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The breakup of Mauryan Empire was marked by political instability and confusion in India. The north western India and the Punjab were invaded by many ruling dynasties of Central Asia. The Indo Greeks, the Sakas, the Kushanas etc found it easy to establish their rule in India. This period is notable for widespread contacts between Central Asia and India. After the decline of the Mauryan Empire, the provinces of Afghanistan and the Punjab were overrun and occupied by the Greeks of Bactria now called as Balkh. Their first important ruler was Demetrios who established his authority not only on the greater part of the Punjab but also on Sing and Saurashtra. He retained his hold on his Indian possessions and hence he is known as the King of Indians. But during his long absence from Bactria, another adventurer Eucratides seized the throne of Bactria in 175 BC. But Eucratides was soon murdered by his son. Demetrios, could not re establish his authority in Bactria and his power remained confined within the Indus Valley. He was the first Greek ruler to issue Bilingual coins having legends in Greek as well as in an Indian Language in Kharosthi script. He made ancient city of Sagala now Sialkot the capital of his Indian provinces.

Of all the indo Greek kings who reigned the most remarkable was Menander who belongs to the family of Demetrios. Strabo says that he conquered more nations than Alexander. He claim to some extent is confirmed by the widespread distribution of his coins over an extensive part of northern India even to the south of Jamuna. According to the Buddhist traditions, Menander was converted to Buddhism and worked hard for the propagation of this religion. A Pali book, Milandapanho (questions of Milinda) contains many puzzling questions about religion which Menander asked a Buddhist monk Nawgasena. Some of Menander’s coins bear the Buddhist symbol Dharma Chakra and the epithet Dharmika which also show his faith in Buddhism.

The Milandapanho also gives a fascinating description of Menander’s capital Sagala. It records that there is in the country of Yonakas a great center of trade, a city that is called Sagala, situated in a delightful country well watered and hilly, abounding in parks, garden, grooves, and lakes and tanks, a paradise of rivers, mountains and woods. It was a flourishing city of well laid and beautiful buildings and strong defenses. It had shops for the sale of Benares muslin, jewels and other costly articles which indicated the wealth and general prosperity of the kingdom.

After the death of Menander in about 140 BC, Indo Greek power in the Punjab broke down rapidly. The invasion of Sakas, Pallavas and Kushanas began on India as a result of which the rule of Bactrian Greeks completely ended from India by 40 BC. Petty Greek princes independent or dependent upon some Saka Satraps continued to rule in the nooks and corners until the death of Hermeus the contemporary of Kunshan King Kadphsis I. Taking the advantage of the weakness of successors of Seleucus, the province of Parthia from the territory of Khurasan became independent of the Kingdome of Syria in 250 BC under Arsakes of the Arsakidan dynasty.

 Now that it is a bit clear that which are the top four team who would be playing the semifinals. I am not sure, just guessing because anything may happen in the game of cricket. As far as the tournament goes we may see miracles happening. We have four teams at the top in the points tally and they are most likely to go into the semis.

Delhi Daredevils have already gained 14 required points so there place is safe. All they need is just one win and they are in the semifinals for sure. With 16 points there place would be safe. Looking at the games that they have played one can say that they are truly daredevils this time around. This is the only team in the tournament where the overseas players have served well. They have India’s T20 opening pair playing for them which is a huge advantage, though you must have seen that the openers have not lived up to the expectations. They are not doing what they were expected to do. David Warner, Daniel Vettori, Dilshan and De Villers have played their roles. All I m waiting for is that once these players are gone how well Delhi Daredevils could manage their winning streak. If this team wins the tournament, it should not be a surprise.

The next team which is for sure going to play the semifinals is the Chennai Super Kings. They have 13 points and are yet to play 4 games. Even if they win one game they are in the semifinals. For this till now it was a cakewalk. However there is a possibility that this team loses all its four games. Then it may become difficult for them to enter the semifinals. When the tournament started it looked like Dhoni would be the performer from this team since he is leading a team like India in every format of the game. It appeared that he is tired or say mentally if not physically. This is how he looked like. It was quite evident from his performance in the beginning of the tournament. He himself admitted that he dint bat well in first few games. Now that Dhoni is up in the batting order he has started scoring as well. All this team needs is the right combination to open and carry on with the game. This team has one or the other player which performs like other teams to get their team sailing however the man with the compass is only there in this team in the form of Mathew Hayden. He is the holder of the orange cap. LP Balaji, Morkel and Murali are all in their form and ready to perform when the team would require them. If this team reaches semifinals I m sure the cup would be theirs.

Now the below two positions are where the fight is still open and one cannot confidently predict about what would happen. Deccan chargers are left with 4 games and 12 points. Their place would be at stake if they lose more than one game. Next comes Rajasthan Royals who have 11 points and they have only 3 more games to be played. The teams who are posing challenges before them are Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians. The former is the strongest contender of all the four teams for one of the last two berths in the table tally. Mumbai Indians may also come up as a surprise element in the tournament. One cannot expect any more excitement than watching the clash for the semifinals. Today’s second game would clear the picture between Mumbai Indians and Kings of Punjab. Don’t miss it.