All Downhill for Warne

By Gulu Ezekiel

The remarkable triumph of the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL last year was just the fairy-tale finish the league was looking for in its inaugural season.
The manner in which Shane Warne took a young squad with few superstars—they were the lowest bid at the team auctions—to victory from the last ball of the final gave the IPL a massive boost right at the start of their saga.
Its all gone pear shaped for Warne and his boys this season though. Currently they are languishing at second-last in the points table.
Warne has just not been able to reproduce the magic this time around which had made him the first year’s biggest success story.
The absence of the Pakistani players has hit the Royals hard. Left arm pace bowler Sohail Tanvir was the leading wicket taker in 2008 and his loss has left a big hole in their bowling attack.
The unheralded teenager from Uttar Pradesh, Kamran Khan looked like he could fill in for Tanvir. But after a few surprise spells, Kamran has been injured. And what is worse, he has become the first bowler in the IPL to be reported for a faulty action. That has put a huge dampener on Rajasthan’s prospects and it will have to take a remarkable turnaround if they can make the semis now with just two wins from six matches.
The other success stories of 2008 were the batting of young Goan opener Swapnil Asnodkar and the all-round skills of MVP Shane Watson.
Watson has been on national duty and it is uncertain if he will now join the franchise since Australia’s ODI series against Pakistan has just finished.
Asnodkar’s technique has been found wanting on the pacier tracks of South Africa. But the biggest disappointment has been the wretched form of South Africa’s captain Graeme Smith in his own backyard.
With all these woes piling up, the Royals’ dream run appears to have come to a shuddering halt.
www.sportshero.com (2/5/09)