Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) made strategic acquisitions to successfully achieve optimal team balance at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 Auction in Dubai.

As RCB executed well-thought-out six bids to shape a strong squad for the upcoming season, skipper Faf du Plessis highlighted that it was a busy time for him and the think tank as they invested a lot of time in developing a comprehensive plan which helped to enter the auction with much more clarity. He said the team's focus was to pick the players who will perform well at home.

With a strong nucleus already present in the top order with players like Du Plessis, Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell and Rajat Patidar, and having acquired services of all-rounder Cameron Green, who adds excellent depth to the batting, RCB's focussed approach in the auction saw them securing more strength in the bowling department.

West Indian aggressive paceman Alzarri Joseph (Rs11.50 Cr) became the first buy for RCB at the auction. The 27-year-old holds the record for the best-ever bowling figures in the IPL of 6-12 and can be a quality option in death overs. They further added more speed into their attack by picking up New Zealand's fast bowler Lockie Ferguson (Rs2 Cr) and England's Tom Curran (Rs1.50 Cr).

RCB also added Indian left-arm pacer Yash Dayal (Rs5 Cr) and spin all-rounder Swapnil Singh (Rs20 lacs) to ensure variation in the bowling attack. They bought talented young wicketkeeper Saurav Chauhan (Rs20 lacs) from Gujarat to complete a 25-member squad. Chauhan made the headlines in the 2023 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy when he smashed 18-ball 61.

Head coach Flower is confident about the bowling attack and hopes they play an important role and also said they have a dangerous batting line-up.

New Buys at the IPL 2024 Auction

Alzarri Joseph (Rs11.50 crore), Yash Dayal (Rs5 crore), Tom Curran (Rs1.5 crore), Lockie Ferguson (Rs2 crore), Swapnil Singh (Rs20 lakh), Saurav Chauhan (Rs20 lakh).