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They rose to become the Champion of the first edition after having started off as one of the flimsiest-looking sides; they missed the cut for the semis for the next two years straight; they became embroiled in a lot of court-kutchery and faced the axe over the issue of faulty management prior to this season, and ended up as one of the resident Black Sheeps of the Indian Premier League. All through its existence, Rajasthan Royals has not been content with being a back-bencher or a mild-mannered franchise, and with belligerent Coach-cum-Captain Shane Warne steering the ship, one would expect no different. Come Saturday, when franchise co-owner Shilpa Shetty cries her throat hoarse, giving the roar of team mascot Moochu Singh, the lion, a run for its money, and Shane Warne begins marshalling his troops, the Rajasthan Royals will find it hard not to throw themselves into the battlefield with a combative fury!

The Royals have been all about the ‘value for money’ formula. They were the cheap offspring of a paltry $67 million deal between the IPL and franchise chairman Manoj Badale; they enjoyed Yusuf Pathan’s fearsome pillagery for a nominal price during the first three seasons; their bids in this year’s auction even fell short of Rs.3.3 million, which is the minimum value each franchise is mandated to offer up.

In Coach Warne and former England spinner Jeremy Snape, who is the team psychologist, the Royals boast a formidable unit in charge of team-morale and spirit-building. Paul Collingwood, with his all-round stats, was a great buy at $250,000, but will be a non-starter this season due to a knee-injury he picked up during the World Cup. New Zealand all-rounder Jacob Oram has been imported as his replacement. Warne was the masterful manager who extracted a tournament victory out of a non-descript side in the IPL’s first edition. He is getting on in years, but what he brings to the side is not so much his virtuosic leg-spin as a bundle of unquenchable energy and an indomitable spirit. He can probably continue under Badale’s payroll for another decade, if he likes!

Batting:

The Royals’ batting line-up has gone through an overhaul of sorts. Those who followed Rajasthan’s progress in the first edition with interest may well be disappointed to find the gaping void left by Yusuf Pathan in the lower order, especially to find it filled by someone as stodgy as Ajinkya Rahane. Graeme Smith, the reliable stalwart at the top, is no longer with them either. However, the good tidings for the woebegone Royals fans will be the presence of the colossus at no. 4, in the form of Ross Taylor, of 92-runs-in-4-overs-against-Pakistan-to-force-Shoaib-Akhtar-into-retirement fame.

Shane Watson, the prolific Australian all-rounder who scored 290 runs in the World Cup, will be the Royals’ coup de grace; and the 2007 IPL Player of the Tournament will commence the tyranny over bowlers right from the word go. Assisting him at the top will be the diminutive Swapnil Asnodkar, who, with an attacking bat reminiscent of former Sri Lankan dasher Romesh Kaluwitharana, can set up lofty platforms in a dynamic opening partnership. The Royals have Maharashtrian left-hander Faiz Fazal as back-up opener. Rahul Dravid, relocated from Bangalore, could be the perfect man to come in at the fall of an early wicket at no. 3, to ensure that sanity is instated/reinstated up top. With Taylor's trigger-happy slog-sweeping tendencies, Rajasthan Royals can nullify the onside field settings, and with Ajinkya Rahane, who is widely considered as a successor for ‘The Wall’ Dravid in the Indian Test side, they can further reinforce the stability of the batting.

All-rounder Stuart Binny, who earned his spurs in the ICL, before being bought by Mumbai Indians in 2008, is a self-proclaimed limited-overs specialist, and can swing the long handle. It could be a toss-up, for the no. 5 spot, between Binny, Rahane and Ashok Menaria. Menaria, who led the India Under-19 side to a series victory over Australia in 2009, can provide the variety in left-hander-starved line-up, and play the kind of role Ravindra Jadeja had played for the lower middle order. Baroda player Pinal Shah and Rajasthan’s Dishant Harendra Yagnaik are the two wicket-keeping options for the Royals. Shah, who has a double hundred to his name in first-class cricket, is likely to bag the gloves, and can also open if needed.

Abhishek Raut, the man who shot to fame in 2008 following a match-winning 36 against Deccan Chargers, will bring in aggression into a lower-middle order robbed of Pathan’s heroics. Warne will then bring a careerful of experience to the middle as he looks to swing his own bat. Oram will not bring the same pedigree in batting as the Collingwood he replaced, but he is hot off the oven, having been instrumental in deporting South Africa from the World Cup with sparkling displays of bowling and fielding.

Bowling:

The Royals head into this season with a healthy bowling line-up, which, if anything,may be a trifle pace-heavy. Spin-wise, the consistent Johan Botha can consolidateWarne’s attacking wrist spin with nagging, run-scrunching variations. In NayanDoshi, son of former Indian Test bowler Dilip Doshi, is the third and final spin option.Nayan, who played for Bangalore in IPL 2010, is currently the world’s second-highestwicket-taker, with 59 scalps from 39 matches. Raut and Menaria will turn the ballaway from the right hander; Rajasthan Royals’ spin coffers are strong in terms ofquantity, in addition to being hopped up on quality.

It seems the pace department will be where the Royals will revel this season. ShaunTait, the world’s fastest bowler, has just retired from International ODI cricket, andwill have all his pent-up fury to spend for his franchise. To assist ‘The Wild Thing’,will be Deepak Chahar, famous for bowling Hyderabad out for 21 in a Ranji Trophymatch, Pankaj Singh, who earned an Indian Test Cap in 2007, Siddharth Trivedi,famous for his match-winning spell against the Mumbai Indians in 2008, Amit Singh,who bagged a Man of the Match award and Warne’s praise in 2008, Maharashtramedium-pacer Aditya Dole, who ironically had his best 10/63 in a domestic matchagainst Rajasthan, and uncapped Samad Fallah.

While Pakistani pacer Sohail Tanvir’s Purple Cap played a big part in securing the Royals the maiden edition, he has not figured in the last couple of seasons, and missed out in this edition’s Pakistan-phobic auction. However, the Royals bagged left-armpacer Fallah, who is equally quirky and capable of reverse-swinging the ball at pace,having benefitted from the tutelage of Wasim Akram himself. He has 100 wicketsfrom his 24-match domestic career, and will hope to break into the international circuit with a bang. The latest addition to the team, Jacob Oram, who played for Chennai Super Kings previously, will add more pace and bounce to this attack.Binny’s stump-to-stump line, couple with smart drops in pace will make him a tough bowler to face in sub-continent, if the exploits of the dibbly-dobblers in the recent World Cup are anything to go by.

The Royals have garnered a bunch of all-round talent, and a lot of their pacers will not get a look in so long as the likes of Watson, Binny, Oram, Botha and Warne are fit. Their bowling combination will depend on the venue and opposition; only one of Botha and Oram will squeeze through into the playing XI, and there could be a three-way tussle between Binny, Chahar and Doshi, depending on the preference for an all-rounder, fast bowler or a spinner.

Squad:

Batsmen: Swapnil Asnodkar, Aakash Chopra, Rahul Dravid, Faiz Fazal, Dishant Harendra Yagnik, Pinal Shah, Ross Taylor, Ajinkya Rahane, Ashok Meenaria, Amit Paunikar, Dinesh Salunkhe

Bowler: Shaun Tait, Shane Warne, Abhishek Raut, Siddharth Trivedi, Pankaj Singh, Nayan Joshi, Amit Singh, Aditya Dole, Samad Fallah, Deepak Chahar.

All rounders: Shane Watson, Paul Collingwood (ruled out), Johan Botha, Stuart Binny, Sumit Narwal, Ankeet Chavan

Likely Playing XI: Shane Watson, Rahul Dravid, Swapnil Asnodkar, Aakash Chopra / Ashok Menaria, Ross Taylor, Ajinkya Rahane, Shane Warne, Abhishek Raut, Johan Botha / Jacob Oram, Stuart Binny / Nayan Doshi / Deepak Chahar, Shaun Tait.

Support Staff: Director of Coaching: Darren Berry, Performance Coach: Jeremy Snape, Team Manager: Sushil Tulaskar, Physiotherapist: John Gloster

Players to watch:

Shane Watson is the sole Australian representative to find a place in the ICC’s WorldCup XI. He has filled in as a complete all-rounder for the Australian team. He came to the fore in the first edition of the tournament, contributing with both bat and ball. He enters this tourney on the back of a powerful showing in the World Cup, in which he totted 290 runs at a hefty average. The Royals will anticipate a strong showing fromhim.

Ross Taylor set the World Cup alight with his scintillating 123-ball 131, and saved his team's blushes when they were on the verge of being knocked out. Though he could not ensure the Kiwis went beyond the World Cup semis, the talent and form emanating from him sounds a harbinger of some lusty scores.

Schedule:

The IPL’s inaugural Champions will start their campaign against the Deccan Chargers in Hyderabad on Saturday, April 9. Their next two fixtures will be home games versus Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders. After this, they will be challenged by KKR again, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Kings XI Punjab in three consecutive away games. Any scars from these foreign battles can be assuaged in the three home games on April 24, 29, and May 1 against Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Mumbai Indians and Pune Warriors. This will be followed by one away game and 2 home games on May 4, 9 and 11. They complete the last leg of their group stage matches with an away game against Mumbai on May 20.

Standing out in their fixture list is that they have been excused away games against Delhi and Pune, while the two sides they will not entertain are the Deccan Chargers and the Kings XI Punjab.

Fixtures

Home fixtures
12/04/2011 4pm Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Daredevils
15/04/2011 4pm Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders
24/04/2011 8pm Rajasthan Royals vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala
29/04/2011 4pm Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians
01/05/2011 4pm Rajasthan Royals vs Pune Warriors
09/05/2011 8pm Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings
11/05/2011 8pm Rajasthan Royals vs Royal Challengers Bangalore

Away fixtures
09/04/2011 4pm Deccan Chargers vs Rajasthan Royals, Hyderabad
17/04/2011 8pm Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata
19/04/2011 8pm Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals, Bangalore
21/04/2011 8pm Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals, Mohali
04/05/2011 4pm Chennai Super Kings vs Rajasthan Royals, Chennai
15/05/2011 8pm Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Rajasthan Royals, Indore
20/05/2011 8pm Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals, Mumbai