Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra has shed light on the bowling factors which worked for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their successful IPL campaign. Chopra highlighted that leg-spinner Suyash Sharma picked up crucial wickets but he expected the opposition batters to take the attack against the Delhi player.

Sharma scalped nine wickets in 12 matches at an average of 41.77 and an economy rate of 9.20 in IPL 2026. Chopra praised the leg-spinner for proving him wrong after performing decently in two back to back seasons. 

Suyash had bagged eight wickets in 14 matches in IPL 2025 at an economy rate of 8.84.

“I will mention Suyash Sharma because he gets few opportunities, and he is also not someone you look at as a lead spinner. He can be expensive at times, but he has picked up crucial wickets. He allowed RCB and Rajat Patidar not to go towards Romario Shepherd repeatedly,” Chopra said on YouTube Channel.

“Let’s not forget that they played five matches in Bengaluru, and it’s not easy to bowl there, but he did it. I was a 50-50 candidate on whether Suyash would have a good second season. I felt people might take him on, as it happens with many bowlers. We saw that happening with Digvesh Rathi, and it was the same story with Vipraj Nigam, but it didn’t happen like that with him,” he added.

Chopra hailed Rasikh Salam Dar for his unbelievable performances throughout the season. The fast bowler from Jammu and Kashmir scalped 19 wickets in 12 matches and thus played a key role for RCB.

“Rasikh Salam Dar – he didn’t win a single Player of the Match award. He was the highest wicket-taker if you look at it from an uncapped Indian perspective. However, the last year was Yash Dayal’s. When he wasn’t there this year, the story in all of our previews was that they would miss Yash Dayal,” the former India opener observed.

Chopra added that Dar didn’t let RCB feel the absence of Yash Dayal in the recently concluded season.

“He didn’t let them feel his absence. Whenever Rasikh was played, the guy delivered. Unlike the Gujarat Titans, RCB’s strategy was to bowl all three fast bowlers two overs each in the Powerplay. All three bowlers could bowl well in the end, in which Rasikh Salam Dar had the most important role. Rasikh Salam Dar doing well was a massive, massive tick,” he added.

RCB would look to replicate the same performance in the next season.