Ever since the IPL kick started in 2008, Australian Shane Watson has never switched teams and has hence become one of the mainstays for Rajasthan Royals. But, the all-rounder must be eager to get back into the field of play, as he has missed the opening three matches of the IPL so far.
The player is still recovering as he was hit on the hip during training, which has made his miss their tremendous start to the season. He is sure to play against the Chennai Super Kings on 19 April.
"I got hit around the hip during the first training session of the tournament and it has taken a bit of time to recover. We are going to travel to Vizag overnight [for the game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad], so it's going to be touch and go for the next game. I will surely be back in the team for our game against the Chennai Super Kings," IPL's official website quoted Watson as saying.
In his absence, the team has been led from the front wonderfully by fellow Australian, Steve Smith, who batted superbly to help the Royals chase down a target of 164 against the Mumbai Indians on Tuesday.
The Australian, who scored 79 runs, has been in amazing form for a while now. Such has been his form that Watson compared the player to AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli.
"I think he is on par with AB de Villiers at the moment and Virat Kohli when he is at his best. It is incredible to see him just continue to pile on the runs in every format. It looks like it's not going to end and let's hope it doesn't for quite a while," said Watson.
The Royals, who won the first edition of the cash-rich event has not been able to come up with a repeat performance since. They have been knocked out of the group stages most of the times, though in 2013, they made it to the playoffs.
But, with this start, one can expect the Rajasthan Royals to pose a strong challenge for this edition of the tournament. They have a good mix of players in their team, including internationals as well as domestic cricketers. James Faulkner, Watson, Smith, Tim Southee, Ajinkya Rahane, Stuart Binny, Deepak Hooda are some players who will be instrumental for Royals this season.
"I have been very excited about this year because we have a very strong squad. It's great that we have been able to put it together so far," added Watson.
