JAIPUR: With the Indian challenge in the World Cup coming to a premature end, not every one is complaining. The fringe players who have done well in domestic one-day competitions this season are suddenly filled with hope.

With the BCCI President Sharad Pawar talking of giving more opportunities to "other" talented players by forming two teams for overseas competitions in the year ahead, the performances in Deodhar Trophy and the on-going Premier Cup may well be considered by the National selectors in future.

In this background, Wednesday's Premier Cup final between Mumbai and Rajasthan assumes added importance. Obviously, any individual coming up with a Cup-winning performance stands a chance to be rewarded in a year packed with international engagements.

Favourite

Without doubt, Mumbai starts as an overwhelming favourite against Rajasthan, which upstaged Punjab after looking lost at one stage of its chase on Monday. Mumbai, too, had to face several anxious moments against Uttar Pradesh in the first semifinal after slipping from a position of strength.

Mumbai, with several known and experienced campaigners like Wasim Jaffer, Ramesh Powar, Nilesh Kulkarni and Avishkar Salvi in its line-up, is expected to come out stronger on the big stage. Whether it is the depth in batting or variety in bowling, Mumbai has no worry.

Handling pressure

Rajasthan, to its credit, stopped Karnataka and Punjab after starting as an underdog. Since the expectations are sure to be less from Rajasthan, the pressure will be on Mumbai to prove its superiority. On the other hand, the starless host has everything to gain and very little to lose.

The surface at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, where over the last two days the teams winning the toss have opted to bat, but eventually lost, continues to look batsmen-friendly. The bounce is a little low, but consistent.

Disciplined line and length is being rewarded. Once a batsman adjusts to the bounce, it is difficult to trouble him since the conditions do not help the ball to either to seam or swing. Worse, slow turn with a noticeable lack of bounce does not help the cause of the spinners.

Rajasthan may know this pitch better than Mumbai but that may not be enough in the eventual analysis.

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