The Rajasthan Royals (RR) will take on the Mumbai Indians (MI) for the first time in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2013. They will meet at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur on Wednesday.
Overview:
Both RR and MI are placed at the top half of the table with six points each after winning three of the four games the teams have played so far. Wednesday's game is expected to be tight and exciting.
RR have shown discipline both in batting and bowling. The hype around the team was low as compared to other teams but the way they make use of the resources at their disposal is loudable. They execute their games so meticulously that their opponents have to sweat out to beat them.
MI seemed to have learned their lesson from the defeat to RCB in their opening game. They went on to win the next three matches convincingly, and their score of 209 against Delhi Daredevils is the highest in the IPL sixth edition. They are no doubt one of the most balanced team in the competition.
Previous Meetings:
RR and MI have met nine times in the past - the former won four and the latter five. They have won two matches apiece at Jaipur.
Team News:
Rajasthan Royals: Skipper Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane have been the backbone of the team. Shane Watson showed some spark in the previous game by scoring 32 from 19 balls, and wicket keeper Sanju Samson also scored a well-crafted 27. A good start from the top order will pave the way for the likes of Brad Hodge and Stuart Binny to add some quick runs.
The performance of the bowlers has been impressive so far. Kevon Cooper. Sreesanth, Siddharth Trivedi and James Faulkner took two wickets apiece in the previous match against the KXIP.
Mumbai Indians: Scoring 224 runs in just four matches, wicket keeper Dinesh Karthik has overshadowed big names - Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting - in the team. Tendulkar scored 44 from 29 balls in the previous match after the dull outing but skipper Ponting has not shown any spark so far. Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten 62 in the last match. The team also has Kieron Pollard and Ambati Rayudu who can be dangerous in the middle order.
In the bowling department, they have Harbhajan Singh, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell Johnson, Pragyan Ojha, Munaf Patel, Kieron Pollard, Jasprit Bumrah and Rishi Dhawan. Johnson took three wickets in the previous game against PWI.
Prediction:
RR are a very disciplined team and have home ground advantage when they take on the MI on Wednesday, but going by the current form, MI are the favourite to win.
SQUADS:
Rajasthan Royals: Rahul Dravid (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Ajit Chandila, Ankeet Chavan, Ashok Menaria, Brad Hodge, Brad Hogg, Dishant Yagnik, Fidel Edwards, Harmeet Singh, James Faulkner, Kevon Cooper, Kumar Boresha, Kushal Janith Perera, Owais Shah, Pravin Tambe, Rahul Shukla, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, Sachin Baby, Samuel Badree, Sanju Samson, Shane Watson, Shaun Tait, Shreevats Goswami, Siddharth Trivedi, Stuart Binny, Vikramjeet Malik
Mumbai Indians: Ricky Ponting (captain), Abu Nechim Ahmed, Akshar Patel, Aditya Tare, Aiden Blizzard, Ambati Rayudu, Amitoze Singh, Dhawal Kulkarni, Dinesh Karthik, Dwayne Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Harbhajan Singh, Jacob Oram, Jalaj Saxena, James Franklin, Jasprit Bumrah, Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell Johnson, Munaf Patel, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Phil Hughes, Pawan Suyal, Pragyan Ojha, Rishi Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, Suryakumar Yadav, Sushant Marathe, Yuzvendra Singh Chahal
Where to Watch Live
The match will begin at 8:00 pm IST and will be telecast live on Sony Set Max channel.
