Daijiworld Media Network

Delhi, May 22: Hello and welcome for the Eliminator game between Rajasthan and Hyderabad. Both teams have played some excellent cricket so far in the tournament. The wicket in Delhi yesterday was quite a belter and the batsmen found their going very easy. On paper, Rajasthan are better suited to the track with the likes of Watson, Dravid and Rahane in fine form. The strength for Hyderabad though is their bowling and the spinners would hope for some turn from the surface. Team compositions hold the key in the big games.

Hyderabad have won the toss and elected to bat.

Dravid: 'When you start the tournament, you want to be in the play offs. That's what you play for. We're greedy and we want to keep playnig well and see where it takes us. The spirit in our team is very good. There have been a lot of challenges, especially in the last week. We've had our ups and downs but we've stuck together and that's what I can ask for as a captain. I'm a bit confused about the wicket. We might have batted first as well, but it shouldn't change much. We'll look to enjoy the atmosphere and the challenge. Tambe is injured. Vikramjeet Malik is in. Dishant Yagnik replaces Sachin Baby.'

White: 'We've been flying underneath the radar so far but we've got a great opportunity today, hopefully we can do it. We think only about the on-field stuff when we discuss the opposition, but sometimes it's tough to not notice the other aspects. But we're focused on the game. I'm not really sure about the pitch to be honest. It looks okay but might be a bit up and down. Ishant Sharma is back for Anand Rajan.'

Teams:

Rajasthan (Playing XI): Rahul Dravid(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Shane Watson, Sanju Samson, Stuart Binny, Brad Hodge, Dishant Yagnik(w), Kevon Cooper, James Faulkner, Vikramjeet Malik, Siddharth Trivedi

Hyderabad (Playing XI): Parthiv Patel(w), Shikhar Dhawan, Hanuma Vihari, Cameron White(c), Thisara Perera, Biplab Samantray, Darren Sammy, Karan Sharma, Amit Mishra, Dale Steyn, Ishant Sharma

Match Preview:

It is the battle of the dark horses as confident Hyderabad take on a subdued Rajasthan team in a must-win eliminator game. A loss means the end of the journey for that team in the sixth edition of Indian T20 league. While Hyderabad will look to extend their two match winning streak and bag another chance to seek the title, a shaken Rajasthan team would be keen on putting the past behind and come back even stronger.

Rajasthan

There is something about Rajasthan that makes us stand up and take notice. Although they do not boast of too many famous players, their tradition of nurturing domestic talent makes them different from all other teams. Coming out of a heart-breaking spot-fixing scandal, the players would like nothing better than to put that controversy behind and emerge victorious.

Journey so far:

Rajasthan finished third in the table with 20 points with a net run rate of 0.322. The were on a trot with 4 successive victories and were one of the foremost contenders to finish in the top 2. However, back-to-back losses after the spot-fixing scandal broke pegged them back to the third place. Just like Mumbai, Rajasthan have been champions at home winning all their matches there but have a very poor 'away' record with 6 losses out of the 8 played.

Their record at Delhi is even more depressing having won only one out of the four matches they have played there in all editions of the Indian T20 league. The good news is that their only win at Delhi came just recently in this edition when they won by a narrow margin of 5 runs.

Batting composition:

Rajasthan batting has been very steady and aggressive all throughout the season. They have had very good starts thanks to the brilliant form of the openers Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Dravid. Their main batsman, however, has been Shane Watson who has amassed 513 runs in the tournament so far. He has also proved himself to be a worthy all-rounder having picked up 11 wickets with a decent economy rate. Their surprise package this season has been Stuart Binny who has pulled them out of several difficult situations. So has Sanju Samson, the youngster, whose explosive batting has confounded a lot of bowlers this season. These two heavy hitters along with Brad Hodge present a formidable middle order that can take apart any bowling unit.

Bowling unit:

The pride of Rajasthan's bowling department is the purple cap holder James Faulkner with 26 scalps including two five-wicket hauls in that impressive tally. Faulkner is ably supported by the West Indian Kevon Cooper who himself has managed to accumulate 17 wickets. Domestic talent in form of Siddharth Trivedi and Praveen Tambe has been equally remarkable and part-time bowlers like Watson and Binny offer the refreshing variety in their bowling attack.

Hyderabad

No one expected a new and slightly revamped Hyderabad team to make it this far. They have been the underdogs surprising everyone and have proved themselves capable of taking over bigger teams. Having managed to have grabbed the final spot for the playoffs, Hyderabad will give their best to capitalize on the opportunity and advance towards the next qualifier.

Journey so far:

Hyderabad won the final league match against Kolkata to clinch the final spot in the play-offs finishing on 20 points but with a poorer net run-rate than Rajasthan. They have won 7 matches out of eight at home but have a less impressive 'away' record with five losses.

Being a new team, the only match they played at Kotla resulted in a win for them as they triumphed over Delhi by 3 wickets.

Batting composition:

Bolstered by the return of Shikhar Dhawan in the team, Hyderabad have a decent batting attack thanks to the antics of this dashing batsman. Parthiv Patel also has established himself as an indispensable part of the top order with some match-winning knocks. However, other batsmen have been lackluster with only one or two good knocks in the entire season. Out of the eight times they have elected to bat first, they have managed to cross 160 only twice and have visibly struggled chasing down low targets of 130-140. While Thisara Perera has been effective in garnering runs at the death, he has been pretty inconsistent. Skipper Cameron White has looked good only in patches. Then there is Darren Sammy, who came in late but has been the vital cog in steadying the lower-middle order. But, they lack a good young consistent batting talent. For Hyderabad to set up or chase down a decent , it will be necessary that young guns like Hanuma Vihari and Biplab Samantray stand up and deliver.

Bowling unit:

Spear-headed by one of the best swing bowlers in the world, the Hyderabad bowling attack is an intimidating one and perhaps better than the opposition. With 18 wickets, Dale Steyn has not only been the star but their entire bowling unit is hinged on those remarkable economical figures that he has produced all season. Another noteworthy name in their attack is Amit Mishra (20 wickets) who has been spectacular as well. The last time they met Rajasthan, Amit Mishra finished with exceptional figures of 2/8 in his quota of 4 overs. Both of them find unflinching support in Thisars Perera, another in-form all-rounder.

Head to Head: 2 played; Rajasthan - 1, Hyderabad - 1

Previous Encounter: Hyderabad defeated Rajasthan by 23 runs

Conclusion: In a crunch game, Rajasthan seem better equipped than Hyderabad as they boast of a more refined batting attack that is sure to click on a good Kotla wicket. A statement released by the team said that they have regrouped following a weekend break. However, with the scars of the recent controversy still fresh in their minds, Hyderabad may have a a slight psychological advantage over Rajasthan.