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Can Indians outwit Warne’s Royals?

Nandakumar Marar

Swapnil Asnodkar may again play an important role for the visitor

— Photo: Vivek Bendre

THINK TANK: Though Sachin Tendulkar is highly unlikely to play on Wednesday, Mumbai Indians captain Shaun Pollock will bank on him to provide vital inputs to deal with whatever tricks the canny Rajasthan Royals skipper Shane Warne may play on them.

MUMBAI: Shane Warne, doing the string-pulling for Rajasthan Royals as captain/coach, has been able to make his team play to its strengths so far in the DLF-Indian Premier League. The Australian spin wizard has also used the opportunity to spring tactical surprises on opponents, staying a step ahead of the game.

Mumbai Indians now square up on Wednesday, wondering about the next card up his sleeve at the D.Y. Patil stadium, the venue for the seventh round tie.

The anticipated Warne vs Sachin Tendulkar matchup will not happen this time. Mumbai captain Shaun Pollock said, “Tendulkar won’t be playing, unless he wakes up the next morning and feels fine. It makes sense to take rest in this game, because we have a week before our next match at home.”

Mumbai’s next home game is against Chennai Super Kings on May 14.

A realist

The Royals skipper is a realist when it comes to the T20 format. “Any team can beat any side in a T20 format. Having said that, we are not going to take our foot off the pedal. We are wary of Mumbai, which apart from Sanath Jayasuriya, has very dangerous hitters. We have special plans for them,” quipped Warne, confident on match-eve, yet eager to try out mind games on rivals who don’t know what to expect.

Yusuf Pathan may play a critical role in keeping Jayasuriya under check. Warne had used the tall off-spinner successfully against Adam Gilchrist in one of the earlier matches. The Baroda all-rounder’s reputation for power-packed strokeplay may also earn him a spot higher up the batting order as the wicket here offers even bounce.

Gilchrist’s savage hitting had reduced the Hyderabad run chase against Mumbai on this track into a no-contest, Virender Sehwag almost pulled it off for Delhi in the previous match here, so batsmen blessed with timing, reach and audacity have excelled in the two games here.

Local angle

Swapnil Asnodkar and Anup Revandkar are two locals in the Warne camp, both play for the D.Y. Patil Academy under Abey Kuruvilla and are familiar with the nature of the wicket in night matches.

Asnodkar’s match-winning 60 against Kolkata Knight Riders, dominating a bowling lineup featuring Umar Gul, Ishant Sharma and Ajit Agarkar, means the Mumbai bowlers have one more strokeplayer to counter, apart from Yusuf. Kuruvilla, captain/coach at the D.Y. Patil Academy, feels Asnodkar has the adaptability to excel in any format. “He is an all-round batsman, does not restrict himself to any particular area and bats according to the situation. At the same time, he is a committed team man.” Revandkar, 20, is a capable bat and more than useful fast bowler.

The teams (from): Rajasthan Royals: Shane Warne (capt), Graeme Smith, Shane Watson, Sohail Tanvir, Swapnil Asnodkar, Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan, Mohd Kaif, Niraj Patel, Mahesh Rawat, Munaf Patel, Pankaj Singh, Dinesh Salunkhe, Siddharth Trivedi, Anup Revandkar, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Taruvar Kolhi, Kamran Akmal.

Mumbai Indians: Shaun Pollock (capt), Sanath Jayasuriya, Dwayne Bravo, Robin Uthappa, Yogesh Takawale, Abhishek Nayar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Rohan Raje, Ashish Nehra, Saurabh Tiwary, Dominic Thornley, Ajinkya Rahane, Pinal Shah, Musavir Khote, Sachin Tendulkar.

Match starts 8 p.m.

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