Cartoon by Rituparno
Battle of Kings Vs Nawabs today | Live match
Hyderabad, India - April 24, 2008

Can Rajasthan Kings beat the Nawabs of Hyderabad, Deccan Chargers have to win this match if they want to be in the IPL T20 tournament. Time will tell this who will be the winner today.

Losing their first 2 matches to Kolkata Knight Riders on a dicey pitch and against Delhi Daredevils where Sehwag was in a descrutive mood. Rajasthan Royals on the other hand have comeback well after losing their first match on the same hands of DareDeviles to the thrash Punjab Kings XI. Both Shane was the hero of thethat match. Deccan Chargers at the bottom of the point table, VVS Laxman, Gily, Symonds and Afridi as to prove that they are ofcourse one of the best sides of the IPL, not only in paper also in field too.

One of the side reasons for Warne having captured so many wickets in all forms of the game apart from his burgeoning talent has been the assistance he has got from his keepers. Gilchrist, who successfully kept wickets to the great leg spinner for so many years, will confront the wizard for the first time in IPL. Will Warne be able to fox him with his clever variations or will he get clouted by the blazing blade of Gilchrist, remains the major attraction of this match.



Graeme Smith is now back for the Rajasthan outfit and this should ease a few batting headaches for Warne. Yusuf Pathan, recently declared India's domestic cricketer of the year, might also get a look in. Deccan Chargers, having arguably the strongest batting line-up in IPL, will have to re-jig their batting order. Afridi might be sent in at 3 to keep the runs flowing. Laxman needs to discover his form soon, but it's the Australian duo of Gilchrist and Symonds who need to get their act together in order to get Deccan Chargers back on track.

Gilchrist, Symonds, Afridi and a plethora of big hitters will come on the field only with the sole purpose of murdering the ball. They have failed so far and the home crowd will lick their fingers in anticipation of a grand come-back. Symonds has to prove before he goes back to Australia and he is really worth that money which was paid to him.

Rajasthan Royals rely heavily on the two Shanes. Both of them fired in their match against Punjab and the team would need another big performance from them. Kaif who apart from his brilliant fielding hasn't done anything notable with the bat so far, will look to contribute with the bat as he fights to get his place back in the national side.

The weather is going to be very demanding on the players as the maximum temperatures are expected to reach 40 degrees. The humidity is expected to be around 55% making the conditions really hot and humid. As for the pitch, following the old tradition, another run-extravaganza can be expected to fulfill the spectator?s wishes of watching fours and sixes.

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By Shawn - Top ^