The battle within the battle is the one between two pro-active captains who like leading from the front. While Adam Gilchrist has been a magnificent wicketkeeper-batsmen, Kevin Pietersen one feels has been under-used as a bowler for England.
We have the bat
Bangalore may bring back Jesse Ryder for this match. If he takes the place of Kallis, B Akhil will get the nod into the eleven. If Ryder comes in for Taylor which looks more likely, Bangalore may play Rajesh Bishnoi again or bring in another pure batsman or even play young Goswami.
Deccan’s batting line up has largely remained untested after the first match. They will need two of their top four to fire if they are to post or chase a good score.
Overall, Bangalore look one up in the batting department and it will be just a matter of time before the likes of Ryder, Pietersen and Uthappa come into their own.
We have the ball
Praveen Kumar was splendid in the first match but wasn’t quite up to the mark in the second one. Dale Steyn has picked wickets at the death but hasn’t been much penetrative at the start. Bangalore will have big hopes of him. Kumble is likely to be a big factor in this match as most of the Chargers’ batsmen except Laxman are likely to find him too hot to handle.
Deccan would want Pragyan Ojha to continue his good run and will hope Fidel Edwards can do a repeat of the performance against Kolkata. Others apart from these could be cause for concern if these two fail to pick many wickets.
Patrolling Party
Bangalore were exceptional in the field in the first match but were off the boil in the second one. Deccan have Gibbs at point but Bangalore overall look to have a slight edge.
High on betting meter
Deccan are marginally high on most betting meters with odds between 0.92 and 0.99 as against Bangalore’s 1 to 1.06
Who gets the tick?
Deccan will depend on Gilchrist, Gibbs and Fidel Edwards. If we don’t see a scintillating show stealing performance from any of these three, Bangalore will cruise through.
Captaincy is not an issue at Kings XI Punjab but skipper Yuvi who has come into the IPL with poor form and had an ordinary season with the bat last year will want to prove a point or two. The issue of captaincy has a become a clash of egos in the Kolkata camp and Mc Cullum, Buchanan and SRK will all need a win here to raise their collars.
We have the bat
While the performances of Gayle or Mc Cullum at the top will make or break it for Kolkata, Yuvraj and Sangakkara are the two men around whom Punjab’s batting will revolve. A big performance from any of these players will almost certainly rule other small pawns out of the game.
Ganguly and Chopra for Kolkata and Jayawardene for Punjab haven’t promised much but can play crucial roles if they leave anchor and others play with freedom.
We have the ball
Both these teams are not very strong bowling units but Kolkata have a slight edge with Ishant and Murali Kartik looking good. If the pitch in Durban too assists the slower bowlers, Gayle could be a valuable contributor for Kolkata and so could be Yuvraj for Punjab. Kolkata may look to bring in Mendis and push in Indian like Saha or Pujara in place of Brad Hodge. Mendis could wreak havoc if the pitch suits him.
Patrolling Party
Both the teams are average fielding units. Yuvraj may play a crucial role for Punjab.
High on betting meter
Punjab may be higher on betting meter but the bookies might be in for a surprise.
Who gets the tick?
Yuvraj, Sangakkara, Gayle and Mc Cullum…. Look out for these four men and you will get the vibes about the result.
Kevin Pieterson has been signed by Vijay Mallaya for Bangalore for a whopping sum of US$ 1.55 Million whilee Flintoff also managed an equal amount and was signed by Chennai Super Kings. Incidentally Dhoni was the only player who managed to reach this amount in the first IPL auction.
Mallya is no doubt betting a lot on Pietersen to help revserse his team’s fortunes. Sources said that he was even ready to dish out a bigger sum to sign on Pietersen.
The second IPl auction was held in a plush resort in Goa this morning with most of the team owners in attendance except Shahrukh Khan - a co-owner of Kolkata Knight Riders who abstained from the auction.
Mumbai Indians took South African player JP Duminy for $950,000. This was quite high and more than three times his base price of $300,000.Owais Shah went to Delhi for $275,000. The franchise also bought Paul Collingwood for $275,000 while Tyron Henderson got more than six times his base price and went for $650,000 to Defending champions Rajasthan Royals who outbid Deccan Chargers who also bought Australian pace bowler Shaun Tait for $375,000.
Fidel Edwards was sold to Deccan Chargers for his base price of $150,000. There was no bidders for Chamara Kapugedera and he remains unsold. Alongwith him Australian wicket keeper Brad Haddin and Stuart Clark also remained unsold along with Phil Jacques, Ashwell Prince and Andre Nel.England’s Ravi Bopara was bought by Kings XI Punjab for $450,000.Kiwi opener Jesse Ryder with a base price of $100,000 went to Bengaluru for a price of $ 160,000, but not after some confusion when it was thought that he had no bidders. All the players today in the 2nd IPL Auction will be on a contract for two years.
Indian Premier League (IPL) Match Preview – The Grand Finale
The Armies – Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings
Rajasthan Royals made brief work of it with an emphatic 105 run win over the Delhi Daredevils on Friday. Chennai Super Kings, the firm non-favorites beat Kings XI Punjab by 9
wickets with overs to spare.
The Battleground – DY Patil Cricket Stadium, Navi Mumbai, Mumbai
While the pitch at Wankhede had help for spinners, the pitch at this ground has more pace and bounce. Rajasthan bowlers have bowled well on most pitches. Chennai with Ntini, Morkel and Gony will be happier to play on this sort of pitch and absence of Graeme Smith on this sort of pitch will be a factor. Rajasthan have played a match at this ground. Although they were shot out here by Mumbai but Warne would surely have picked a point or two.
Indian Premier League Match Preview – Semi final 2
Kings XI Punjab Vs Chennai Super Kings
Semi final 2 is to be played between the teams which stood at the second and third positions in the league.
The Armies – Kings XI Punjab v Chennai Super Kings
Kings XI Punjab with 20 points stood at the top of the league winning 10 of their 14 matches.Delhi Daredevils qualified by grabbing the third. They were victorious in 8 of their 14 matches. They ended on 16 points.
The Battleground – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Wankhede always has purchase for spinners and there was enough encouragement for spinners in the first semi final.
