Delhi attempt to breach the Jaipur fortress

Match facts

	Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath will be leading their respective bowling attacks, against each other © Getty Images

The Big Picture

As the Indian Premier League enters its second half, the matches hold more importance for the teams in the bottom half of the points table. The Rajasthan Royals are at the top of the league, and know that another couple of wins will virtually cement a semi-final berth. Delhi, on the other hand, are fourth and a defeat in Jaipur will give Kolkata and Mumbai a chance to draw level with them.

Shane Warne's men haven't lost a game at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, winning all four of their matches there. They seem to have developed successful formula: win the toss and field, restrict the opposition with their versatile bowling attack, and chase down targets at a comfortable pace. Rajasthan won all three games in which Warne put the opposition in and also won the two matches in which they were asked to chase. Their only two defeats came when they batted first.

These teams played each other in their first match of the tournament and Delhi won that game by a massive nine-wicket margin. Delhi also prefer chasing, and have successfully gunned down three out of four targets. Their strength lies in their opening combinations: Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir with the bat, and Glenn McGrath and Mohammad Asif with the new ball. Sehwag and Gambhir are among the top three run-scorers in the tournament and Shikhar Dhawan, the No. 3 batsman, complements them well with an average of 51. The weakness lies in their middle order, where their international stars, Shoaib Malik and AB de Villiers, are yet to make a significant contribution. Dismiss the openers cheaply and negotiate McGrath with the new ball and half the battle is won against Delhi.

Tournament position

IPL form (last five matches)

Watch out for ...