Two teams who have returned to the IPL after serving a two-year suspension will clash when Rajasthan Royals host Chennai Super Kings at the Sawai Mansingh stadium in Jaipur on Friday.
The Royals’ 150-run win over Kings XI Punjab means their play-off hopes remain alive after what has been a disappointing season for them despite the riches in their squad.
On the other hand, the Super Kings are very much in-form after having won seven out of 10 games so far and are on the verge of clinching a playoff spot.
CHAHAR RETURNS FOR CHENNAI
MS Dhoni-led Chennai have been handed a big boost ahead of Friday’s clash with pacer Deepak Chahar deemed fit for selection after overcoming his hamstring injury. The Rajasthan-based pacer has been impressive with the new ball for the Super Kings and he will be determined to put on a show at a venue where he plays his first-class cricket.
ROYALS NEED TO CONTINUE WINNING MOMENTUM
The win over Kings XI was only Rajasthan’s fourth of the season and came after a string of four successive losses. With four games remaining for Ajinkya Rahane’s men, the Royals will need to win all of them while also hoping their net run-rate improves drastically.
At home, they will back themselves against any opposition with their impressive record at ‘Fortress Jaipur’ where they have 27 of the 28 matches played at the venue.
PLAYER IN FOCUS
Rajasthan’s Jos Buttler was having a very average campaign by his standards before he was promoted to open the innings by skipper Ajinkya Rahane.
That move has paid off well for the Royals and Buttler who has since then gone on to register three consecutive half centuries on the bounce. His 82-run knock was the catalyst for Rajasthan’s victory over Hyderabad and the hosts will want the Englishman to fire again come Friday given the kind of form he is in.
LIKELY LINE-UPS
Rajasthan Royals: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Stuart Binny, K Gowtham, Shreyas Gopal, Jofra Archer, Jaydev Unadkat, Ish Sodhi, Anureet Singh.
Chennai Super Kings: Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Dhruv Shorey, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, David Willey, Harbhajan Singh, Lungi Ngidi, Shardul Thakur
