IPL 2019 | I wouldn’t say Rajasthan Royals are a weakened side, says Tom Moody
IPL
Ahead of their match against Rajasthan Royals, Tom Moody has said that he can’t consider the Royals as a weakened side even after the star players Jos Butler and Ben Stokes went back to England. Moody also feels that today’s match is important for both the teams to be on the playoffs track.
Sunrisers Hyderabad had so far won five out of ten matches and are at the fourth position of the points table. They will meet Rajasthan Royals, who are presently at the seventh position, in the 45th match of IPL 2019 tonight for the second time this year. The first match between the two teams went in favour of SRH with a five-wicket win.
Rajasthan Royals, led by Steven Smith, have so far won only four matches out of 11 played and they are at the seventh position of the points table. The team must win all the remaining matches with the required run rate to make their playoffs dream real. RR will miss their star players Jos Butler, who has scored 311 runs with an average of 38.87, and Ben Stokes who have gone back to England for World Cup commitments. Tom Moody, on addressing this, said that SRH should not consider that RR is on depletion.
“I wouldn’t say that they are a weakened side because if I lose players it also presents opportunities to those who are hungry. You cannot underestimating your opponent. The fringe players only need a lucky break to shine,” Moody said at the pre-match press conference, reported Scroll.
Though SRH have maintained their run rate of 0.653, the team has managed to gather only 10 points, and stands at the fourth place, this being a crowded position many teams would try to compete with their full potential to make their way into the play-offs.
“It is a very important game for both teams, given that the middle of the table is very crowded. It is an opportunity for us to break away from that middle. We have four games left and have to win majority of those, most of the teams in the middle are in that position. We know that Rajasthan are coming off a win but they are also coming from back-to-back games, had a travel day today and have lost a few players to World Cup commitments,” the former Australian all-rounder said.
David Warner and Jonny Bairstow have been performing well in this tournament so far. Warner topping the table with 574 runs and Bairstow with 445 runs. Bairstow has also gone back to England as his compatriots from the Royals’ camp.
“Warner and Barstow have been performing well. But when the door closes, another one opens. It’s an opportunity for someone else to step in that batting position,” Moody said.
“We haven’t finalised the eleven, whether Guptill plays or not is undecided. For the past four weeks, he has been practicing on all sorts of surfaces at nets which are more often not as good as surfaces which are presented out in the middle. He is prepared for any surface. He has prepared and preparing for that opportunity,” the coach concluded.
