The mess that my life fell into over the past couple of weeks has meant that I have not been paying too much attention to the IPL. Given how the Royals started the season, that’s probably just as well. Their first game was a narrow 4-run loss to Mumbai, despite an awesome 37-ball century from Yusuf Pathan. From there things went downhill fast as my boys were thrashed by Delhi and by Bangalore. More recently, however, things have turned around, with good wins against Kolkata and Punjab. Today we completed an easy 8-wicket win over the reigning champion Deccan Chargers, with Yusuf again starring. Mumbai and Bangalore appear to be the form teams of the tournament, and the Bangalore squad has just been strengthened by the arrival of Kevin Pietersen. However, if the Royals can keep up their current form they have every chance of making it to the playoffs, at which point it is anyone’s game again.