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Match Details

Punjab Kings (PBKS) vs Rajasthan Royals (RR)
Milanpur, 7.30pm IST (2pm GMT)

The Big Picture – Speed ​​up your way to Molanpur?

It’s still early days in this season, but the surfaces at new IPL venue Milanpur have given all the signs of being the pacer’s ally. 30 wickets have fallen in the two matches so far – 27 by bowlers and three run outs. 23 of these wickets were taken by fast bowlers. As Punjab Kings took on Sunrisers Hyderabad at this venue on Tuesday, there was plenty of movement and carry under the lights, scoring runs was not easy early on. This is also reflected in the numbers.

Among all the venues in IPL 2024 so far, Molanpur has the best average for fast bowlers (19.7) and the lowest run rate in the powerplay (7.7). Nine wickets have fallen in the first six overs in two matches here, joint second with Mumbai. Only Jaipur has seen more wickets fall in the Powerplay this season, but four matches have already been played there.

Will this worry Rajasthan Royals, who are coming into the game on Wednesday after their first defeat in IPL 2024? Nope what. On the contrary, they can be happy aspects. The Royals quick bowlers took nine wickets in the powerplay at an average of 24.3, the best of any team in the tournament. Kings are also not far behind at an average of 26.6 runs per wicket in the power play and this could make for an interesting battle.

The other thing the Royals will need to be careful of is not letting history repeat itself. They had a great start to their IPL 2023 losing just one of their first five games and a playoff spot was looming. But, they won only three of their next nine matches and failed to qualify for the knockouts. In IPL 2024, they have lost one again and have won four out of the first five, but this time they will be hoping to right the wrongs of last season.

Farm Guide

Punjab Kings: LWLLW (IPL 2024; most recent match first)
Rajasthan Royals: LWWWW

Team news and impact player strategies

Punjab Kings

With Liam Livingstone ineligible, the Kings went into their last game against SRH with an unchanged line-up. Fast bowling coach Charl Langeveld did not shed much light on Livingstone’s availability, saying he would “make a decision tomorrow”. If fit, he can replace Sikandar Raza in XII.

Kings have been consistent in dropping Prabhasmaran Singh or Ashutosh Sharma and vice-versa Arsdeep Singh and that is likely to remain unchanged.

Possibly XII: 1 Shikhar Dhawan (captain), 2 Jonny Bairstow, 3 Prabhasmaran Singh4 Sam Curran, 5 Jitesh Sharma (wicket), 6 Shashank Singh, 7 Sikandar Raza, 8 Ashutosh Sharma, 9 Harpreet Brar, 10 Harshal Patel, 11 Kagiso Rabada, 12 Arsdeep Singh

Rajasthan Royals

Nandre Berger was ruled out injured in Royals’ previous game against Gujarat Titans, while Trent Boult bowled just two overs and was not brought back at the death. While this may only be down to match-ups, Bolt’s fitness will also have to be taken into account. Royals brought in Keshav Maharaj as an impact sub for Yashvi Jaiswal in the previous match, but the change is likely to be more for fast bowlers at Milanpur’s level.

If the Royals bat first, Jaiswal can start and the latter can come in for one of the pacers or vice versa. Kuldeep Sen is likely to retain his place after a good performance in the last match. If Burger is fit, he will likely move back to XII and be one of the impact player options. There is also no clarity on Sandeep Sharma’s availability, though he is training with the squad.

Possibly XII: 1 Jos. Butler, 2 Yeshsavi Jaiswal3 Sanju Samson (captain and wicket), 4 Ryan Parag, 5 Dhruv Jaril, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 R Ashwin, 8 Trent Boult, 9 Avish Khan, 10 Nandre Burger, 11 Yuzvinder Chahal, 12. Kuldeep Sen

In the spotlight – Shashank Singh and Yuzvinder Chahal

Shashank Singh Has shown his ability as a finisher twice. After his heroics against Gujarat Titans, he led the Kings to another almost improbable win in their last game against SRH. While the Kings fell short, it proved that their innings against the Titans was anything but flashy in the pen. Kings are going at a run rate of 11.33 in the death overs so far this season and Shashank has been a big contributor. His strike rate of 195.71 is the third highest for any batsman who has faced 35 or more balls in the tournament. Shashank is also yet to be dismissed after a first-ball wicket against Delhi Capitals in Kings’ first game. Do its numbers warrant moving the order forward?

Yuzvendra Chahal He is just three shy of becoming the first bowler in IPL history to take 200 wickets. He is joint-highest wicket-taker (10) with Jasprit Bumrah this season and has taken at least one wicket in every game so far. Eight of them have come in the middle stages, which is more than any bowler in IPL 2024. His economy rate of 7.50 during the middle overs is also outstanding. Chahal has been afraid to take risks and has often been Samson’s go-to bowler after the power play.

Statistics are important.

  • Jonny Bairstow averages 17.33 against Chahal in T20s and has fallen to him three times in seven innings.
  • R Ashwin has removed Dhawan four times in 14 T20 innings. Dhawan strikes at just 84.4 against the spinner.
  • Arsdeep has dismissed Yashvi Jaiswal twice in 15 balls in T20s. Average against Jaiswal is just 7.50 and strike 100.
  • Shimron Hetmyer smashed Sam Curran’s 250.00 with an 18-ball 45 in T20 cricket.
  • Jos Buttler scored 157.35 against Kagiso Rabada in T20 cricket, while averaging 53.50.

Pitch and conditions

The surface at Milanpur has helped pace, bounce and carry and is likely to remain unchanged until Saturday. Temperatures are expected to be in the mid-30s in the afternoon but will likely drop into the mid-20s by the time the game starts. 90% cloudy with some chance of rain.

Quotations

“We want him to take wickets for us. He started well the other night. He has a very positive mindset, he is going to take wickets for us. He has hit hard and I will not worry about him.”
Kings bowling coach Charles Langveldt Not worried about Rabada’s lack of wickets.

“If you look at the (Royals) team, you always want a leader within the team. Obviously, Sanju brother He is the leader of the team and he delegates to some people. It’s always good in a cricket team whether you’re young or old, if you have good advice there’s nothing wrong with passing on information because you never know when it might help.
Keshav Maharaj On a positive note in the Royals camp

Ashish Pant is the sub-editor of ESPNcricinfo.

(Tags Translation)PBKS



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