Wasim Jaffer recently suggested that Mahipal Lomror should not bat at No.3 for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) during this season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023). Jaffer believes Lomror is better suited in the middle order and suggested the team should try someone like Suyash Prabhudessai instead. He also noted that the absence of Rajit Patidar has put too much pressure on the senior batters and has contributed to the eight-run loss against the Chennai Super Kings. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Jaffer said:
“Mahipal Lomror doesn’t bat at No.3, even for his state team. It’s far too up for his standard. They are definitely missing Rajat Patdiar, and it puts a lot of pressure on Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell to come good. If they don’t come good and if they don’t bat deep, they are in trouble.
“Suyash Prabhudessai bats for Goa at the top of the order. He is probably one of those guys who can bat at three, and then Lomrom actually bats at five, six and seven for Rajasthan. He can come down. Even for Rajasthan Royals, he has batted at five or six.
“Anuj Rawat can also strike. But all they’ve got are Indian guys who haven’t done the job yet. But I feel Suyash Prabhudessai is better off batting at three rather than six or seven.”
At the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday, April 17, RCB failed to meet CSK’s daunting 226-run target, resulting in their third-season defeat. Lomror could not bring any impact with the bat as he was dismissed for a five-ball duck. Across three games in IPL 2023, the left-handed batter has so far managed a meager 26 runs with an unimpressive strike rate of 113.04.
“Looking at the CSK bowling attack, they didn’t have experience”: Wasim Jaffer
Wasim Jaffer highlighted that Dinesh Karthik was one of the few players remaining who could have sealed the game for his team. He observed that even with a weak batting lineup beyond Karthik, the veteran keeper-batter was responsible for ensuring the team’s success. He said:
“Dinesh Karthik needed to finish this game because there’s not much power or experience in that lower half. That’s where I feel they kind of felt light today because, looking at the CSK bowling attack, they didn’t have experience, and everyone is pretty new.
“If you don’t do it against this bowling attack and this ground, it’s going to be difficult. Dinesh Karthik was the guy.”