Rajasthan Royals will lock horns against Punjab Kings in the eighth match of the ongoing Indian Premier League 2023 at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on Wednesday. Both the franchise had won their opening fixture and will want to carry forward the impetus.
We look at the current form, head-to-head, players to look out for, and squads of both teams in our match preview.
Last match result for RR: Win vs SRH.
RR ticked all the right boxes against the Orange Army as they came up with a dominant display. The inaugural champions posted 203-5 in their opening match of the season after fifties from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, and Sanju Samson. Moreover, Trent Boult and Yuzvendra Chahal were able to hit the straps against SRH.
Last match result for PBKS: Win vs KKR.
Punjab Kings’ batting unit adopted an aggressive approach from the get-go against KKR, which are great signs for the Mohali-based franchise. Shikhar Dhawan had played an anchor role whereas the rest of the batters had looked to get off the blocks quickly.
Head to Head: Matches: 24, Won by RR: 14, Won by PBKS: 10.
RR holds an advantage in the head-to-head battle against PBKS.
Players to watch out for: Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Arshdeep Singh, Sikandar Raza, and Kagiso Rabada will hold the key for PBKS.
Jos Buttler (wk), Sanju Samson, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, and Yuzvendra Chahal will hold the key for RR.
PBKS IPL 2023 SQUAD
Wicketkeepers: Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma.
Batters: Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (SL), M. Shahrukh Khan, Atharva Taide, Harpreet Bhatia.
All-rounders: Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone (ENG), Sam Curran (ENG), Sikandar Raza (ZIM), Shivam Singh, Mohit Rathee.
Bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Singh, Rahul Chahar, Nathan Ellis (AUS), Harpreet Brar, Kagiso Rabada (SA), Vidwath Kaverappa.
RR IPL 2023 SQUAD
Wicketkeepers: Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler (ENG), Dhruv Jurel, Kunal Rathore, Donovan Ferreira (SA).
Batters: Shimron Hetmyer (WI), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Riyan Parag, Joe Root (ENG).
All-rounders: Ravichandran Ashwin, Abdul P A, Akash Vashisht, Jason Holder (WI).
Bowlers: Trent Boult (NZ), KC Cariappa, Yuzvendra Chahal, Obed McCoy (WI), Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Sen, Kuldip Yadav, Murugan Ashwin, Adam Zampa (AUS), KM Asif.
