This piece talks about three of the best innings played in this IPL so far:

Yusuf Pathan, 100 (37 balls) versus Mumbai Indians:
Not often does a century in T20 cricket end in a lost cause. This is exactly what happened when Yusuf Pathan smacked a 37-ball century consisting of nine fours and eight huge sixes, as his side failed to provide him with the necessary support required to win the game.

Chasing a total of 213 for a win, the Royals were down in the dumps at 66/4 in the tenth over with almost an academic interest left in the margin of defeat. Instead, Pathan had other ideas and by the time he was unfortunately run-out, the Royals had the entire momentum going their way, as only 40 runs were needed for the win off three overs.

The rest of them failed, and the Mumbai Indians ended winners by only 4 runs. It also led Shane Warne to quip that it was the best innings he had seen in career lasting two decades!

Jacques Kallis, 89 (55 balls), versus Kings XI Punjab:
It was an innings of great poise and substance. The Kings XI Punjab had piled up 203 in their twenty overs and chasing it down was going to be difficult. Not so much as the Bangalore team opened their innings with Kallis, who was expected to do the anchor’s role. Instead, the pair of Manish Pandey and Kallis mesmerised the Punjab attack with a 74 run stand and then Kallis rotated the strike over with Robin Uthappa looking in sizzling touch.

Even by the time Uthappa was dismissed, the Bangalore side needed 61 runs off six overs, a total that the team got with consummate ease thanks to the great South African; Kallis. His 89 ahd eight fours and most surprisingly, five sixes, something not to be expected from a more sedate batsman like Kallis!

Sachin Tendulkar, 71 (48 balls), versus Kolkata Knight Riders:
That Tendulkar has been in the form of his life is not unheard of. However, for him to play in the manner that he has in this tournament so far has been a sheer treat to the eyes, in a format that not many reckon his cup of tea. Against the Knight Riders, the target was 156, and Tendulkar opened the innings. He was ably supported by the others around him, but most importantly, he kept picking up the boundaries throughout the duration of his innings.

But most specifically, he reserved a special treatment for Ishant Sharma, someone who was banished to the fence each time he erred ever so slightly in the spell. Sharma did pick up a couple of wickets, but could not get Tendulkar out and conceded 44 runs off his four overs.

And Mumbai won with seven wickets and nine balls to spare!

It was a heart-warming innings in a format of the game which is usually associated with brute power and thrashing!

Rajasthan Royals:

Strengths:
The Rajasthan Royals have a captain who is one of the best in the business, but then again, he will need to lead from the front. Apart from the captain Shane Warne, Yusuf Pathan’s bold and audacious hitting will make him a dangerous customer for the opposition and on grounds which support his brand of batting, things will become really difficult for the opposition.
But Rajasthan’s biggest strength is that they do not possess too many super-stars like some of the other names. Their basic strategy is to make the most of their limited players, and that is precisely how they had won the first edition of the tournament. In the second IPL, they had picked up a side more suitable for the Indian conditions but with the tournament moved to South Africa, they had ha their difficulties. Now, they should relish the Indian conditions and they will be followed with quite a lot of interest in the tournament.

Weaknesses:
Their middle-order looks a tad weak. Over-reliance on Yusuf Pathan could be an issue and if Graeme Smith or Swapnil Asnodkar are unable to recapture their form of the past, things could get really difficult for the Rajasthan side.

Players to watch out for:
Pathan without doubt. But apart from Pathan, it will be interesting to see whether two of the older guys, Warne himself and Damien Martyn, are able to make their age a non-issue and deliver for the side. warne’s shoulder needs to hold up, but in his own words, the more he bowls, the better it gets and hence he could be the bowler to look out for.

Kings XI Punjab:

Strengths:
The captain has changed from Yuvraj Singh to Kumar Sangakkara, and one gets the feeling that unlike Brendon McCullum , Sangakkara will be able to unite the team much better than what Yuvi managed in the second edition. That should also take the load off Yuvraj Singh’s shoulders and allow the Punjab team to enjoy his stroke-play.

Weaknesses:
The absence of Brett Lee will hurt, as would the presence of a half-fit Irfan Pathan. Unfortunately for the Punjab side, their bowling could be an issue as neither is it strong nor does it consist of players who can bottle ends up even in this format of the game. With not too many wickets to show for, and with the runs leaking at both ends, things could get very difficult for even someone like a Yusuf Abdullah, who is not used to bowling in Indian conditions.

Players to watch out for:
Yuvraj Singh, if fit, would be raring to go. He hasn’t had a great last one year, and with injuries having taken over, he is struggling to make it count. So will Kumar Sangakkara and S Sreesanth, all of whom have much to prove in their own little ways.

BCCI set to pay $5m to Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals

The BCCI has set a compensation for the two IPL teams who missed out on the Champions League last year because of its cancellation. Chennai Super Kings and the Rajasthan Royals, who had made it to the finals of the first ever IPL and in the process qualified for the Champions League of 2008 have been allocated $5 million each by the BCCI as compensation for the cancellation of the tournament due to terrorists attacks.

The rules stipulate that there will not be any compensation that the Champions League will provide to any team because of cancellation. However, if the respective cricket board from a country deems it fit, they can dole out money as compensation to their own team. In this case, the BCCI has invoked this clause in making the payout.

However, not all members within the BCCI are happy with this, as they say that this could create a bad precedent. There is also a question of the amount of compensation which the teams have been paid, which is much more than what they would have earned even if they would have played in the tournament! However, there is another school of thought that says that the BCCI is justified in helping out its stake holders and hence, the payout makes sense.

The Sawai Mansingh Stadium (SMS) was built in Jaipur, India for Cricket during the rule of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. The stadium, designed like the forts that surround the historic city of Jaipur, has witnessed one Test match, against Pakistan in 1987. It is one of the most hi-tech stadiums in India. The highest individual score by any batsman on this ground in ODI is 183 (not out) by Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It is home to the IPL team the Rajasthan Royals.

See a Google Map of Sawai Mansingh Stadium

Jaipur: Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan state and is popularly known as the ‘pink city’. It was in 1876, that Maharaja Ram Singh earned Jaipur its sobriquet. He painted the entire old city pink, traditionally a colour associated with hospitality, to welcome the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) to the city. The tradition has been maintained and today all residents in the old city are compelled by law to preserve the pink colour.

Jaipur boasts of a rich and colourful past, resplendent with tales of valour and bravery and is counted as one of the most important heritage cities in India. It is definitely a must-see for tourists coming to India and has one of the most vibrant cultural scenes in the country.

Within Jaipur: The old city is to the north-east of Jaipur. Additions have been made to this orginal section in the south and west. The tourist attractions are in and around the old part of the town. Jaipur is a planned city and the roads and bylanes are laid out in a grid pattern, which makes it easy to tour the city. There are three interconnecting roads – Mirza Ismail Road (MI Road), Station Road and Sansar Chandra Marg where most of the hotels are located.

About Jaipur:
Population: 23, 24, 319 (2001)
Area: 23.3 sq. km. approx
Altitude: 431 m or 1,414 ft (above sea level)
Temperature: Summer Average Max 40.6°C, Average Min. 25.8°C
Winter Average Max. 22.0°C Average Min 8.3°C
Rainfall: 64 cm
Clothing: Summer - Tropical, Winter - Woolen
Languages spoken: Hindi, Rajasthani & English

Above information courtesy of the official Rajasthan Royals website

Warne won the toss and elected to field. The Super Kings innings culminating with 5-163 leaving Royals a solid tally to keep up with. Yusuf Pathan meant business scoring 56 of 39 balls. In his IPL final winning half century he scored 4 huge sixes.

Pathan's partners included Shane Watson with a solid stint at the crease with a 65-run partnership scoring 28 off 19 balls. Along with his batting Watson bowled an economical 1-29 taking the wicket of prized Kings top scorer Suresh Raina (43)

Bring In Warney!

Shane Warne then came to the crease to help support Pathan across the line. 20 runs short of target Pathan was dismissed the Aussie spin bowler remained cool. In the 19th over Warney hit a four and left Sohail Tanvir to score the winning runs in the final over.

Watson has been one of the leading performers in the series and said winning the inaugural title was one of his greatest career highlights.

"Amazing game, what a fitting end to such an amazing tournament,'' said Watson.

"This whole thing has been amazing. "

"I could not have written it any more perfectly.''

Highlights

• Pathan - Man of the Match for his half century and superb bowling of 3 wickets for 22
• Watson - IPL player of the series with his total of 472 runs and 17 wickets throughout the tournament
• Shaun Marsh - The Aussie cricketer claimed the tournament's highest run score award playing in Kings XI Punjab
• Sohail Tanvir - Bowler of the series got the Purple Cap for having bagged a phenomenal 22 wickets in 11 games (economy rate 6.46 he claimed a wicket off every 11.2 deliveries)

I don't think there's been too many better teams I've played in in over 20 years of first class cricket, just with the spirit in this squad." said Shane Warne

"It's been a fantastic journey ... one hell of a ride." Fox Sports

Salmon Puts on a Show

Check out more photos at the official Rajasthan Royals website

Halla Bol Royals Squad Video

Bangalore Royal Challengers
Official Website

Kolkata Knight Riders Official Website

"I am very happily retired. I am looking forward to spending my time with my children and to working for charity," Warne told newspersons after leading the Rajasthan Royals to win number 9 in the Indian Premier League.

Warney believes that it is up to the older players to give the junior players confidence. He praised the performance of the younger players Niraj Patel and Ravindra Jadeja for keeping the heads cool during the games tantilising finale.

After electing to field first the Royals managed to keep the Mumbai Indians to a modest 145 for 7. In reply the Royals were boxed in with 43 needed from 3 overs.

The young guns Patel (40 not out) and Jadeja (23 not out) stayed calm to clinch the improbable 5-wicket win on the last ball!

"It was a sensational win and I would rate it as one of the best games of my 20-year-long cricketing career," Warne said after the match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Monday night.

Media speculation has been put to rest regarding Warney's return to play next year's Ashes in international test cricket for Australia. Even with Warne's impressive bowling this series (14 wickets at 18.78) he has ruled out returning to non-T20 cricket.

Ricky Ponting is backing Stuart MacGill to continue to be the 'go-to' man for Australia's spin bowling.