<p><strong>IPL 5 – Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Deccan Chargers - Match Preview</strong></p>
<p>One of the favourites of the tournament, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be up against the disappointment of the fifth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Deccan Chargers, in the 50<sup>th</sup> fixture at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore,
on Sunday.</p>
<p>RCB has not done justice to its potential so far in the current season as it is placed at number six in the points table with only nine points after 10 matches. However, because of an immensely strong batting unit, RCB is still one of the favourites of the
event.</p>
<p>Deccan on the other hand has been extremely poor and has miserably failed to deliver the goods under pressure. It has made the last spot in the points table its own with just five points after 10 matches and is effectively out of the contention to qualify
for the play-off stage of the tournament.</p>
<p>RCB has one of the strongest batting line-ups in the tournament in the presence of the mighty left-hander from the Caribbean, Chris Gayle, India’s young batting sensation, Virat Kohli and one of the world’s best limited-overs batsmen, AB de Villiers. On
top of that, the franchise also has the services of Tillakaratne Dilshan, who is a match-winner in his own right.</p>
<p>However, the real problem for RCB has been the performance of its bowlers, who have failed to restrict the opposing batsmen on a number of occasions. The franchise is under massive pressure to include the former Sri Lankan off-spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan
in the playing eleven. The wily bowler performed well in the initial matches of the tournament but since then, he has been warming the benches.</p>
<p>A team can only play four foreign players in the playing eleven and this is the reason why, Murali has to sit out. There is a school of thought which believes RCB can drop its captain Daniel Vettori to play the off-spinner from Sri Lanka.</p>
<p>While talking to the reporters on Friday, Vettori said that he has no objections on dropping himself, if it is for the betterment of the team. The Former Kiwi skipper added that his team was successful last year with the same combination and this is the
reason why, the management does not want to experiment too much.</p>
<p>“I will opt out if it is needed. I have said from the start that we need to get out four overseas players and we do that every game. If it’s right for me to sit down and then it’s fine with me. Our success last year was due to three international batsmen
and one spinner,” said Vettori.</p>
<p>On the other side of the coin, the Chargers will find it hard to motivate themselves because of the situation they find themselves in. Deccan’s coach, Darren Lehmann is not happy with his team’s showings in the current season and admitted that his players
have kept on repeating the same mistakes.</p>
<p>Lehmann expressed, "It is a young squad and sometimes it is disappointing that some of the players are making mistakes. So many times I had words with players. I have talked about what they need to do on the field.”</p>
<p>RCB will start the match as hot-favourites and this provides Daniel Vettori and his men a massive opportunity to gather some momentum ahead of the crucial stages of the tournament.</p>
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