Having posted a record 211 in their previous encounter, a buoyant Rajasthan Royals will look to set the record straight against Royal Challengers Bangalore, who had humbled them in their opening match, in the Indian Premier League, in Pretoria, on Thursday.
The defending champions, who were steamrolled for a lowly 58 by Bangalore on the day the high-profile event started, appear to be on their way up with emphatic wins over Deccan Chargers and Kings XI Punjab following a roller-coaster run of alternating wins and losses till last week.
The Shane Warne-led outfit climbed to third sport after handing out a 78-run thrashing to Kings XI Punjab and they will have to make it three-in-a-row to keep their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals alive.
Rajasthan seem to be peaking at the right time with their form book boasting of a revived Graeme Smith, who hit a timely 77 on Tuesday. Greenhorns Naman Ojha (68 runs) and Amit Singh (three for 9) also lived up to captain-coach Warne's expectations with shining performances with bat and ball respectively in the victory over Punjab.
Twenty20 World Cup-bound Ravindra Jadeja (33) also showed glimpses of what he is capable of after the team's hero of last year -- opener Swapnil Asnodkar -- failed to click on South African pitches.
The team must be eagerly awaiting the arrival of Australian recruit Shane Watson, who was man of the tournament in the inaugural edition, to boost their prospects in the coming matches. Watson was on national duty in the ODI series against Pakistan in the UAE.
Besides, fans are anxious to know what more surprises Warne has up his sleeves to humble the resurgent Royal Challengers, under veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble's captaincy.
The Vijay Mallya-owned team has emerged a force to reckon with under Kumble, going unbeaten in their last three matches. Their performance is all the more creditable as their most expensive player, Kevin Pietersen, has left the team to join the national squad for the Test series against West Indies.
Bangalore, placed fifth with four wins and four losses from eight matches, are also in contention for a place in the last-four stage of the cash-rich tournament.
Although their batting and bowling doesn't boast of many big names after Pietersen's departure, the team did romp home, riding on star all-rounder Jacques Kallis and Robin Uthappa's batting and Kumble's bowling in the previous match.
