The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Warne eyes revenge against Kings XI Punjab

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Warne eyes revenge against Kings XI Punjab

— PHOTO: AFP

THE KINGPIN: Yuvraj Singh has to come up with consistent performances for Kings XI.

Durban: Defeat in their previous meeting fresh in mind, revenge will fuel Rajasthan Royals’ campaign when Shane Warne and his comrades-in-arms take on the Yuvraj Singh-led Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Tuesday.

It took Kumar Sangakkara’s first fifty of the tournament and Irfan Pathan’s all-round show to fashion Kings XI Punjab’s 27-run win over Rajasthan Royals in Cape Town. Past records, however, would count for little when the sides square off at the Kingsmead to have another go at each other.

Kings XI Punjab didn’t have the best of starts in the tournament as it began with back-to-back defeats against Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders in two rain-marred ties. To its credit, the Mohali-based outfit showed tremendous resilience and engineered three wins on the trot to put its campaign back on track.

The momentum snapped when the lowly Royal Challengers Bangalore upset its apple cart, but once again, Yuvraj and his men bounced back by beating Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday, also settling scores with the side which had beaten it in its first encounter.

In contrast, the defending champion had a rather rollercoaster ride with agony and ecstasy following each other with amazing regularity. The opening match debacle against Royal Challengers Bangalore was followed by the washed out tie against Mumbai Indians.

Beating Kolkata Knight Riders gave Rajasthan Royals its first taste of triumph and it went on to get the better of Delhi Daredevils and Deccan Chargers, losing to Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings in between.

Even though Kings XI Punjab has won more matches — four compared to Rajasthan Royals’ three — in the tournament so far, there is little to choose between the sides that cross swords on Tuesday.

Kings XI Punjab has been served well by its Sri Lankan recruits with Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene bailing out the side in the hour of crisis, while Yuvraj’s own form has been less than consistent.— PTI

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