IPL 2018: Hit by similar setbacks, Rajasthan, Hyderabad seek winning start

Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 has begun in full swing and over the next one and a half months all the eight teams will battle it out amongst themselves for a spot in the knockout stage.

In match four of the cash-rich tournament, Hyderabad will face Rajasthan at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad today.

Both the teams had to face a major setback before the beginning of the campaign after their respective captains- Steve Smith and David Warner were banned from playing in this season of the IPL, after the infamous ball-tampering scandal.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

However, despite their absence, the balance of both the sides is still intact.

Kane Williamson and Ajinkya Rahane will be leading Hyderabad and Rajasthan respectively.

Rajasthan will hope to get off to a winning start while making a comeback into the tournament after a two-year suspension, and Hyderabad will aim for a similar result as in 2016 when they clinched the title.

For Hyderabad, Shikhar Dhawan, Deepak Hooda, Rashid Khan and Kane Williamson, Bhuvneshwar Kumar are all there on the teamsheet.

Another valuable addition to the squad is that of IPL’s first centurion, Manish Pandey whom the franchise bought for Rs 11 crores.

Even, the Royals think-tank also tried to maintain a core group of players. Ajinkya Rahane, Jaydev Unadkat, Ben Stokes and Rahul Tripathi, all of whom represented Pune last season were bought by Rajasthan this time.

The Royals also spent heavily on their foreign contingent buying players impact players like Ben Stokes, Joffra Archer.

Both the teams have some of the most power-packed performers but it will be important for them to perform to overcome the Smith-Warner jolt.