Mohammed Azharuddeen has subtle request for RCB captain Virat Kohli ahead of IPL 2021

Uncapped Indian cricketer Mohammed Azharuddeen is slated to take part in his maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) season through the upcoming edition. The youngster was recently acquired by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) franchise at the IPL 2021 auction, back in February. As of now, the wicketkeeper-batsman is playing for his state side Kerala in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 season.

IPL 2021: Mohammed Azharuddeen wants to play “fearless cricket” like idol Virat Kohli

In an interview with the InsideSport, Mohammed Azharuddeen said that he has been a great fan of Indian captain Virat Kohli as he is someone who has been an “inspiration” for him. The 26-year-old added that playing alongside Kohli at the RCB will be a “dream come true” for him. While Azharuddeen stated that he has many dreams, his ultimate wish remains playing for India at the international level.

Mohammed Azharuddeen also revealed that he wishes to play “fearless cricket” in the upcoming IPL 2021 season. In a way, Azharuddeen has requested Kohli to make him open the batting alongside Devdutt Padikkal. The Kerala prodigy claimed that he does not want to worry about getting out. Azharuddeen stated that his maiden IPL stint will be a “watching and learning” season for himself, and he wants to carry his current limited-overs form into the mega T20 tournament.

Virat Kohli to lead RCB team 2021

On January 20, the RCB franchise announced their list of retentions from their previous edition’s squad. They retained 12 cricketers, including captain Virat Kohli and star attractions like AB de Villiers, Yuzvendra Chahal and Mohammed Siraj. The upcoming IPL 2021 edition will be de Villiers’ 10th season for the RCB since he made his debut for the franchise back in 2011. Here is a look at the list of all 12 retentions made by the RCB ahead of the IPL 2021 auction.

Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers, Devdutt Padikkal, Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Pavan Deshpande, Shahbaz Ahmed, Adam Zampa, Kane Richardson and Daniel Sams.

RCB team 2021

At the IPL 2021 auction in Chennai on February 18, the RCB management further enhanced their squad with some new additions. They purchased the likes of Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, New Zealand’s rising speed gun Kylie Jamieson and several uncapped Indians like KS Bharat, Sachin Baby and Rajat Patidar. Interestingly, two of their purchases in the form of Maxwell and Jamieson were among the top draws of the auction.

List of RCB players for IPL 2021 season

Image source: BCCI.TV and IPLT20.COM