Form sides look to keep winning streak alive

Match facts

Wednesday, March 31
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

Big picture

If one were to summarise Rajasthan Royals' campaign thus far with a single word, then it would be 'resurgence'. While they prepare for their first return encounter, they will do well to keep in mind that their opponents, Delhi Daredevils, could lay a rightful claim to the same description.

A week is a long time in the IPL; a fortnight, an era. On day three of the tournament, Rajasthan were steam-rolled by Delhi in a hopelessly lop-sided encounter. Yusuf Pathan succumbed for a blob before Virender Sehwag hammered Shaun Tait; the match was effectively over even before Shane Warne came on to bowl. Prior to that, Rajasthan had fallen short by the slimmest of margins in their opening game and, later, they were decimated by Royal Challengers Bangalore, leading to early obituaries.

All that is history now. Rajasthan's big guns have found their range in the ensuing period, and they have reeled off four convincing wins to become serious title-contenders. Yusuf has been devastating with bat, and canny with the ball; Warne has got his spin to talk like it did in his heyday, and Tait has been fast and furious. But Rajasthan's rise can, in large measure, be attributed to their lesser-knowns, and their ability to synergise and present a whole that is far larger than the sum of its parts - a reprisal of their blueprint circa 2008.

Delhi's fortunes have vacillated out of sync with Rajasthan's, but in an equally extreme fashion. They began with a bang, as they have in previous seasons, running to two comprehensive wins before the injury to their captain Gautam Gambhir heralded a nadir of sorts, leading to defeats against Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers.

Rajasthan reignited their campaign by beating the off-colour Kolkata Knight Riders; Delhi found their self-belief by trouncing the form team of the tournament, Bangalore. With David Warner getting into the groove, they had no trouble in putting it past Kolkata on the tricky Kotla surface, where familiarity to the conditions counts for a lot. Both these teams hold winning hands, but on Wednesday only one of them can come up trumps.

Form guide (most recent first)

Delhi Daredevils WWLLL
Rajasthan Royals WWWWL

Team talk

There are not many teams in the tournament that can afford to bench names like AB de Villiers and Tillakaratne Dilshan, but such is the class in Delhi's batting line-up. In both their recent wins, Andrew McDonald was the weakest link with the ball, going at nearly 10-an-over in his eight overs. In his place, Farveez Maharoof might get another look-in, or Ashish Nehra could make his first appearance in the tournament, provided he is fully fit. Will Delhi break with the norm by bringing him in for McDonald, thereby going in with just three overseas players?

While Delhi's batting line-up oozes class, Rajasthan's is made up of bits-and-pieces players. Michael Lumb, Naman Ojha, Faiz Fazal and Abhishek Jhunjhunwala have all clicked and their top order looks as settled as Delhi's. Sumit Narwal was taken to the cleaners by Chennai, and could make way for Munaf Patel or Amit Uniyal.

Previously…

Rajasthan 3 Delhi 3

Gambhir's team would be ill-advised if it becomes complacent based on the virtual walk-over in Ahmedabad, earlier this month.

In the spotlight

Yusuf Pathan v Amit Mishra: After Anil Kumble and Muttiah Muralitharan, Mishra has by far been the best spinner on view. His googly to castle Jacques Kallis, and his dipping leg-spinner that bamboozled Mandeep Singh are two dismissals that highlight the kind of form he is in. At some point during this match, he is likely to bowl at the man who has happily dismantled most spinners who have come his way. Yusuf will still be smarting from the way he was dismissed by Shadab Jakati in his last innings. Can Mishra deny him two meals on the trot?

Umesh Yadav: As any wary Indian cricket fan will tell you, hyping a pace-prospect is fraught with danger - most of them lose pace and fitness once they hit the headlines. These are early days yet, but Yadav has easily been the fastest Indian bowler in the IPL, hitting 145 kph and troubling batsmen with disconcerting lines. He comes off two splendid spells, and though he is yet to get many wickets, the yorker that cleaned up Angelo Mathews in the previous game holds a lot of promise. With Nehra's recovery, Yadav knows he is one poor outing away from the bench, and that could spur him on to greater deeds.

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