Hyderabad will take on Rajasthan Royals

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers will take on Rajasthan Royals at Sawai Man Singh stadium in Jaipur. Hyderabad played wonderfully to defeat Chennai and Adam Gilchrist once again played match winning innings. He is the player to watch out for in this match. Rajasthan Royals exhibited poor performance against Mumbai Indians but they are still strong favourites on home ground. Hyderabad lost previous encounter with Jaipur due to poor captaincy from VVS Laxman (He gave last over to out of form Symonds). Shane Warne has sweet memories of that last match.
Hyderabad IPL:

Herschelle Gibbs needs to play match winning knock along with Adam Gilchrist. Hyderabad should open with Gilchrist-Ravi Teja combination. Deccan Chargers are looking unbeatable on paper but not playing to their full potential. VVS Laxman is still in doubt for this match. Rohit Sharma is consistently playing well and Shane Warne will target this young man. Young fast bowler Vijay Kumar bowled exceptionally well along with RP Singh in the last match.

Key players:

1. Rohit Sharma: Most consistent player in unpredictable Hyderabad team.
2. Adam Gilchrist: Man of the match award performance in both Hyderabad wins.
3. Herschelle Gibbs: Don’t underestimate this match winner.

Rajasthan Royals: Rajasthan success hinges on how their top order will perform. With Graeme Smith, Yusuf Pathan, Asnodkar and Shane Watson in superb form, Hyderabad bowlers have a difficult task at their hand. They will try to exploit weak Hyderabad bowling on their home turf. England cricketer Mascarenhas may play his first IPL match who is big hitting all-rounder but whom will he replace. Mohammad Kaif is the only under-performer in this energetic squad.

Key cricketers:

1. Shane Watson: He is in top 10 list in both bowling and batting rankings in IPL 2008.
2. Sohail Tanvir: Best bowling performance in IPL.
3. Asnodkar: Hyderabad needs to quickly remove him who has an average of more than 100 runs in Ranji cricket in this season.
4. Shane Warne: He will try to take crucial wickets of Rohit Sharma, Shahid Afridi and Scott Styris.

Interesting battle:

1. Shahid Afridi Vs Shane Warne: Can he slam-bang Warne?

IPL Statistics:

1. Rajasthan Royals won all the matches at their home ground.
2. Shane Watson is the number one player in all-rounders list.

Verdict: Rajasthan Royals has slight edge but Hyderabad match winners are dangerous in any match. Interesting battle lies ahead. Match result will depend on how Hyderabad bowlers will perform and whom they will pick.