After a narrow loss to Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League, Royal Challengers Bangalore will look to bounce back against Rajasthan Royals in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Catch all the updates here...
Rajasthan Royals face a stiff challenge against a strong Royal Challengers Bangalore side in their clash in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Catch all the updates here (Scorecard | Commentary | Points Table | Full Schedule):
PREVIEW
Recovering from back-to-back defeats, a demoralised Rajasthan Royals will have to sort out their issues before they clash with Bangalore Royal Challengers.
After a last-over win against Hyderabad in their campaign-opener, Rajasthan suffered two successive defeats against Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings and skipper Shane Watson will quickly have to address his team's batting and bowling issues.
Bangalore, on the other hand, were on a high with two successive wins before Kolkata snatched a two-run unlikely victory to leave Virat Kohli and company stunned. Rajasthan have to better their all-round showing as both their batting and bowling have failed on separate occasions.
If it was Ajinkya Rahane and Stuart Binny who helped Rajasthan narrowly cross the line in their first match, Watson and Sanju Samson came good in the next match with twin half-centuries to put up a good total against Punjab but their bowlers could not defend the total.
But in their last match, Rajasthan's batting faltered against a disciplined Chennai Super Kings bowling attack.
The 2008 champions have some big names like James Faulkner, Brad Hodge and Steven Smith, besides Watson, in their ranks. But apart from Watson's one innings, none of the star players could set the stage on fire. Domestic players, Rahane and Samson have come up with one good innings but they have lacked consistency.
The pace department led by Dhawal Kulkarni and medium-pacer Rajat Bhatia have also not made much of an impact. Kane Richardson too has taken three wickets in two matches but he missed the last game due to sickness. (Read full preview)
REGRETFUL YUVRAJ
Saturday could see a more determined Yuvraj Singh in action as Royal Challengers Bangalore play Rajasthan Royals at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Disappointed with himself after Thursday's two-run defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders, Yuvraj may just choose to make amends against the Shane Watson-led Royals. RCB are third in the table with two wins and a loss while RR are fifth with a win and two defeats.
Yuvraj has been in focus ever since he became the IPL's highest-paid star. On skipper Virat Kohli's insistence, RCB bought the Indian left-hander for a record 14 crores. The defeat against KKR has obviously been a massive disappointment for India's 2011 World cup-winning star. Yuvraj scored a 34-ball 31 with two fours and a six and by his lofty standards, could have scored at a faster rate.
"I am disappointed with myself as I should have stayed there till the end to finish the match," Yuvraj wrote in his newspaper column in the Times of India on Saturday. When Yuvraj perished, RCB needed nine runs off eight balls, but an out-of-the-world catch by KKR debutant Chris Lynn saw the back of the dangerous AB De Villiers with two balls left. KKR pulled off a thriller in a match largely dominated by RCB. (Loss to KKR hurt: Yuvraj)
HOW THINGS STAND
Rajasthan has endured a rocky start to the tournament with just one win form their first three matches. The Australian contingent has performed modestly to date and more will be expected of them against a Bangalore side smarting from its first defeat of the campaign to Kolkata. Bangalore will be counting on their "big three" - Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and Yuvraj Singh - to set the tone with the bat while Rajasthan are considering promoting Shane Watson to the top of the order to get their campaign moving.
Story first published on: Saturday, 26 April 2014 12:43
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