2014 IPL, RCB bought Starc, and he quickly became their key bowler in the 2015 season. Despite missing the start of the tournament due to injury, he returned in great form, continuing his success from the World Cup. In total, Starc played 26 matches for RCB, taking 34 wickets with an impressive economy rate of 7.16.
In 2015, Starc was RCB’s star bowler. He took 20 wickets in just 13 matches, with an economy rate of 6.76, a strike rate of 12.90, and an average of 14.55. His best performance that year was 4/15 against Kings XI Punjab. On January 27, 2018, Starc was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders for 9.4 crore INR but missed the season due to injury.
4. Anil Kumble
With Anil Kumble’s inclusion, RCB had a strong trio of players – Dravid, Kallis, and Kumble – who played together from 2008 to 2010. After the 2010 season, RCB’s management released two of them, but they remain some of the best players in RCB’s history. Despite playing only three seasons, Kumble is RCB’s third-highest wicket-taker ever.
In 2009, he delivered an incredible performance, taking 5 wickets for just 5 runs against Rajasthan Royals. After Kevin Pietersen left for international duty, Kumble became RCB’s captain. While RCB didn’t win the tournament, Kumble was the best spin bowler and the second-highest wicket-taker of the season, with 21 wickets at an economy rate of 5.86 runs per over.
Overall, Kumble took 53 wickets in 51 matches for RCB in the IPL and CLT20. His economy rate of 6.65 made him one of the toughest bowlers to score against. He also claimed 2 four-wicket hauls and 1 five-wicket haul in the IPL. After retiring, Kumble joined RCB as the chief mentor, continuing his association with the team.
3. Zaheer Khan
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) fans have seen legends like Zaheer Khan, Dale Steyn, and Anil Kumble play at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Zaheer Khan played for RCB and Mumbai Indians before joining Delhi Daredevils in the 2015 auction. He captained Delhi Daredevils in 2016 and 2017.
Zaheer played for RCB in 2008 and from 2011 to 2013. In these four seasons, he took 49 wickets in 43 matches with a strike rate of 20.4 and an average of 26.77. His best IPL season was in 2012 with RCB, where he picked up 17 wickets.
Even though Zaheer’s best bowling figures (4/17) came in 2013, he only played two matches that year and was released by RCB afterward. In the 2017 IPL season, while captaining Delhi Daredevils, Zaheer became the 10th bowler and the 8th Indian to take 100 IPL wickets.
2. Vinay Kumar
Vinay Kumar has been a key player for Karnataka cricket over the past 10 years. He led Karnataka to win two Ranji Trophy titles in the 2013–14 and 2014–15 seasons. The medium-fast bowler played for Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Mumbai Indians in the IPL, but his best days were with RCB.
In his last season during his first stint with RCB, Kumar took 16 wickets with a strike rate of 17.31. After spending a year with Kochi Tuskers Kerala, he returned to RCB and delivered some of his best performances in the next two seasons. He took 42 wickets in 2012 and 2013 combined, becoming one of the IPL’s top bowlers.
During his time with RCB, he claimed 80 wickets, making him the second-highest wicket-taker for the team. He also ranks 12th in the IPL’s all-time wicket-takers list. Since leaving RCB in 2013, Vinay Kumar has struggled, and at 36, his IPL career seems to be nearing its end.
1. Yuzvendra Chahal
Yuzvendra Chahal has been one of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) most reliable bowlers over the years. He is India’s main wrist spinner in limited-overs cricket and was the first Indian to take a five-wicket haul in T20 internationals. Chahal joined the Mumbai Indians in 2011 and played a key role for them in the Champions League T20 final.
Since joining RCB in 2014, Chahal has performed consistently, taking 23 wickets in 2015 and 21 wickets in 2016. He has taken more than 10 wickets in every season for RCB, with a decent economy rate of 7.77 for a leg spinner. He has also taken two four-wicket hauls in the IPL, and his strike rate of 17.6 is second only to Mitchell Starc.
Chahal is known for his clever variations and is often Virat Kohli’s trusted bowler in tough situations. A match-winner on his day, he has taken 100 wickets in 83 matches so far. Before cricket, the Haryana-born spinner also represented India in chess at the youth level.
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