A struggling Rajasthan Royals will look to save their title while a rampaging Delhi Daredevils will strive to continue their unbeaten run when the two sides lock horns in an Indian Premier League encounter on Tuesday.

The Virender Sehwag-led Delhi team is gradually emerging as one of the strongest title contenders and is comfortably second in the points tally after winning all their three matches played so far.

On the other hand, Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals have managed three points by virtue of the tied match against Kolkata Knight Riders which they won in the ‘Super Over’ and are languishing seventh in the table.

The Delhi Daredevils’ formidable batting line-up, which managed 189-5 – the highest score of the tournament so far – against last year’s runner-up Chennai Super Kings in their second outing, have made them a force to reckon with.

Their explosive opening pair of Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, followed by the likes of Tillakaratne Dilshan, who scored a gutsy 67 to guide the team to a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday, will be a worry for Rajasthan bowlers.

In-form all-rounder AB de Villiers and Mithun Manhas have also proved themselves in trying moments and the side is seemingly poised for chasing down stiff targets.

In the bowling department, Dutch-born Australian left-arm paceman Dirk Nannes, along with India discard Ashish Nehra, is showing some ominous penetration power and getting early breakthroughs.

The new-ball pair is finding supports from the spin duo of Amit Mishra and New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori, who is drawing from his vast experience to make Delhi’s bowling formidable.

In contrast, Rajasthan have seemed like a shadow of the winning unit they were last season.

Young paceman Kamran Khan, who scalped two wickets for 15 runs for a losing cause in Sunday’s match against Kings XI Punjab, and speedster Munaf Patel are surely doing their bit but the batting has failed to back their consistent effort.

The team will be desperate for some fireworks from South Africa skipper Graeme Smith, who is yet to make any notable contribution.

The middle-order consisting Australian Rob Quiney and British Dimitri Mascarenhas will also have to strike form for the side to climb up in the points ladder.

Tags: Ab De Villiers, Amit Mishra, Ashish Nehra, Chennai Super kings, Daniel Vettori, Daredevils, Delhi Daredevils, Delhi Daredevils Vs Rajasthan Royals, Dimitri, Dirk Nannes, Gautam Gambir, Graeme Smith, IPL 2, IPL 2009, IPL 2009 News, IPL Scores, IPL Updates, Kamran Khan, Kolkata Knight riders, Mithun Manhas, Nannes, Raj Kundra, Rajasthan Royals, Shane Warne, Shilpa Shetty, Super Over, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Virender Sehwag, Yusuf Pathan

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Tillakaratne Dilshan struck a match-winning unbeaten 67 to help Delhi Daredevils beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets and register its third consecutive victory in the Indian Premier League on Sunday.

Dilshan’s 47-ball knock, studded with five boundaries and two sixes, took Daredevils home after some initial hiccups.

Earlier, skipper Kevin Pietersen and Mark Boucher helped Royal Challengers Bangalore post a modest 149 for seven after opting to bat.

Chasing 150 for victory, Daredevils again lost skipper Virender Sehwag (7) early after he pull off Pankaj Singh to give an easy catch to Pietersen at mid-on in the second over.

In walked the determined Dilshan. He hit R. Vinay Kumar for a four in the third over and then struck a cheeky six over the ’keeper’s head off Pankaj in the next over.

Dilshan, however, got a reprieve on 18 when Pankaj grounded a difficult chance off his own bowling in the sixth over. The bowler made amends a ball later by having Gambhir (16) caught behind.

Dilshan and AB de Villiers, who had scored a century in the previous game against Chennai Super Kings, found the going tough against the spin duo of Anil Kumble and young left-armer K.P. Appanna. The duo kept the scoreboard ticking with ones and twos. It was Appanna who broke their 42-run stand, beating de Villiers with a gem of a delivery that turned viciously.

Needing 61 off 36 deliveries, Dinesh Karthik (12) began with a six off Kallis but perished soon.

Dilshan, however, was in no mood to give up as he hit Kallis for a huge six over mid-wicket and then some sloppy fielding in the deep gave Mithun Manhas two easy boundaries as 19 runs came from the 17th over bowled by the South African.

Royal Challengers lost its grip on the match in the last four overs due to some poor fielding.

Needing 15 from the last two overs, Pietersen called back his best bowler Pankaj, but the move had hardly any affect on Dilshan as he hit the pacer for a boundary off the very first ball and Daredevils scored 12 off the penultimate over.

The Delhi team reached its target with four balls to spare, Manhas hitting the winning run.

Tags: Bangalore Royal Challengers, Daredevils, Delhi Daredevils, Dilshan, Gautam Gambir, IPL 2, IPL 2009, IPL 2009 News, IPL Scores, IPL South Africa, IPL Updates, Jacques Kallis, Kevin Pietersen, Mark Boucher, Pankaj, Royal Challengers Vs Delhi Daredevils, Virender Sehwag

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High on confidence after two successive victories, Delhi Daredevils will strive to continue with the winning momentum while a struggling Royal Challengers Bangalore will try to recapture the lost sheen they started with when the two teams lock horns in an Indian Premier League match here on Sunday.

The Delhi team, by virtue of their back-to-back wins against Kings XI Punjab and last year’s runner-up Chennai Super Kings, is comfortably placed second in the points tally.

In contrast, the Vijay Mallya-owned Bangalore team tamed defending champions Rajasthan Royals in their campaign-opener comprehensively but since then lacking the consistency and languishing on the seventh slot in the tally after losing three encounters on the trot.

The Delhi side will surely count upon their formidable batting line-up with skipper Virender Sehwag joining hands with his Team India opening partner Gautam Gambhir to start the innings, followed by South Africa batsman AB de Villers. The Protea played a beacon with his 54-ball 105 to guide Daredevils to victory in the last match against Chennai and the team will expect another blistering knock from the cricketer on Sunday.

With cricketers like Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan and New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori figuring in the middle order besides ‘keeper Dinesh Karthick and Bengal boy Manoj Tiwary, Delhi batting line-up will be a hard nut to crack.

In bowling department, Delhi cricketer Pradeep Sangwan who scalped 3- 28 in last outing, will find support from the Australian Dirk Nannes and Indian Ashish Nehra. Besides, experienced spinner Vettori will also add to the worry of the Pietersen-led Bangalore side, which was handed a seven-wicket defeat by the Punjab team yesterday.

Former England skipper Pietersen, is surely under pressure and will do everything to prove their first-match win was not a false dawn.

Their Batting department has been inconsistent so far but the opening pair of Kiwi all-rounder Jesse Ryder, who made 32 in last match, and Robin Uthappa has to do a decent job if the Bangalore team to win the match.

However, Protea Jaques Kallis and Kiwi Ross Taylor are seemingly recapturing their touches and may well come out with some crucial innings in Sunday’s encounter.

Their bowling department is lacking the penetration power since they skittled out the Rajasthan team for a paltry 58 in the first tie, thanks to Anil Kumble’s five-for, but failed to do the trick in the subsequent matches.

Tags: Ab De Villiers, Anil Kumble, Ashish Nehra, Bangalore Royal Challengers, Chennai Super kings, Daniel Vettori, Daredevils, Delhi Daredevils, Dilshan, Dinesh Karthick, Gautam Gambir, IPL 2, IPL 2009, IPL 2009 News, IPL Scores, IPL South Africa, IPL Updates, Jacques Kallis, Jesse Ryder, Kevin Pietersen, Manoj Tiwary, Rahul Dravid, Robin Uthappa, Ross Taylor, Royal Challengers, Royal Challengers Vs Delhi Daredevils, Vijay Mallya, Virender Sehwag

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Delhi Daredevils with their victory over Kings XI Punjab became the second team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) to register a 10-wicket win.

Daredevils on Sunday also became the first team to post a 10-wicket win in the second edition of the IPL.

The following are the others stats of the match between Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab:

• Vettori (3-15) recorded his best bowling figures in the IPL, surpassing the 1/19 against Bangalore on April 30, 2008.
• Vettori has been adjudged the Man of the Match for the first time in the IPL.
• Delhi Daredevils’ victory on Sunday is their first in three IPL games against Kings XI Punjab.
• With their ten-wicket victory, Delhi Daredevils have won eight out of 15 IPL matches contested.
• Gambhir’s aggregate of 549 runs in the IPL is exceeded only by Shaun Marsh (616).
• Karan Goel (38 off 21 balls) posted his highest innings in the IPL, surpassing the 26 off 21 balls against Rajasthan at Jaipur on April 21, 2008.
• Ravi Bopara and Karan Goel were associated in a 67-run stand for the first wicket – Kings XI’s best for the first wicket against Delhi. The stand is the best for Kings XI for any wicket against Delhi.
• Kings XI (102 sixes) became the first team to register 100 sixes in the IPL.

Tags: Daniel Vettori, Delhi Daredevils, Gambir, Gautam Gambir, IPL 2, IPL 2009 News, IPL South Africa, Karan Goel, Kings XI Punjab, Man Of the Match, Rajasthan Royals, Ravi Bopara, Sehwag, Shaun Marsh, sixes

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Virender Sehwag blasted 38 from just 16 deliveries to help the Delhi Daredevils ease to a 10 wicket Duckworth-Lewis victory over the Kings XI Punjab in a rain-affected Indian Premier League clash in Cape Town.

Daniel Vettori (3/15) sent down a miserly spell of bowling earlier to help reduce Punjab to 104 for seven – with Karan Goel (38) and Ravi Bopara (22) the main contributors – in their innings, which was initially reduced to 12 overs.

In response, Gautam Gambhir and Sehwag made a flying start reaching 24 in just 1.5 overs, before the game was reduced even further with a total of 54 needed from six overs.

And needing 30 from 25 balls after the resumption, the pair showed no mercy and helped their side overhaul Punjab’s revised total with more than an over to spare, Sehwag the destroyer with his innings including three sixes and four fours.

Earlier, the game was reduced to just 12 overs aside on account of the sporadic drizzle around Newlands and after winning the toss, Sehwag asked the opposition to bat first and the innings was that of two tales.

First, Goel and Bopara helped their side to a racing start in which they put on 67 in just six overs before the former was out, caught by Vettori at mid-off – Yo Mahesh the bowler.

Bopara went first ball after the break when he was trapped leg before wicket by Vettori’s first delivery, followed by the wicket of Kumar Sangakkara (eight) when he top-edged the same bowler to Dirk Nannes running back from short fine-leg.

Yuvraj Singh (16), Piyush Chawla – both run-out – and Mahela Jayawardene (6) all went in the final over from the New Zealand captain, in which the 100 also finally came up.

Aavishkar Salvi then bowled a miserly final over conceding just six runs at the cost of the wicket of Irfan Pathan (6) as Punjab set their opponents 105.

Tags: Aavishkar Salvi, Cape Town, Daniel Vettori, Delhi Daredevils, Delhi daredevils Vs Kings XI Punjab, Gambir, Gautam Gambir, IPL 2, IPL 2009 News, IPL South Africa, Ipl T20, Kings XI Punjab, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, New Zealand, Piyush Chawla, Ravi Bopara, Sehwag, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj, Yuvraj Singh

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The toss for the third match of the second edition of the Indian Premier League between Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab was delayed by 30 minutes due to rain at Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday.

The match is about to start after the toss with Delhi Daredevils winning the toss and opting to field first.

The game is eagerly awaited as the hottest opening pair in the game – Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir – joins into IPL Season Two action as Team Delhi begins their campaign against Yuvraj Singh’s Kings XI Punjab.

Tags: bollywood, Cape Town, Delhi Daredevils, Delhi daredevils Vs Kings XI Punjab, Gambir, Gautam Gambir, Glen McGrath, IPL 2, IPL 2009 News, IPL South Africa, Ipl T20, Kings XI Punjab, McGrath, Preity Zinta, Sehwag, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj, Yuvraj Singh

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It’s tempting to say that every T20 match is a clash among equals. Both Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab had lost in semifinals last year.

Each losing match hurts, but losing in the semifinals probably hurts more because you are not counted among the elites who make the finals despite being better than the masses. That way, these teams would have this extra urge to go one step further this year.

Even in the unpredictable scheme of things, the Daredevils possess something that set them apart. In Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir they have two openers who have tormented every attack they have faced in the last year in every form of the game.

Having said that and taken note of the fact that the Kings XI attack looks a little weak with Brett Lee injured out, every team facing the Daredevils would like to believe that it’s a one-ball game for batsmen. Irrespective of the destruction one may cause, one good ball, bad shot, good catch or a run out can quickly change things.

Then again, the Daredevils are not all about openers. There is meat in the middle in the form of De Villiers and Paul Collingwood apart from Australian opener David Warner who may have to come in after the openers. How they choose the four foreigners is to be seen though and their bowling looks slightly thin apart from Glenn McGrath.

The Kings XI too have a strong batting line-up with Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Yuvraj Singh being the prominent ones. Their biggest concern should be the absence of Shaun Marsh and the lack of big Indian names in batting. It’s likely that three of their four foreigners will be batsmen, which may leave the attack a little weakened.

After assessing the pros and cons, the Daredevils appear to be holding a slender edge nonetheless. Then again, since it is T20 where nothing is certain until it has happened, we maintain that the match starts on an even keel.

Tags: bollywood, Brett Lee, Daredevils, David Warner, De Villers, Delhi Daredevils, Delhi daredevils Vs Kings XI Punjab, Gambir, Gautam Gambir, Glen McGrath, IPL 2, IPL 2009 News, IPL 2010 - IPL 3, IPL South Africa, Ipl T20, Kings XI Punjab, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Paul Collingwood, Preity Zinta, Sehwag, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj, Yuvraj Singh

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Just after Virender Sehwag said that he would like to play as a middle order batsman again, former Indian Test stars have their suggestions and opinions and have given an unanimous thumbs down to his idea.

Former players Sandeep Patil, Nayan Mongia and Ajit Wadekar strongly believe that Sehwag should continue to open the batting as his solid starts along with Gautam Gambhir was helping the team win more matches than never before.

Sandeep Patil, who himself was an attacking middle order batsman during early 80s and was a member of the 1983 World Cup winning team, said the Indian team’s new-found overseas success was mainly due to the solid starts given by the two Delhi openers Sehwag and Gambhir and secondly due to the lion-hearted bowling by the Indian seamers, particularly Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma.

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Delhi Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag on Saturday said he was hopeful that his team would put up a good show in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in South Africa.

“It would have been wonderful if the Indian Premier League (IPL) had been held in India. There would have been problems of getting the match passes but one could have managed it. Playing in South Africa will be different, as we will not have a large number of Indian supporters to cheer this time. Moreover, the local timings there are between 12 pm and 4 pm,” said Sehwag

“I have been to South Africa five to six times in the past and I am aware about the conditions as to how will the wicket play. We will try to play well and hopefully win the IPL,” the Delhi Daredevils captain added.

Gautam Gambhir also seemed confident about continuing his aggressive form for the daredevils.

Tags: Delhi Daredevils, Gautam Gambir, IPL 2, IPL 2010 - IPL 3, Virender Sehwag

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Despite his success as an opener, Virender Sehwag has said he still belongs to the middle order and would love to bat there if he got the chance. Sehwag said he had asked the team management to push him down the order when he felt he was out of form but had been told he would contribute better as an opener.

“I was a middle-order batsman who was asked to open and luckily for me, things went really well,” Sehwag told. “In fact, till date, as an opener I am just doing a job given to me by the team management. Given a choice, I would happily slide down and play in the middle-order because that’s where I belong. But right now, I have a job entrusted to me and I love the responsibility, so no regrets at all.”

In eight Tests in which he batted between No. 4 and No. 7, Sehwag averaged 41.55, with one century and two half-centuries. As an opener he averages 51.21 from 64 Tests.

Sehwag also said he and his opening partner Gautam Gambhir motivated themselves by placing bets on who would score faster. “I believe that a sense of competition always helps achieve your best and so we indulge in these little games. I really teased him when I outscored him in the one-day series and he told me he would get back at me. After the Test series, he’s teasing me about how many more runs he scored than me.”

Sehwag felt he was going through the best phase of his career as his performances had translated into wins for the team. “There are several factors surrounding these statistics — the dressing-room atmosphere, the team-mates, coach, captain — it’s everything you could dream of.” Sehwag has scored a triple-hundred, a double-hundred and five half-centuries in the 15 Tests since Gary Kirsten took over as coach in March 2008. India did not lose any of the matches in which he scored fifty or more.

Tags: Gambir, Gary Kirsten, Gautam Gambir, Sehwag, Virender Sehwag

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