Sports
Rajasthan geared up to deliver another royal show (IPL team profile)
Ahmedabad, April 6
Rajasthan Royals, who won
the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) title, have always been a side
that punches above its weight and it will not be any different in the
eighth edition that gets underway on Wednesday.
Rajasthan boasted
of some of the smallest profiles of cricketers but went on to clinch
the title in 2008 under spin legend Shane Warne’s mercurial leadership.
Since
then, even though they are yet to capture their second title, they have
always played the game with the fighting spirit coupled with the
ability to surprise - features that are hallmark of the outfit’s mentor
Rahul Dravid.
Dravid, along with head coach Paddy Upton have made
utilization of talent a key agenda and in the process they have created
stars out of the blue - Ajinya Rahane, Stuart Binny, Sanju Samson and
Pravin Tambe being the prime examples.
The team has struggled in
the second, third, fourth and fifth editions of the tournament. But in
2013, Dravid inspired the team to a play-off berth that enabled them to
play in the 2013 champions League T20 where they ended up being the
runners-up.
In the last edition, they finished fifth place and this time they must be hungry to improve upon that.
However,
off-field issues have often marred them. IPL’s murkiest scandal - the
alleged spot fixing by three Rajasthan players -Ankit Chavan,
S.Sreesanth and Ajit Chandila shamed them.
It followed with the
team’s co-owner Raj Kundra being found guilty of betting on IPL matches
when the Supreme Court announced its landmark judgment in January.
Moreover,
due to the ongoing legal tangle between now axed Rajasthan Cricket
Association (RCA) president Lalit Modi and the Board of Control for
Cricket in India (BCCI), the team will not be able to enjoy its home
advantage of playing at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium (SMS) in Jaipur.
They have one of the best records of winning maximum number of home matches but now they won't have that adavantage.
Last
year, they played their home matches at the Sardar Patel Stadium in
Ahmedabad. This year along with Ahmedabad, the Brabourne Stadium in
Mumbai will host some of their home matches, denuding the "home"
advantage to a greater extent.
Going by the players in the team,
Rajasthan possess a weaker collection of Indian players than other
franchises. Ace Australian all-rounder Shane Watson will captain the
side and will have his compatriot Steven smith as his deputy.
No
IPL side had as many representatives in Australia’s World Cup-winning
squad as Rajasthan - skipper Watson, Smith and James Faulkner and they
will be crucial for the Royals.
Ajinkya Rahane, Kerala’s
wicketkeeper-batsman protege Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Watson and Smith
are expected to score much of the runs. A strong core of Indian
all-rounders like Stuart Binny, Rajat Bhatia and Abhishek Nayar will
provide stability to the squad.
In this year’s auction, they
bagged South African medium pacers Chris Morris and Rusty Theron for
Rs.1.4 crore and Rs.30 lakh respectively.
Apart from the duo, New
Zealand’s World Cupper Tim Southee, Australian Ben Cutting and Dhawal
Kulkarni are other pace bowling options.
These five pacers along
with Watson, Faulkner and Binny make Rajasthan a strong bowling line-up.
Last year’s find -- leg-spinner Pravin Tambe, 40, will be the leading
spinner.
Going by the arsenal they possess and a shrewd and
thinking management behind them, Rajasthan must be hungry to emulate
2008 heroics.
The squad:
Indian Players: Abhishek Nayar,
Ajinkya Rahane, Ankit Nagendra Sharma, Deepak Hooda, Dhawal Kulkarni,
Dishant Yagnik (wicketkeeper), Karun Nair, Pravin Tambe, Rahul Tewatia,
Rajat Bhatia, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Barinder Singh Saran, Dinesh
Salunkhe, Sagar Trivedi, Pardeep Sahu, Stuart Binny, Vikramjeet Malik.
Foreign signings: Shane Watson (captain), Ben Cutting, James Faulkner, Steven Smith, Tim Southee, Chris Morris, Juan Theron.
Team Schedule:
Home
matches in Ahmedabad: vs Mumbai Indians (April 14), Chennai Super Kings
(April 19), Kings XI Punjab (April 21), Royal Challengers Bangalore
(April 24), Royal Challengers Bangalore (May 13), Chennai Super Kings
(May 16).
Mumbai: vs Delhi Daredevils (May 3), Sunrisers Hyderabad (May 7), Kolkata Knight Riders (May 16).
Away
matches: vs Kings XI Punjab (April 10), Delhi Daredevils (April 12),
Chennai Sunrisers Hyderabad (April 16), Kolkata Knight Riders (April
26), Royal Challengers Bangalore (April 29), Mumbai Indians (May 1),
Chennai Super Kings (May 10).
IPL Record: 2008-champions; 2009-6th; 2010-7th; 2011-6th; 2012-7th; 2013-play-offs; 2014-5th.