IPL 9, Qualifier 1 Preview: Challengers face Lions with home advantage

The first playoff fixture of the IPL 9 will see the Royal Challengers Bangalore face off against the top-placed Gujarat Lions. While the Lions concluded the league stages on a high, they will be wary of the Challengers, especially with the latter playing in extremely familiar conditions. The group stages concluded extremely well for the RCB as they won their last four matches in a row, which pushed them to the second place. However, both the sides will have a massive insurance should they lose they will play the winner of the Eliminator to have another go at the finals spot.

Team News-

Gujarat Lions:

Although the Gujarat Lions have been the most successful team in the IPL thus far, their previous encounter against the Challengers will be something at the back of their minds. Shivil Kaushik especially will remember the horror show AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli put up for him as they smashed records yet again to post a score of 248.

However, this time, around, Raina and co. are back. And this time, they come to Bengaluru on the back of twin victories as well as the table toppers. In addition, they have also been a rather well-oiled unit with almost everyone playing a significant part in their charge for the title.

No changes are expected from the Lions as they will be looking for continuity and also stick to a winning combination. The only selection conundrum will be the fact that Shadab Jakati will be replacing Kaushik following the latter’s decimation at the hands of the Challengers the last time these sides met at Bengaluru. Dwayne Bravo is also expected to deliver the goods as Raina will be expected to use him in the death overs.

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Four wins in their previous four matches have seen miracles happening in the RCB camp. With their backs to the wall, Virat Kohli and his band of merry men stormed into second place in the IPL standings courtesy of their impressive win against the Delhi Daredevils at Raipur.

While the batting has been at its explosive best, the bowling also has come to the part. It would also seem as though the inclusion of Englishman Chris Jordan was the shot in the arm the Challengers needed at the time. Yuzvendra Chahal is the holder of the purple cap at the moment after claiming 19 wickets in the tournament, perhaps the first time an RCB player has donned the purple cap.

In addition, the batting firepower in the form of Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers is more than an insurance for the Royal Challengers, especially given the kind of form these blokes are in at the moment. Virat Kohli is also in the form of his life at the moment and the outcome of the encounter will heavily depend on his performance on the night.

Weather:

There have been steady showers in Bengaluru during the last week. But there is no rain forecast for today’s game.

Probable XI-

Gujarat Lions:

Suresh Raina (C), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Aaron Finch, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Praveen Kumar, Pravin Tambe, Dhawal Kulkarni, Shadab Jakati

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Virat Kohli (C), KL Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Shane Watson, Stuart Binny, Sachin Baby, Yuzvendra Chahal, Chris Jordan, Iqbal Abdullah/Varun Aaron, Sreenath Aravind

StAttack:

1. Virat Kohli requires another 81 runs to complete 1000 runs in this edition of the IPL. It is highly unlikely that he will not achieve this feat given the fact that the Challengers will play at least two matches.

2. The Royal Challengers Bangalore bowling unit has come of age as the bowlers have taken 28 wickets in their last three matches.

3. Suresh Raina requires just 3 runs to complete 400 runs in this edition of the IPL. He is leading run-getter for the Gujarat Lions in their debut season.

4. Dwayne Smith surprisingly has the best bowling figures for the Lions with 4-8 against the Kolkata Knight Riders at Kanpur. His countryman Dwayne Bravo has the most number of wickets with 15 scalps to his name.