Daijiworld Media Network

Kolkata, May 24: Hello and welcome to the second qualified between Rajasthan and Mumbai. Let's start with some not-so-good news (we've had a lot of that over the past week): it was raining heavily a couple of hours back and we might have a delayed start. It's not raining at the moment, but the conditions are still wet. Rajasthan and Mumbai will hope for a full game. The winner meets Chennai on Sunday, the 26th of this month.

Rajasthan have won the toss and elected to bat.

Rohit Sharma: 'A bit of a setback against Chennai. We didn't play good cricket there but we've left that behind. It's a new day today. The kind of wicket we get here suits our style of cricket. The pitch is looking a little better than what we usually get here. We would have batted first as well. We believe that everyone here has potential. We'll look to keep it simple and not put pressure on ourselves. Munaf Patel is out and Rishi Dhawan is in.'

Dravid: 'Nothing to lose for us. We've played some really good cricket and hopefully we can focus on this game and do well. Everytime we needed somebody to put their hand up, somebody has stood up. The good thing is that it has been different people at different stages. We've got some momentum going. Nice to be here and everyone seems rested and eager to play here. It helps to put runs on the board. Against Mumbai, we have to bat well and put up a good score. No changes for us.'

Teams:

Rajasthan (Playing XI): Rahul Dravid(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Shane Watson, Dishant Yagnik(w), Stuart Binny, Sanju Samson, Brad Hodge, James Faulkner, Kevon Cooper, Vikramjeet Malik, Siddharth Trivedi

Mumbai (Playing XI): Aditya Tare, Dwayne Smith, Dinesh Karthik(w), Rohit Sharma(c), Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell Johnson, Lasith Malinga, Pragyan Ojha, Rishi Dhawan

So, no Sachin Tendulkar once again. He has still not recovered from his hand injury.

Match Preview

A lot has happened off the field in the last week or so, but amidst all this, the team that is in the center of all attention has silently gone on to make it to the last three. Rajasthan's campaign this season is the story of the underdog punching above its weight, much like they did in the very first season of the tournament. The other two teams that have survived the tournament so far are the heavyweights - Chennai and Mumbai - and if Rajasthan indeed manage to get past them, it will be a story out of dreams!

Rajasthan's first hurdle will be Mumbai - their opponents in the second qualifier to be played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. When these two teams met on May 15, 2013, everything was normal in the tournament and all the attention was only on the on-field cricket. Things have changed rather rapidly though since then and there are too many developments to fit into this preview, so let's keep the focus on cricket.

Rajasthan:

After the spot-fixing stories cropped up, Rajasthan have played 2 games - both against the same opponents Hyderabad. They lost the first game, leading to questions about their ability to focus on the game, but they answered that in fine style in the eliminator. Tougher challenges await them though and they need one final push from their unfancied players.

Team news:

Rajasthan's off field problems have caused a direct problem for their on-field chances. With Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan behind bars, Rajasthan have lost two of their spinners, who would have been handful in the slow and low wicket at Kolkata. To make matters worse, their other spinner - 41 year old Pravin Tambe - was injured and ruled out of the eliminator against Hyderabad.

One spinning option for Rajasthan is batsman and part time left arm spinner Ashok Menaria. Brad Hogg is an option as well and he could get a game ahead of Cooper if the pitch suits him. They played an all-seam attack against Hyderabad in Delhi, but Dravid is known to pick horses-for-courses, so it'll be interesting to see what team Rajasthan fields against Mumbai.

Their batting unit isn't fancied much but they are no less than Mumbai when it comes to effectiveness. Their top 3 - Dravid, Rahane and Watson - have been in good form throughout the season. Stuart Binny and Sanju Samson have chipped in with vital contributions and with Brad Hodge finding his hitting ability in the last game against Hyderabad, they look a dangerous line up.

Mumbai:

Mumbai may be the favorites on paper but ever since they sealed a spot in the top 2 in the league stages, they have suffered a slight dip in form. They were outplayed in their last league game at Dharamsala against Punjab and followed that up with another big loss to Chennai in the first qualifier, putting them in a must-win position if they are to meet Chennai again in the final.

Team news:

Sachin Tendulkar's hand injury is yet to heal and he is unlikely to play in the rest of the tournament. His injury has given Aditya Tare an extended rope as the team's opener. Dwayne Smith was picked above Maxwell for the game against Chennai and he sealed his position with a 28 ball 68. Mumbai have a settled side and are likely to stick to their combination.

Mumbai's biggest concern will be their batting line up which has let them down in the last few games. It is not that they are out of form; Tare sizzled in his first game, Dwayne Smith played a blazing knock against Chennai, Rohit Sharma has been consistent but the team has also shown signs of collapses in the last couple of matches. Dinesh Karthik started the tournament with a bang but has struggled to keep the momentum with him, while Rayudu has been silent throughout the season. Mumbai have the might with them, but will have to convert that into a combined performance.

Key contests:

Watson vs Pollard: Shane Watson and Pollard got into an on-field spat in their last encounter; Pollard continuously sledged Watson while the latter was batting and even gave him a send off after taking his catch. The verbal war continued off the field and Pollard irritated Watson so much that the latter was forced to leave the dug-out and go into the team's dressing room. Watson would not have forgotten that, and he has another chance to give it back to Pollard. Who'll win this battle of all-rounders?

Previous clashes: Rajasthan defeated Mumbai in Jaipur, and Mumbai defeated Rajasthan in Mumbai.

Final word: Rajasthan may be the underdogs in the tournament and Mumbai may be a far superior side on paper, but there is a lot of similarity in the two sides' campaigns this season. They are the only two sides to have a clean home record this year and have struggled in comparison away from home. Who will survive the semi-final - Mumbai's might, or Rajasthan's spirit? Chennai are waiting.