With this being the first IPL match on a weekday, after Friday night’s opener, the size of the crowd will perhaps indicate whether the tournament has truly captured the imagination.

Watch out for …
… Punjab taking the early running, regardless of the outcome of the toss. If they bat first , they have the versatile James Hopes to give their innings a lift-off. With Kumar Sangakkara slated to walk in at No. 3, and captain Yuvraj Singh to follow, Rajasthan’s boundary riders are in for some hard work. Punjab’s opening bowlers, Brett Lee and Sreesanth, did not pose too many problems for the Chennai Super Kings, but they will be an entirely different proposition for Rajasthan. With Hopes and Irfan Pathan to follow-up, the going might just get tougher. An intriguing sub-plot to the contest will be a potential face-off between Irfan and his half-brother Yusuf, an aggressive presence in Rajasthan’s top order.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan will be eager to prove the critics wrong. They will be looking to Shane Watson and Darren Lehmann, and to Ravindra Jadeja and Dinesh Salunke, both of whom gave a good account of themselves in Delhi, to bring out the big hits. Mohammad Kaif may be a livewire in the field, but he needs to come good with the bat to have a real impact on the contest. Not many players will be queueing up to take the place of seamers Munaf Patel and Siddharth Trivedi, both of whom face a huge test with the ball.

Team news
Punjab’s line-up looks pretty settled and the only question of interest will be whether Mahela Jayawardene gets a game. With each team having a cap on four foreign players, the axe could fall on Simon Katich. Ramesh Powar may replace seamer Wilkin Mota if there is something in the pitch for the spinners, and Pankaj Dharmani can consider himself unfortunate if he misses out as he is yet to bat.

Punjab (probable) 1 Karan Goel 2 James Hopes 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk) 4 Yuvraj Singh (capt) 5 Mahela Jayawardene/Simon Katich 6 Irfan Pathan 7 Pankaj Dharmani 8 Brettt Lee 9 Piyush Chawla 10 Wilkin Mota/Ramesh Powar 11 Sreesanth.

Rajasthan, more due to circumstance than choice, will be forced to retain most of the team that played in Delhi. Graeme Smith may not be back from South Africa in time for the encounter, while Dimitri Mascarenhas, the England allrounder, will only be with the team for two weeks starting as late as May 12. The Pakistan trio - Younis Khan, Kamran Akmal, and Sohail Tanvir, will fly to India on the day of the match after completing their Twenty20 international against Bangladesh on Sunday, and it is highly unlikely that any of them will play.

The home side struggled to get a move on at the beginning of their innings in the first match, and may draft in Niraj Patel, who averages 50 at a strike-rate of 132.74 from eight domestic Twenty20s, in place of Taruwar Kohli. Jaydev Shah possesses an equally impressive strike-rate of 159.25 in four matches, and he also may get a look-in.

Rajasthan (probable) 1 Niraj Patel 2 Yusuf Pathan 3 Shane Watson 4 Mohammad Kaif 5 Darren Lehmann 6 Ravindra Jadeja 7 Mahesh Rawat (wk) 8 Dinesh Salunkhe 9 Shane Warne (capt) 10 Siddharth Trivedi 11 Munaf Patel.

The absence of Sachin Tendulkar would have been a huge downer for the crowd at the Wankhede Stadium, but none of them could complain about the quality of action. The bounce on the pitch kept the bowlers interested, and the batsmen on their toes - one of them, Mumbai’s Dominic Thornely, was so surprised by a Zaheer Khan bouncer that he copped a blow above the eye which required 15 stitches. Robin Uthappa and Pollock were the two major contributors for Mumbai, with Sanath Jayasuriya chipping in with a cameo at the start.

A target of 166 suggested a close finish, and that’s exactly how it panned out. Bangalore had contributions from all their batsmen, though none of the top five stayed through the chase. Shivnarine Chanderpaul biffed a few before getting a painful blow on the knee, while Rahul Dravid alternated between the sublime - with glorious straight- and extra-cover drives - and the tentative - five runs from 14 balls off Pollock. Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli both made 23 in identical fashion, but when Kohli fell, the match hung in the balance, with 60 needed from 39 balls.

While Kallis played a typically patient hand, Boucher put in the decisive knock which turned the match Bangalore’s way. Striking the ball freely and cleanly, he ensured the asking-rate never climbed beyond ten, and got the boundaries so regularly that the pressure slowly moved to the home team. Harbhajan Singh, the Mumbai captain, was creamed through point in the 15th over, while Jayasuriya was clubbed for a straight six. When Nehra was pulled for four and blasted out of the ground for the biggest six of the game in successive balls, the requirement had suddenly come down to 11 from 12 balls, after which the result was never in doubt.

Mumbai’s innings was built largely around Uthappa’s 48, which held the innings together, and a whirlwind 12-ball 28 from Pollock which turned an average total into a substantial one. The absence of Tendulkar was felt at the top of the order, as Luke Ronchi, his replacement as opener, lasted just ten balls before falling to an outstanding catch by Kohli. Jayasuriya gave every indication of making up for Tendulkar’s absence, creaming the hapless Kallis for three fours - two bludgeoned down the ground, one flicked fine - and a huge six over long-on. When he fell against the run of play, run out by a direct hit from Zaheer, Mumbai needed a steady hand to guide the innings, and Uthappa played that part well.

The over-wise runs scored for the two teams shows how close the contest was (click here for a larger image) © Cricinfo

His familiarity with the opposition bowlers - Vinay Kumar, Sunil Joshi and B Akhil are all state-mates in first-class cricket - helped him along too, as Vinay was late-cut delightfully and then hooked for six off successive balls. Uthappa improvised cleverly, moving to leg to clip the ball fine, or walking down the pitch to upset the bowlers, but he also reined in his attacking instincts, knocking the ball in the gaps during the middle overs.

When he fell just two short of his half-century, though, Mumbai only had 125 on the board with just 19 deliveries to go. Enter Pollock, who immediately turned it up a few gears. After Abhishek Nayar had creamed a straight six off Vinay, Pollock dismissed the same bowler for a four and a six off consecutive balls. Praveen and Zaheer were taken for boundaries as well, as 40 came off the last five overs. The opposition team, though, had two other South African heavyweights to seal the deal.

The swashbuckling right-hander left on Monday for India to play in the IPL and said McCullum’s knock was fresh in his mind.

McCullum scored 100 from 53 balls during his blazing innings for Kolkata Knight Riders against Bangalore Royal Challengers in the opening match of the IPL on Friday.

Afridi, who has since 1997 held on to the record for the fastest one-day hundred from just 37 balls, said he was itching to emulate or surpass McCullum’s innings.

“It is a very difficult target to achieve to better his 158 at a faster rate. But it is not impossible. Certainly if I get a chance to bat higher up the order and get enough overs to play I will give it a try,” Afridi told reporters after the Twenty20 international against Bangladesh at the national stadium on Sunday.

Afridi will be available for the Deccan Chargers — led by Indian batsman VVS Laxman — for their game against Delhi Dare Devils.

“I have a reputation of being an exciting batsman and a fast scorer and big hitter. I wouldn’t like to disappoint my fans in the IPL which is twenty20 cricket and to my liking,” Afridi said.

The 28-year-old said McCullum had played a once in a lifetime innings and it would be hard to beat.

“But this is what makes cricket exciting for me when you have ambitions of chasing down such targets.”

Afridi who has appeared in 258 one-day internationals said he would love to also hold the record for the fastest century in twenty20 cricket.

“If I get a chance to open the innings or bat higher I will certainly give it a try. I am very proud of my record for the fastest one-day hundred.”

“The IPL is an exciting concept and I am very keen of leaving my mark in the tournament with bat and ball for my team,” Afridi stated.

Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has also left for Delhi to make himself available for the IPL match of his team.

Shah said the IPL’s technical committee and the Cricket Association of Bengal would probe all aspects of the pitch to ensure that a better wicket is prepared for the upcoming matches.

The Twenty20 encounter saw 15 wickets falling in just 37.4 overs against a score of 222 runs, with both captains Sourav Ganguly [Images] and VVS Laxman getting hurt from unpredictable bounces by the pace bowlers.

* IPL: Schedule | Match reports & Scorecards

Laxman, who scored a memorable 281 against Australia in a Test match in 2001, rued that the pitch was “shocking.”

“This sort of wicket would not at all help Twenty20 or for that matter cricket in general,” Laxman said.

Laxman hurt his fingers from a sharp rising delivery from pacer Ishant Sharma that kicked off awkwardly. Even deliveries from Andrew Symonds [Images] saw ball rising above the batsman’s head and Deccan wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist [Images] behind the wicket had a tough time keeping against them.

The central pitch was used for the first match which saw Kolkata edge home by five wickets in a thrilling finish to register their second consecutive victory.

Kolkata will host its second match on April 29 between Kolkata and Mumbai Indians.

All the players, including Kolkata captain Ganguly was critical of the erratic behaviour of the pitch.

Bangalore captain Rahul Dravid, after a 140-run loss on Saturday, must ensure not to allow a repeat of the carnage at the hands of Sri Lankan marauder Sanath Jayasuriya, who is bound to open the innings with captain Sachin Tendulkar if the Mumbai batsman regained full fitness from his groin injury.

New Zealand wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum had taken away the game by carting around the inexperienced Praveen Kumar, the rusty Zaheer Khan back in action after being laid low by his ankle injury for more than three months and young Aussie Ashley Noffke during his pulverising 158 not out.

Absence of two key bowlers, South Africa’s exciting pace find Dale Steyn, who is busy in domestic cricket back home, and injured Australian left-arm bowler Nathan Bracken seemed to have unhinged the Bangalore team’s bowling attack against Sourav Ganguly’s team at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Injured Test captain Anil Kumble was also missed in bowling and it’s not likely that he would be fit in time to take the field against Mumbai.

If bowling appeared to be the weak link in the visiting team’s armour, their batting too was under question in chase of 222 for 3 despite the presence of Dravid, and South Africans Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher.

The team owned by liquor baron Vijay Mallya will be anxious to put up an improved display and get into the winning ways against an evenly matched opposition.

As far as the Reliance Industries-owned Mumbai team is concerned, their biggest worry is the fitness of Tendulkar.

“There are still two days to go and a decision will be taken whether I will play or not will be taken just before the match,” Tendulkar said when the 27-strong team was launched at a function in Mumbai on Thursday.

In case, Tendulkar fails to pass the fitness test, off spinner and vice captain Harbhajan Singh will take over the reins. He would be expected to bring the aggressiveness he displays on the field to the captaincy stakes too.

Even as Tendulkar’s fitness remains an issue, the team, with as many as 27 playing members on its rolls, has been going about its task of gearing up with confidence.

It has three wicketkeepers in it, including Luke Ronchi of Western Australia - a hard-hitting bastman yet to play for his country in any form.

Going by the practice sessions, he seems to be the first choice ahead of two other younger Indians - Pinal Shah and Yogesh Takawale - both of whom can hit the ball powerfully.

Among the key players in the team are Harbhajan and former South African captain Shaun Pollock. Pollock has just retired from international cricket and can be miserly with the ball and extremely handy lower down with the bat.

The same holds good for Harbhajan who would be a very crucial bowling arm of the team in the middle of the innings with his ability to check runs as well as take wickets.

For pace and bounce they have the lanky Sri Lankan Dilhara Fernando while left-arm Ashish Nehra, keen to get back into the national team, too can be a handful if and when the ball swings.

Apart from skipper Sachin Tendulkar’s groin injury, the injuries to the Sri Lankan fast bowling duo of Dilhara Fernando and Lasith Malinga had also created problems for the Mumbai team management ahead of their tournament opener against the Bangalore team in Mumbai on Sunday.

While Fernando recovered and joined the squad in time, it was learnt that Malinga was going to be unavailable for a better part of the six-week long tournament.

As a result, the Mumbai team owners have decided to replace Malinga with Dwayne Bravo, the all-rounder from the West Indies.

Mumbai coach Lalchand Rajput confirmed Bravo’s signing on Saturday. “We have Bravo as a replacement for Malinga,” Rajput told a media conference.

Skipper Tendulkar added that Bravo will be available from Mumbai’s second match, to be played in Chennai on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, a member of the team management had told the Hindustan Times that with Malinga unavailable, the team was looking for an all-rounder.

“Since Malinga could not recover in time, we were looking for an all-rounder,” the source said. “We all thought Bravo was the best choice from the options that we had.”

Interestingly, Bravo, who will land in Mumbai on Sunday night, would be available only till May 14 since he will have to return to the Caribbean on May 15 for Australia’s tour to the West Indies. “Mumbai are scheduled to play eight of our 14 league games before May 15,” the sources added.

Roma Khanna: King of T20 is leading Kings XI Punjab…

Yuvraj Singh: I am happy to be leading such a wonderful side, and I’m very excited about the tournament.

Roma Khanna: Do you think in some way it is a challenge leading players from different countries. You know them but now they are in the same side as you are.

Yuvraj Singh: Yes. We have played against them for very long. But to be leading them is going to be very exciting. I will get to learn about their experience in cricket and I will learn a lot of things from them. Guys like Jayawardene, Brett Lee, Sangakkara, Katich, all lend that experience.

Roma Khanna: Your first match is against the other Indian star of T20 cricket, the captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Yuvraj Singh: It’s good competition. It’s not only about me and Dhoni, it’s two good teams playing against each other. Whoever plays better is going to win tomorrow.

Roma Khanna: Do you see this tournament as the future of the game?

Yuvraj Singh: It’s very important to make people understand as to why such a tournament is happening. People are coming for the entertainment, but the entertainers of filmdom have come in for the cricket. At the end of the day, it’s the game which is drawing so many people in to the grounds.

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