Abu Dhabi: Rajasthan Royals may need to rejig their Indian line-up slightly when they try to pull their IPL campaign out of the current rot against a supremely confident Mumbai Indians here on Tuesday.
Starting with a bang at Sharjah on a conducive batting surface, Royals have suddenly hit a slump on bigger grounds of Dubai and Abu Dhabi with their willow-wielders not looking half as menacing as they did during the first two games. “The last two games haven’t gone to plan for us after what was a really good start to the tournament. But I guess that’s the way T20 cricket goes sometimes. We have been outplayed by the opposition on both occasions,” Royals skipper Steve Smith said on the eve of the match. “Hopefully, I am able to score a few runs tomorrow. I’ve missed out on the last two games but that happens,”Smith added. Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, have been solid in their last couple of games and are currently on top of the table by virtue of a better net run-rate compared to Delhi Capitals, who are also on six points. After a heart-breaking loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore in the ‘Super Over’, the defending champions bounced back in style, defeating Kings XI Punjab and Sunrisers Hyderabad by 48 and 34 runs respectively.
The best part of MI’s camaign so far is that they have ticked almost all the boxes with skipper Rohit Sharma (176) in good touch and now Quinton de Kock also looking ominous. Kieron Pollard is consistent as ever, Ishan Kishan has looked solid and Hardik Pandya is also finishing games with the bat. Hardik’s brother Krunal joined the party in the last game. MI’s replacement pacer James Pattinson (7 wickets) has been a revelation alongside the redoubtable Jasprit Bumrah and the crafty Trent Boult. Once Hardik starts bowling, all the pieces of the puzzle will nicely fit in. (PTI)
