Two teams that were struggling initially have now found a new lease of life with their respective wins, and the Delhi Daredevils and the Royal Challengers Bangalore will be quite keen to continue that winning form come their IPL 2015 match at the Feroz Shah Kotla on Sunday.
DD were quite impressive in their last IPL 2015 outing, over the Mumbai Indians, with their batting, led by Shreyas Iyer and JP Duminy, posting a big score, while their bowlers backed them up by stopping MI in their tracks.
That win was not only a much-needed one in terms of this season, but also because it ended a nine-match losing run at the Kotla for the Daredevils. Having ended that particular jinx, DD will take a lot of confidence from that when they host formidable RCB.
"We have to play the same way as we did in the last game," said DD all-rounder Angelo Mathews. "We have to go out there, be positive and aggressive and play with lot of freedom.
"Regardless of who the opposition is, we have to play our best cricket to win a game. And we did that in the last game. We played good cricket in the last game. So we will look to try and emphasise on those things."
The same mantra will be RCB's as well after their thumping of the Rajasthan Royals. The much-maligned bowling finally came to the party for the team from Bangalore, with Mitchell Starc leading from the front to restrict a form team like the Rajasthan Royals to a measly total.
Another pleasing aspect of that win for RCB was that they finally realised the need to send AB De Villiers higher up the order, with Virat Kohli opening the batting with Chris Gayle and the South African superstar coming in at No.3.
"We have had a couple of tough losses and the important thing was to stick together as a team," said RCB fast bowler Harshal Patel to the IPL's official website. "We knew we have enough fire-power in our team to deliver in every single game.
"So, we just needed to stick together and deliver this performance as a team. And yes, we are very pleased to have done that."
While the terrific trio of Kohli, Gayle and De Villiers will win RCB quite a few games, it is the presence of Starc that has turned this team into a more well-rounded unit. If Starc continues his form and keeps zoning in those yorkers, the DD batsmen will have a tough time of it at the Kotla.
"It is absolutely amazing the way he has been bowling and his form," added Patel. "Just to watch him on the field and off it, how he trains and how he approaches the game, bowls in the nets has given a lot of inspiration. These are the guys that you look up to."
Where to Watch Live
Delhi Dareevils vs RCB is set to begin at 8 pm IST (3.30 pm BST, 10.30 am ET) with live coverage in India on Sony Six, Sony Aath, Sony Kix and Sony Max. Catch the action via live streaming online in India on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Viewers in the US can catch the game live on ESPN, while the live stream option is on ESPN Cricket. Viewers in the UK can flip that remote to Sky Sports to catch DD vs RCB Live, while the match can also be live streamed on Sky Go and Watch Sky Sports.
Middle East and North Africa viewers can catch the IPL 2015 game live on OSN Sports or online on OSN Play. Audience across the world can also go to Cricketgateway.com to watch the match live.
