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[LosingNow]

Time for DD to establish themselves in the top 3!!

[LosingNow]

It's now or never for us: Dravid
Press Trust of India
Tuesday, April 29, 2008 (New Delhi)

Bangalore Royal Challengers skipper Rahul Dravid reckons three defeats in four matches has left his side tottering on the brink of disaster and the squad cannot afford another loss when they lock horns with Delhi Daredevils in an Indian Premier League tie on Wednesday.

The Bangalore side has so far managed just one win, that too against the tournament's favourite punching bag Mumbai Indians, which has the side languishing at the seventh place in the points tally.

Dravid said his side's back is against the wall and the team has no other way but to fight back.

"We are lagging behind in the tournament and every match from now on is important for us. At this stage, we just cannot afford to make a mistake," Dravid said here today.

The former India captain, however, brushed aside suggestions that the average age of his side had anything to do with the results so far.

"It's not like that, we too have youngsters in the side. I think we are a good and balanced side with adequate experience. It's only that we have to combine well and play as a unit," he explained.

Dravid rued his team came agonisingly close to tame the Chennai Super Kings yesterday before eventually going down to the table-toppers.

"For 18 overs, we bowled well before things went haywire in the final two overs. The same happened while batting. We were always in the hunt but just could not make it in the end," he rued. ( sounds familiar )

"Anyway, we played well in the match and I think we can take many positives from the tie," he added.

Asked if the cap on foreigners to play in a match had posed a problem for him, Dravid said, "As a captain, it's really a tough job to select some and leave out some. But I guess other captains are having the same problem." Dravid was his diplomatic self when his comment was sought on the slapping controversy involving Harbhajan Singh and S Sreesanth, which resulted the off-spinner being banned for the rest of the IPL.

"I don't want to comment on it because I was not present there," he said.

Asked how the duo would share Indian team dressing room after the incident, Dravid said, "Everybody involved was mature enough and they know how to adjust in a team." Turnaround is also the buzz word for former New Zealand captain and a key cog in the Bangalore think-tank Martin Crowe.

"It's a cliched line but we have to take it game by game. We have to assess the wicket well so that we can restrict our opponents to a total we can chase down or put up a score we can defend," he said.

[Libran]

"Anyway, we played well in the match and I think we can take many positives from the tie," he added.

RD has collected so many positives since his captaincy days ... what is he doing with them...banking it away for a rainy day 

[broadbat]

We have to assess the wicket well so that we can restrict our opponents to a total

How does that work? I am at a loss. 

[gouravk]

whats so hard in that ? just like warney did against the royal challengers themselves.

[broadbat]

whats so hard in that ? just like warney did against the royal challengers themselves.

BRC are ready to lose to anyone on current form. Warne or no Warne.

[Libran]

whats so hard in that ? just like warney did against the royal challengers themselves.

BRC are ready to lose to anyone on current form. Warne or no Warne.

DD is being forewarned that BRC will be shanewarned 

[pipsqueak]

i think that chasing is a better option in twenty-20 unless of course one is BRC - setting a target seems to be rather dicey.

[gouravk]

the only way BRC can win is to restrict DD to 140 and chase.

[flashpan]

Match facts

Wednesday April 30, 2008
Start time 20.00 (local), 14.30 (GMT)

 
 
Misbah-ul-Haq is yet to get a game and his reputed Twenty20 record should push for his inclusion © AFP (file photo)
 
 
 


The Big Picture


Both teams are coming off defeats in their previous games, which makes Wednesday's encounter at the Feroz Shah Kotla all the more interesting. Bangalore Royal Challengers missed a golden opportunity to score a win in front of their home crowd on Monday, choking in the face of some disciplined bowling by the Chennai Super Kings. That defeat, their third in four games, leaves them at the bottom of the points table but they are a much better team than their form suggests. Delhi, on the other hand, came apart against an inspired Kings XI Punjab in Mohali, where their middle order was tested for the first time and Mohammad Asif and Glenn McGrath were unusually subdued. Back on home ground, Delhi should start as favourites.



Watch out for ...


... Virender Sehwag taking on Dale Steyn. Sehwag took him apart during the first Test against South Africa in Chennai recently, where his early onslaught set the tone for his record-breaking 319. Ross Taylor, if he plays, facing Daniel Vettori should also make for an interesting battle of New Zealanders, as both would like to sign off their IPL campaigns in style.


Team news


Vettori plays his final game of the IPL before heading to England and his selection seems a certainty. He could replace Farveez Maharoof, who had a rare bad day in Mohali, leaking 31 off three overs. Delhi would also welcome AB de Villiers' arrival from South Africa and his inclusion could see Shoaib Malik making way.

Delhi Daredevils (probable) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag (capt), 3 Shikhar Dhawan, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Manoj Tiwary, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Vijaykumar Yomahesh, 10 Mohammad Asif, 11 Glenn McGrath

Bangalore will check on the fitness of Anil Kumble, who missed the previous game. Misbah-ul-Haq, a reputed Twenty20 player, would be raring to get a game and could come in place of Jacques Kallis, whose appeared uncharacteristically flat in all four games. B Akhil pulled up with an injury against Chennai which leaves the slot open for another seamer, or a spinner in KP Appanna.

Bangalore Royal Challengers (probable) 1 Wasim Jaffer, 2 Rahul Dravid (capt), 3 Ross Taylor 4 Bharath Chipli, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq, 6 Virat Kohli, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 KP Appanna


Stats and trivia



The biggest margin of victory in terms of wickets is nine, and Delhi have figured in two of them. Clearly, they are a dangerous side when set a target.


Misbah-ul-Haq is the second highest run-getter in Twenty20 internationals with 338 runs.


Daniel Vettori has an impressive economy rate of 5.50 in Twenty20 internationals.


Quotes


"This is a long tournament and I think the defeat actually helped us identify certain grey areas and address those issues."
Rajat Bhatia, the Delhi allrounder, thinks the defeat against Punjab could be a blessing in disguise.

"We are lagging behind in the tournament and every match from now on is important for us. At this stage, we just cannot afford to make a mistake."
Rahul Dravid, the Bangalore captain, demands improvement.

Kanishkaa Balachandran is a staff writer at Cricinfo

© Cricinfo

It will be a pleasant suprise if Taylor plays the match today . I thought the match against CSK would have been his last . But if Dan can play , so too can Taylor . They can leave India to London on the same flight.

[gouravk]

misbah come on ! show us what you are made of ! do it for BRC ! 

[pipsqueak]

misbah come on ! show us what you are made of ! do it for BRC ! 

he fits in well for BRC - he also has a proven record in the "so close, yet so far" arena. 

[Libran]

misbah come on ! show us what you are made of ! do it for BRC ! 

he fits in well for BRC - he also has a proven record in the "so close, yet so far" arena. 

After this match , it will be mis bah a mile 

[broadbat]

I wonder if there is any news so far on the kind of gate receipts garnered in the IPL?

[pipsqueak]

misbah come on ! show us what you are made of ! do it for BRC ! 

he fits in well for BRC - he also has a proven record in the "so close, yet so far" arena. 

After this match , it will be mis bah a mile 

i hope they defeat the DD - they need to win.

[broadbat]

For a start they can try opening with Boucher or drop him and open with Sreevats Goswami (wk) who opened in the U19WC.

[teamindia]

Go Delhi !!!!

[Libran]

BRC will win hands down this evening 

[dhruvdeepak]

CMON BRC!!!

make this tournament interesting!!!

[gouravk]

Teams on the Up - RR, KXP, DC, MI 
Teams going down - KKR, BRC, (to some extent) DD

[teamindia]

Teams on the Up - RR, KXP, DC, MI 
Teams going down - KKR, BRC, (to some extent) DD

wow.. after winning just one match each DC and MI on rise. Are you serious? Despite winning against KKR, MI still doesn't look any promising.

[Libran]

Teams on the Up - RR, KXP, DC, MI 
Teams going down - KKR, BRC, (to some extent) DD

MI wins one match in 5 and they are UP  

[gouravk]

yeah, in relative terms, they are on the up.

[Libran]

yeah, in relative terms, they are on the up.

Care to explain ... relative to what ?

[gouravk]

relative to where they were earlier.

[Libran]

Current standings

                 Played  Won   Lost

CSK              4          4       -
RR                4          3       1
DD                3          2       1
KXP              4           2       2
KKR              4           2       2
RCB              4           1       3
DC               4           1        3
MI               5           1        4

[ramshorns]

Current standings

                 Played  Won   Lost

CSK              4          4       -
RR                4          3       1
DD                3          2       1
KXP              4           2       2
KKR              4           2       2
RCB              4           1       3
DC               4           1        3
MI               5           1        4

Officially as of now BRC are at the bottom most based on N/R.

Team Mat Won Lost Tied N/R Pts Net RR For Against
Chennai  4 4 0 0 0 8 +1.091 778/77.0 721/80.0
Rajasthan  4 3 1 0 0 6 +0.067 652/75.1 647/75.1
Delhi  3 2 1 0 0 4 +1.712 433/48.1 433/59.3
Kolkata  4 2 2 0 0 4 +1.453 618/79.0 482/75.4
Punjab  4 2 2 0 0 4 +0.294 717/79.3 682/78.1
Deccan  4 1 3 0 0 2 -0.090 621/72.0 626/71.5
Mumbai  5 1 4 0 0 2 -1.396 775/98.4 848/91.4
Bangalore  4 1 3 0 0 2 -2.231 548/79.4 703/77.1

[gouravk]

yeah but they have a match in hand. i always found it wrong to rank the teams based on points alone. it should be points divided by #matches

by that criterion
1. CSK   2
2. RR    1.5
3. DD   1.33
4. KKR    1
5. KXP   1
6. DC    0.5
7. BRC  0.5
8. MUI  0.4

ties broken with runrates

[ramshorns]

N/R is what determines it, when all are equal in Wins regardless of how may games they have played.

[gouravk]

i know but i dont agree with it 

[OldPal]

I realise this is posted up in the thread :
But with the inclusion of De Villers  and Vettoriu down the order, DD is looking far stornger then its previous selection. with batting all the way till Vettori. Thus There are essenstially 4 hitters. Which is similar to Bangalore (Taylor,MUHaq,Boucher,PK )
bangalore however seem one bowler less than Delhi, actually MUH and bhatia comparable.
Delhi playing at home.I think this will be a good game. Team chasing seem to have a better chance to pull this one.
Delhi will have edge becasue of the opening explosive pair, something that BRC may not have.  But if early wickets down BRC seem stronger.
I will cheer for Delhi and think they should start with VS and SD having GG come one down  and then adapt to the match situation from there.
I know this wont happen , but losing VS and GG early costed it the last game .

Delhi Daredevils (probable) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag (capt), 3 Shikhar Dhawan, 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Manoj Tiwary, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Vijaykumar Yomahesh, 10 Mohammad Asif, 11 Glenn McGrath.


Bangalore Royal Challengers (probable) 1 Wasim Jaffer, 2 Rahul Dravid (capt), 3 Ross Taylor 4 Bharath Chipli, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq, 6 Virat Kohli, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 KP Appanna

[Libran]

N/R is what determines it, when all are equal in Wins regardless of how may games they have played.

NRR comes into the picture only when one has to decide on which team moves to the next level in the competition in the event of being equal on points. Given that, all teams need to have played equal number of games

[k-slice]

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. That is something RD has seen happeningwhen he first came about in the late 90s witht he indian cricket team having nearly perfected hat art. The wheel has come a full circle now. I am sure a sense of Deja vu is hitting RD. except he was no t the captain then. I kinda feel sad for him. A cricketer of his talent should notbe prostituting himself for the sake of money(personal opinion attack at will). He is way to classy to be playing quckie cricket and hence it doesnt surprise me that he is failing.

[ramshorns]

I know DD are a bit handful at the moment.  This is 20-20, we have seen already some unexpected results.  I would want BRC to pull this one off, just this way except for Chennai the rest will all be clubbed together within a game of each other.  Makes for an exciting finish.

[Libran]

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. That is something RD has seen happeningwhen he first came about in the late 90s witht he indian cricket team having nearly perfected hat art. The wheel has come a full circle now. I am sure a sense of Deja vu is hitting RD. except he was no t the captain then. I kinda feel sad for him. A cricketer of his talent should notbe prostituting himself for the sake of money(personal opinion attack at will). He is way to classy to be playing quckie cricket and hence it doesnt surprise me that he is failing.

I would not believe he is in this for the moolah... these guys are pretty well off to run behind a few crores of money...even if they are not wealthy, their upbringing and self respect would prevent them from running after the money.

Let me put it this way... every champion was to be complete.. or atleast try to be...and they would want to give it a try and develop the expertise or walk off with a feeling of having tried.

RD developed his ODI game not because he wanted the money but to attain the feeling of completeness.

I have seen trash in other DGs about the money and the crores these guys make ...thankfully people on this DG have refrained from that.

k-slice..agree that seeing RD walk off the field forlorn and with disappointment written large on his face does not make good viewing... he is too great a batsman and every failure for him is a learning... and he will only put more efforts to rectify his mistakes.

An anecdote I have heard ... in his early days in league / Ranji cricket , he did not remove his pads for an entire day when he got out and sat with his head in his hands for most of the day... took a lot of effort to get him back to the hotel...such is his dedication and his love for the game

[k-slice]

Ravi
I tend to  agree and disagree. Upbringing is something that one would assume causes him to be grounded , humble etc. But if not for the money then why play in the IPL? if he was so keen to compete, he would have attempted to play in the t-20 WC. he did not. i think that was because he knew his game was not suited for that format. throw in a few crores and suddenly he wants to see what its like?? no doubt he is a committed player but that does not mean he should be here in a format that will never suit him. yes he did make a comeback into the team for ODIs because he really wanted to make a point and did it. But come on a test player, which is basically what RD is should not waste his time, the team's money and try my patience in this format. It still looks beautiful when he creams a bowler through the off side or flicks one away but when it happens every 10 balls it hurts his team.

[ganavk]

K-Slice..there are many reasons why RD should not have been playing in this tournament but money is certainly not one of them. In case if you want to apply it then apply it to everyone why to RD in particular.

[k-slice]

ganavk
yes you are correct. according to you money is not one of the reasons he should not have been playing. But since he is getting it he IS playing. And this applies to all other players who are dragging their team down. off the top of my head indian players that i can think of are RD, VVS, SG. all 3 should not have been playing. The latter 2 atleast have some understanding of strike rate(to a degree). They just have failed to perform. RD on the other hand has a strike rate that hovers in the 70's, isnt the youngest of spring chickens and certainly cannot be called explosive. therefore maybe he should have sat at home and not been a burden on his team. i am sure he hates what he is doing to his team considering my assumption that he is someone with a lot of dignity and self-pride.

[dhruvdeepak]

apparently the match is delayed due to technical reasons

[vincent]

Dravid should have been a little creative here - dropping himself or Kallis and making place for Misbah.