CONSISTENT FIELDING HIGH ON RAJIV'S AGENDA AS PREPARATIONS INTENSIFY.

"The only (area of improvement) I can think of is having a consistent effort on the field with energy and intensity, especially in high-scoring game. If we can be consistent as a fielding side, it can give us more consistency overall in our skills department as well. In the field, we can still improve a lot. "

With the likes of Rajiv Gokani, Manan Shah, Gautam Parolia, Vishal Kalantri, Anish Bhansali, Dhanesh Chheda and Mahavir Shah, HSI Lions have set themselves standards higher since 2013. 

"We have spoken to the people in the practice sessions who need to do the extra effort to sharpen their fielding, and they are putting in that extra effort", Rajiv adds. "That is the only area we feel we can get better at. Obviously, batting and bowling are big variables. Fielding is something that is controllable and you need to get that from all the 11 players in the field. I certainly feel we can improve quite a bit in that department."

QMS KINGS OUTMUSCLE AB DEVILS IN THE TOURNAMENT OPENER

AB Devils endured more heartbreak against QMS Kings in the season opener. While the teams were expecting a close contest, this Group G encounter barely even qualified as one. Sachin Brahma bowled excellently claiming 5 wickets for a mere 7 runs, as AB devils were bowled out for 103. QMS Kings then romped to the target with 63 balls and Ten wickets to spare.

The contrast in the batting approach and abilities of the two teams was showcased from the very beginning, carried on through the powerplay overs - QMS Kings's 75/0 to AB Devil's 48/2 - and achieved the target with more than 10 overs to spare, QMS Kings won by 10 wickets. A victory that confirmed whats in store for the season.

QMS Kings captain Chirag Shah's simple summary of "We did come to the party today", doesn't begin to explain the absolute devastation that the openers -  Jainam Rathod and himself - caused at the top of order. They whacked 15, 9, 17, 14, 13, 7 runs in the first six overs to put AB Devils under early pressure.The relaxation of the fielding restrictions brought slight respite, as QMS Kings scored just 29 off the next 21 deliveries. In this period, Chirag Shah brought up his T20I fifty.  

Brief scores: AB Devils 103 in 18.1 overs (Mihir Varma 33; Sachin Brahma 5-7, Harnish Kamdar 2-17) lost to QMS Kings 104/0 in 9.3 overs (Chirag Shah 61*, Jainam Rathod 32*) by ten wickets.

Man of the Match: Sachin Brahma

HSI LIONS vs JBCN UNITED

Despite losing the round robin matches, HSI LIONS will walk into the bronze quarter final contest believing they can turn things around. All games have followed a similar pattern where HSI  have lost the games in the death overs but individual performances got them close.

At the Central Railways ground, the task is pretty straightforward for the team. They need their batting unit to fire in unison and need to find a way to control the leaking runs at the death. Rajiv Gokani and the think-tank need to find better alternatives in the final few overs and the HSI captain could well be the answer. Despite losing his prowess with the ball, Rajiv still has the variations to keep the batsmen in check.

With the track expected to be another batting beauty, HSI Lions will be desperate for a performance from their bowlers. Individual brilliance have threatened opponents but its now entirely going to be a team effort if they need want to win.

What to expect: No weather hindrances expected in the day as the fans can expect a lot of fireworks from the batsmen at a venue with pretty short boundaries.