Ground Reality: The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium at Hyderabad has already hosted three matches, two of which went right down to the wire, while the third saw the Cobras post the highest total of the tournament. Based on the evidence of these matches, the pitch should play true and provide a good contest. The forecast [...]
Read MoreThe Victorian Bushrangers will lock horns with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the first Super Eights match of the Champions League. Both teams won only match in the group stage but Victoria are at an advantage, having carried forward 2 points since they beat Delhi. The pitch at Bangalore has been batsman-friendly so far, with [...]
Read MoreGround Reality: The tournament has seen a spate of must-win matches recently, and each of those matches has produced either a terrific individual performance or a result that has gone right down to the wire. As Hyderabad take on Trinidad and Tobago, in the last first group stage match, it is a mark of the [...]
Read MoreNot that Sussex has done any better and losing regular captain Michael Yardy due to stomach cramps did not help their cause against NSW yesterday. The lack of penetration in their bowling unit has been the bane of the English side and even though they restricted NSW to 130, they could claim just two wickets, which is not a flattering statement on their bowlers, including Indian leg-spinner Piyush Chawla and Pakistani pacer Yasir Arafat. Their batting has been equally lacklustre. Chris Nash got the start against NSW but lacked aggression, stand-in skipper Ed Joyce did not trouble the scorer at all and Joe Gatting proved he has miles to go before coming anywhere close to his uncle Mike. By and large, the battle between the desperate minnows promises to be an even fight.
Read MoreIn an ideal world, the equation for Victoria would be: since we have beaten Delhi convincingly and they in turn have crushed Wayamba, this match should be ours for the taking. However, the world of Twenty20 cricket is not ideal or predictable in any way, and any complacency in their approach would be disastrous for Victoria. They have one thing in their favour and that is the fact that they can qualify for the second round even if they lose, as long as the defeat is not a massive one. Their net run rate is currently the best in Group D, while Wayamba’s is the worst which gives them a lot more breathing space. Victoria will look towards captain Cameron White to lead the way. He will be ably backed by the reliable Brad Hodge and David Hussey, to speak nothing of the likes of Rob Quiney and Aiden Blizzard. The bowling will be in the capable hands of Shane Harwood, Peter Siddle, last match hero Clint McKay and new Australia pick Jon Holland. Victoria also have the unquantifiable advantage of being the state from which Shane Warne hails. Thus the spinning wizard has ensured that players such as Quiney and Harwood have been in his IPL team, and playing under Warne always adds that undefinable edge to a player’s game.
Read MoreBangalore, having lost the tournament opener to the Cobras despite a good show with the bat, the Royal Challengers now face a do or die situation, going against Otago. While Robin Uthappa and Ross Taylor contributed with the bat to help Bangalore to a good score, the bowlers were not upto the mark with JP Duminy completely outwitting them. The fielding too looked a bit rusty and needs to improve drastically. Bangalore must put up a better performance in the field and with the ball if they hope to qualify to the next round.
Read MoreFor Trinidad and Tobago, who earned a place in the Champions League after beating England’s national team in the USD 20 million winner-takes-all Stanford Twenty20 big bash, the goal would be to get off to a winning start. Led by Daren Ganga, the Caribbeans have not yet played in the Champions League but boast of a fairly strong line-up that includes hard-hitting all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, who will be the key for the side in batting, bowling and fielding. Dwayne’s half-brother Darren and Lendl Simmons are also considered good prospects with the bat, while Trinidad and Tobago also have Kieron Pollard in their ranks. One thing preying on their minds will be that a win against Somerset by a reasonable margin will put their net run rate on favourable footing since Somerset’s win over Hyderabad was achieved off the last ball, and they couldn’t build a hugely positive net run rate. Skipper Darren Ganga insists that he has a spinning ace up his sleeve in Dave Mohammad, though it’s not certain he will be a part of the starting eleven. If he is, he can take inspiration from the fact that he will be playing in the city that is the hometown of one of the greatest spinners the game has known – Anil Kumble.
Read MoreThe Daredevils had a disastrous start to their Champions League campaign as Victoria Bushrangers humiliated them by seven wickets in their own backyard in the opening match, which means the game against Wayamba is a must-win situation for the Gautam Gambhir-led side. The Daredevils batting-line boasts of some big names like Virender Sehwag, Gambhir, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Owais Shah among others but they cut a sorry figure against a disciplined Victoria attack last night as the Delhi side could manage only 98 runs. senior players like Gambhir and Sehwag will have to take the responsibility to guide the side through as a repeat of such a shoddy display by the batters will undoubtedly close the next stage doors for Daredevils.
Read MoreFresh from a crushing win over the Eagles, New South Wales will be walking out with a spring in their step for their match against Sussex. However, they must be wary of over-confidence, since in the previous match, their batting had a lot of scope for improvment. The scratchy form of their promising opening pair is something that needs to be looked at – while Phil Hughes didn’t last beyond the second over, David Warner played as if he was staking a claim for the Australian Test side. Simon Katich, though, led from the front and showed a fine aptitude for the format and for Indian conditions. With their bowling being their strength, the top three of Hughes, Warner and Katich will have to shoulder the batting burden to make it easier for the hitters down the order such as Henriques and Rohrer to have a good biff at the ball. The bowlers were simply outstanding and have ominously hit their stride in their very first match. New South Wales have a settled squad and will probably not look to experiment too much in this important match.
Read MoreThe home team, led by a swashbuckling batsman and an inspirational captain in Adam Gilchrist, go into the match as clear favourites. Boasting a powerful batting line-up and a relatively good bowling attack, the Deccan Chargers would look at not following the routes of fellow IPL teams but hope to start the tournament on a winning note. The Hyderabad side is a well-balanced unit With both the batting as well as the bowling department having players of international stature. The Chargers staged a dramatic turnaround to win the second edition of the IPL and would be looking to replicate the form as they aim at being the Champions of Champions.
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