Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore are rated as the most balanced sides of this edition of Indian Premier League and they are ready to battle it out at Chepauk, Chennai. With impressive performances of Dirk Nannes and Mike Hussey, CSK swept Kings XI Punjab in their previous match. On the other hand, RCB look in much better shape because of RP Singh and Chris Gayle who are performing consistently well in IPL.
Here we bring before you the players to watch out for from the match.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK)
Mike Hussey: Mike Hussey played a brilliant innings against Kings XI Punjab and handed over a comfortable victory to Chennai Super Kings. His innings was a blend of classic shots which made his 86 off 50 balls against Punjab a treat to watch. His importance at the top of the order will give them the loads of strength against the strong pace attack of RCB.
Ravindra Jadeja: It would be very interesting to see that what line and length Jadeja would bowl to Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli who are in the stupendous form this season. Jadeja wasn’t much effective against Punjab and picked up only one wicket but in Chennai he needs to pull up his socks to get out the hard-hitters of RCB.
MS Dhoni: Dhoni’s captaincy will play a vital role in their encounter with RCB and it's going to be a very close contest for both the teams as they have been looking really good in their last few matches. Dhoni’s tactics to puncture the top-order will determine if the balance will tilt in his favour or not.
Dwayne Bravo: Bravo was the pick of the bowlers in the last match against Kings XI Punjab. His subtle variations have always kept him in the hunt of picking up wickets and it will matter the most when he will bowl against the likes of Chris Gayle and AB De Villiers in CSK’s next match.
Dirk Nannes: Dirk Nannes has brought a new lease of life to the pace attack of CSK and has bowled some marvellous deliveries till now. Being the highest wicket taker of T20 format, his tactics to stop the winning run of RCB will surely be playing an instrumental role in the upcoming match.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)
Virat Kohli: Virat has been in stupendous form this season and he has fired in every match till now and would be looking forward to continue that good run against the competitive Chennai Super Kings. His captaincy will be tested against one of the tough batting side which is led by MS Dhoni.
Chris Gayle: Gayle has been the biggest match-winner this season for RCB. He has batted till the end twice and has made it clear that he will be much more dangerous in upcoming matches. His knock of 85 runs off just 50 balls was an indication that he will come hard against the opponents in upcoming matches.
RP Singh: RP Singh is one of the bowlers who look forward to prevent and prepare rather than to repent and repair. His ability to bowl lethal Yorkers can quiz any batsmen in the world cricket, though he doesn't have much pace but his accuracy compensates for that really well. He has picked up six wickets in his two outings and is the cog in the wheel for RCB.
Vinay Kumar: Vinay has worked very hard on his bowling and has got some rich dividends for that. His ability to restrict the batsmen in final overs makes him the most reliable option for Kohli. He is the purple cap holder at the moment.
Moises Henriques: Henriques has come out with the flying colours in both the matches he had played till now. His accountability with the bat and ball gives RCB a lot of flexibility and add to that his ability to keep nagging the batsmen makes him a cornerstone of their bowling.
By Amit Chopra
Indian Sports News
