Rajasthan and Punjab clash to open IPL account

21 April 2008

The clash between Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab will be seen today at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

The Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals will take on a Yuvraj Singh-led Kings XI Punjab in the sixth match of the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL). Both teams come into this match with losses in their opening fixtures, and will be looking to open their account with a bang.

The Royals, will have to pick its playing XI from a squad that has been cut down to 20, with most of their foreign signings yet to join them. A certain Graeme Smith, or a Dimitri Mascarenhas would have been welcome additions to the Rajasthan Royals eleven, but county/country commitments have made them unavailable for this fixture.

Going by what one saw in their opening fixture, the batting of the Rajasthan Royals looks very brittle. Shane Watson, Mohammad Kaif and Darren Lehmann – have all tasted success at the international level, but seemed to find it difficult to come to terms with the demands of Twenty20.

The bowling attack, although it comprises of Shane Warne, didn’t look as menacing as one would expect it to be – Munaf Patel seemed to run in better than one has seen him do in the past, Watson got the ball to dart around a bit, and Trivedi, with his height, can generate good pace and bounce on skiddy surfaces. Given the match will start at 8 PM local time, and coupled with the fact that we could have a skiddy pitch, this trio could be a handful if they get their rhythm right. Shane Warne seemed to miss a trick the other night, when he didn’t get Ravindra Jadeja to bowl. Jadeja is known to be a very capable left-arm spinner, and even finished as leading wicket-taker in India’s successful campaign at the Under-19 World Cup.

The Mohali team led by Yuvraj Singh fought a valiant battle after chasing a mammoth total set by the Chennai Super Kings in their opening fixture. With all their batsmen looking in fine form, Yuvraj Singh will only be asking his bowlers to cut down on the runs they concede. Sreesanth, James Hopes, Irfan Pathan and Piyush Chawla all looked sitting targets the other day, and Yuvraj Singh and coach Tom Moody might seriously consider giving Kyle Mills – another skiddy customer, and Ramesh Powar a nod for today's match.

Duels to look forward to:

Yuvraj Singh Vs. Shane Warne

Mohammad Kaif Vs. Brett Lee

Kumar Sangakkara Vs. Shane Watson