Mullanpur: Former Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Tom Moody has said he fears Rajasthan Royals could go down the same path of suffering a late meltdown in their IPL 2024 season, something that happened with them last year.
RR are still at the top of the table with eight points from five games, but their unbeaten streak in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 came to an end when Gujarat Titans defeated them by three wickets in a last-ball thriller at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium this week. They now face the Shikhar Dhawan-led Punjab Kings at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium on Saturday evening to ensure that the defeat to GT was just an aberration.
In IPL 2023, at this very juncture, RR lost six of their last nine games to miss out on a spot in the playoffs. “Whenever I think of Punjab, all I think of is Shashank, and what he has done over the last couple of years. The one that played at Sunrisers Hyderabad a few years back. But isn't it a great story, that? And, you know, got one over the line against GT, just fell short against Sunrisers.”
“I think it's going to be a really interesting game because Rajasthan, I think, were shocked at their loss. You know, they're running high, and I don't want to say too early, but it's nearly... You don't want them to go down the same path that they did last year where they started the season so brilliantly well and then just fell in the hole, ” he said.
“I don't think that's going to happen as such. They've learned a lot from last year. But this is a threat because Punjab are punching above their weight at the moment, and they're at home. They like playing at this new venue. Arshdeep is back in some form, swinging that new ball. So a few things are going in Punjab's favour here, ” said Moody on ‘Cricket Live’ show on Star Sports.
Michael Clarke, the former Australia captain, also expects RR to come back stronger against a PBKS side stuck in ninth place in the points table. “They’re expected to win Rajasthan, which creates pressure. So I think that allows Punjab to go and play with freedom. Again, leave nothing in the tank. Try and win the game from ball one, whether you bat first, bowl first.”
“Rajasthan need to perform better than they did in their last game, and they'll want to get back to their winning ways. Again, no matter how good your team is, momentum goes both ways. When you're winning, you want it. When you're losing, you don't want to go back-to-back losses. So, yeah, I think Rajasthan will turn up in the right attitude, and they'll want to make things right after their loss the other day.”