R Ashwin picks RCB's playing XI for IPL 2023, leaves out star Indian cricketer from team

Team India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin revealed his choice of playing XI for the Royal Challengers Bangalore franchise in the Indian Premier League 2023. RCB kick off their IPL 2023 campaign against five-time champions Mumbai Indians on Sunday, April 2. Meanwhile, speaking on his latest YouTube shorts, R Ashwin revealed the players he would like to see playing for RCB in the 16th edition of the marquee T20 league. 

The star-allrounder said RCB should continue to open with captain Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli, before Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, and Shahbaz Ahmed come in. He reckoned Dinesh Karthik should remain at his finishing role at No. 6 while bringing in spinner Mahipal Lomror and Wanindu Hararanga at No. 7 and No. 8. Ashwin then added Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep to the team to complete the RCB playing XI, but left out Harshal Patel.

R Ashwin leaves out Harshal Patel from RCB's playing XI

Patel was the purple cap winner during the IPL 2021 season with 32 wickets for RCB in 15 games. While he stormed into the Indian team with his performance in the IPL, he now finds himself out of the team due to a string of poor shows. He continues to remain one of the key players in the Faf du Plessis-led RCB.

R Ashwin’s playing XI for RCB in IPL 2023

• Faf du Plessis
• Virat Kohli
• Rajat Patidar
• Glenn Maxwell
• Shahbaz Ahmed
• Dinesh Karthik
• Mahipal Lomror or Anuj Rawat
• Wanindu Hasaranga
• Josh Hazlewood or Reece Topley
• Mohammed Siraj
• Akash Deep

RCB announces New Zealand star Michael Bracewell as replacement for Will Jacks

The franchise recently announced Kiwi all-rounder Michael Bracewell as the replacement for injured Will Jacks, looking to strengthen their lineup. "Michael Bracewell of New Zealand will replace Will Jacks for IPL 2023. The 32-year-old all-rounder was the top wicket-taker for Kiwis during the T20I series in India and scored a fighting 140 in an ODI game. An unfortunate muscle injury to Will Jacks has ruled him out of this season, and we wish him a speedy recovery,” tweeted RCB.

RCB squad for IPL 2023

Players bought - Reece Topley (INR 1.9 crore), Himanshu Sharma (INR 20 lakh), Will Jacks (INR 3.2 crore), Manoj Bhandage (INR 20 lakh), Rajan Kumar (INR 70 lakh), Avinash Singh (INR 60 lakh).

Players retained - Faf du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Suyash Prabhudessai, Rajat Patidar, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat, Finn Allen, Glenn Maxwell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, David Willey, Karn Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Mohammed Siraj, Josh Hazlewood, Siddarth Kaul, Akash Deep.