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The last time a game was scheduled in Bangalore, it turned into a washout. And at the time, the Royal Challengers were, after a string of losses, close to the bottom of the pack and sorely in need of a win. Now, the tables have turned, and so has the points table. On Friday, the Chinnaswamy stadium will play host to another fixture crucial to the survival of one of the teams, as the Pune Warriors look to regain their foothold in the tourney.

The Pune Warriors, who had initially marched on to the top, now find themselves, after four straight losses, at an unenviable ninth place in the points table. The Royal Challengers have shot up to the third spot, and stand to build on two consecutive wins. Can the Warriors get their campaign back on track before it derails or will it be the team from Bangalore which edges closer to a place in the next round?

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Despite the presence of extraordinary gentlemen such as AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli, Tillakaratne Dilshan and others, it was probably the advent of Chris Gayle which was the shot in the arm the Royal Challengers needed after having languished in the earlier matches. Inconsistency had been their bane, for the most part. Though De Villiers has failed only in two matches so far, Dilshan has got going only in two, while a disputable order of batting has cost the team their three losses.

Also worrisome is the form and performance of Saurabh Tiwary, who has played no more than the minimal cameo on occasion. He will be looking to improve on his underperformed average of 20. Someone of the stability and calibre of Cheteshwar Pujara continues to bat as low as no.6, where he can neither build nor play the aggressor’s role as well as somebody else. Playing Zaheer Khan and Asad Pathan up the order, although they are no mugs with the bat, were experiments that cost the side. Virat Kohli’s form has, however, nullified some of these shortcomings. With four 30-plus scores, he has been the only beacon of consistency in the Royal Challengers outfit.

Bowling had been a bit of a worry for the Royal Challengers, with Zaheer Khan not being as effective without reverse swing, and consequently, unable to lead the side by example. Sreenath Aravind, however, got going on Tuesday, troubling the likes of Virender Sehwag and David Warner with nagging seam movement. Daniel Vettori has not set the tournament alight as yet with wickets, but has been miserly as ever. He will expect to get his due on Bangalore’s turning track, as will the other spinners Syed Mohammad, Gayle, Dilshan and Kohli.

Pune Warriors:

The Warriors’ fortunes, over the past few matches, have been Yuvraj-Singh-centric. Reeking of The Sachin Tendulkar syndrome, in which the team pays for Tendulkar’s success with the loss of the match, Yuvraj has featured single-handedly in three of the Warriors’ last four losses.

Jesse Ryder has provided an incendiary beginning to every innings, but has not taken up the mantle of extending the start into a match-winning performance. Barring Robin Uthappa, who has chipped in with some of his trademark hitting, the rest of the local pool of batsmen, including Mithun Manhas and Mohnish Mishra, has largely been ineffectual. Manish Pandey, two matches into the IPL, is yet to blow the cobwebs off. Graeme Smith’s trough has not helped either.

The pace bowlers of Pune, who were boosted into the limelight after the startling impetus their campaign got when they reduced Kings XI Punjab to 9/4 in four overs, have slouched a bit. Although they have retained their economy, their woeful streak began after they were dissolute against the Delhi Daredevils and then could not match Munaf Patel’s bag of tricks at the Wankhede. Ryder has not been as effective as the Warriors would have liked with his stopping dobblers, and Yuvraj, whilst having picked up a four-for against Delhi, has also been expensive. While Rahul Sharma has been a boon with his thrifty leg-spin, Murali Karthik has been on the expensive side.

Here you can watch RR vs MI IPL 2011 T20 Live Streaming and Cricket Score Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians, Set Max live, Jaipur, Highlights video here. In the 34th game of the Indian Premier League, the Rajasthan Royals will host the Mumbai Indians on Friday. The game will be played at the Sawai man Singh stadium in Jaipur, which is a kind of a fortress for the Royals, where they have won most of the games they have played.

Match Analysis:

The Mumbai Indians go into the game with five wins in the six games they have played. This puts them at the top of the points table which is a difference of two points between them and Chennai who are at the second spot.

So, a win is important for the Mumbai Indians given that the Super Kings seem to have got the momentum now and will look to continue with that through the rest of the tournament.

The Mumbai Indians will depend on the batting of the likes of Tendulkar, Symonds, Rayadu, Rohit Sharma, not to mention Pollard, who has yet to score a run in the tournament.

The Rajasthan Royals will need a good start from Shane Watson and they will hope that the captain does not change the line-up too much.