RCB’s head coach Andy Flower. File
| Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar
Andy Flower’s reign as Royal Challengers Bengaluru head coach did not begin well. The team lost seven of its first eight matches in IPL 2024 before making a turnaround to enter the playoffs.
The tough phase gave Flower useful insight into what ails RCB. Over the course of the next two years, Flower and his staff have used these learnings to mould RCB into a formidable presence.
“The very tough first half of 2024 gave us real clarity about certain strategic things that we wanted to employ. It gave us the courage, almost through desperation, to take those measures. Then we had 2025, where we were walking into the unknown, as RCB had never won the title before. There was a lot of tension and uncertainty around getting into the playoffs,” Flower said in a virtual media interaction on Monday (June 1, 2026).
This year’s triumphant campaign, in contrast, was marked by quiet confidence, Flower stated. “This year, there was a deeper level of confidence. Going into the playoffs, this reflected in some of our performances,” Flower said.
The 58-year-old was all praise for Virat Kohli, who has set a high bar for his teammates to follow. “Virat’s hunger and drive are genuinely inspiring. He sets certain standards, like intensity in the field. Anyone falling below is going to stand out like a sore thumb. Everyone has to raise their game to get anywhere near it,” he said.
“The same goes for his batting mastery. He works hard at his game, but you can see that he loves batting. He loves hitting the ball. He loves the feeling of the ball meeting the middle of the bat. Again, those standards are easy for people in our training sessions to see,” Flower said.
Published – June 01, 2026 08:05 pm IST
