Punjab seek to extend winning streak

Match facts

Monday, May 5 2008
Start time 20.00 (local), 14.30 (GMT)

The Big Picture

The relief was palpable in the Bangalore camp on Saturday after they finally registered their first victory at home, against the Deccan Chargers. A team of experienced internationals wasn't expected to struggle early in the tournament, but at least they salvaged pride in a match which nearly fell out of their grasp in the final over. While they have every right to cherish the victory, it goes without saying that they would have to double their efforts against a team on a high, now with four consecutive wins. The Yuvraj Singh-led Kings XI Punjab have moulded into a dangerous unit and after two early defeats, are currently third in the points table, tied with three other teams on eight points. There's little to separate the top four at this stage and it would be fair to say they start as favourites, despite playing away from home.

Watch out for ...

... Kumar Sangakkara taking on Dale Steyn and Zaheer Khan. Sangakkara leads the run charts for Punjab with 203 in six games with two half-centuries. Steyn came back well after a pasting at the hands of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in his first match to concede 20 runs in four overs. Zaheer is one of the leading wicket-takers in the tournament. Shaun Marsh would also be a tough nut to crack for Bangalore, like most Australians in this tournament.

Team news

Bangalore have in their ranks Cameron White, an Australian who can pack a punch with his big hitting. He was omitted after his team's forgettable rout at the hands of Kolkata in the opening game of the tournament, but one would feel a player of his ability ought to get more opportunities. Jacques Kallis could face the axe after failing with the bat against Deccan and he hasn't clicked with the ball either. It could be a gamble, as White is mainly a part-time legspinner and perhaps not the most reliable fifth-bowling option.

Bangalore (probable) 1 Bharath Chipli, 2 Wasim Jaffer, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rahul Dravid, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq, 6 Cameron White, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Anil Kumble, 11 Dale Steyn.

Punjab wouldn't want to alter their winning combination. Depth in batting is one of their strengths and the lower order demonstrated that in the previous game. James Hopes had a poor outing with the ball after missing three games but Punjab should see that as a blip and play him, not least for what he can do up the order.

Punjab: (probable) 1 Shaun Marsh, 2 James Hopes, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Mahela Jayawardene, 6 Karan Goel, 7 Irfan Pathan, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Sreesanth, 10 VRV Singh, 11 Gagandeep Singh.

IPL form

(last five matches) Kings XI Punjab: LWWWW
Bangalore Royal Challengers: WLLLW

Stats and trivia

White once held the record for the fastest Twenty20 century, off 55 balls.

Quotes

"In Twenty20, no team is a big team. The team that plays better will emerge as winners. But they have a few good players and we will see what happens tomorrow."
Praveen Kumar, the Bangalore allrounder, doesn't think there are any favourites in Twenty20 cricket.