RR aim to find form in Riyan Parag’s hometown

You rarely say this for a team sitting pretty on the second spot on the points table, but Rajasthan Royals have lost some of their steam in the last few games. 

The Royals were on a roll through to the midway of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), winning eight out of their nine games. However, since then, they have dropped three games in a row, largely due to losing wickets more frequently - something RR managed very nicely until the current phase. 

With Jos Buttler departing for England, the concerns will only grow for RR. But the match is happening at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati, Assam, which is the home ground of Riyan Parag, and his team would love to make this outing count. 

Meanwhile, the Punjab Kings are already out of the playoffs race, and would love to show that they are a much better team than their current ranking (last) suggests. They have emphatic Indian game-changers in Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma, and there’s a good chance that Jonny Bairstow might also play. 

Hence, it’s not a dead rubber effectively, guys. There’s a lot for both the sides and their players to play for. 

RR vs PBKS Head to Head 

Overall: Matches 27 | RR 16 | PBKS 11

Since 2022: Matched 4 | RR 3 | PBKS 1

There has only been one game between the two sides at Barsapara, and PBKS emerged victorious. 

Venue details and weather conditions 

There have only been two IPL matches played here and teams have opted to bowl first in both games. However, on both occasions, they ended up losing the games. It’s a high-scoring ground with an average first innings winning score of 198. 

The weather in Guwahati will remain partly sunny and hot, hovering around the mid-30s. Some thunderstorms are predicted for the morning, but the night-time seems dry. 

Things to watch out for 

A much improved Parag at home

Riyan Parag has been in great form this season. The batter has scored 40+ in six out of his 11 innings, which includes four 50s. Even in the last game, he was unbeaten on 47*. 

Overall, he has scored 483 runs and is averaging 60.4. He is striking at 154 this season, which is amongst the best. He’s especially targeting pacers, striking above 140 with an average above 35 against both right and left arm pace. In fact, against right-armed pacers, he’s striking at 177. 

Under these circumstances, his homecoming builds even more anticipation for his fans. Assam hasn’t had a national star in Indian cricket before Parag. It’s a chance for the Assamese people to savour their homegrown prodigy's talent and skills (and maybe some Bihu). 

Can the real Yuzi Chahal please show up?

Chahal has struggled for wickets in the last three games, before which he was among the leading wicket-takers this season. Chahal has averaged 86.5 with an economy of 10.8 with the ball in the last four games. 

The fact that RR have lost three of the last four games isn’t a coincidence. Their ace spinner isn’t turning them towards success like he did for more than half of the tournament. 

RR desperately need the real Chahal to show up. 

Probable XIs 

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tom Kohler-Cadmore (IP), Sanju Samson (c), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, R Ashwin, Avesh Khan, Trent Boult, Yuzi Chahal, Sandeep Sharma 

Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Rilee Rossouw, Shashank Singh, Jitesh Sharma (IP), Sam Curran (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Rishi Dhawan, Harshal Patel, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh 

TV and streaming details

The match will begin at 7:30 PM and will be stream and telecasted on Jio Cinema and Star Sports. 

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