Rajasthan Royals’ skipper Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to bat against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 of Indian Premier League on Friday (May 29, 3036).

GT made one change and brought back R Sai Kishore, while RR are playing an unchanged XI.

Teams

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Donovan Ferreira, Dasun Shanaka, Ravindra Jadeja, Jogra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja.

Gujarat Titans: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Nishant Sindhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj.

New Chandigarh If Gujarat Titans relies on its core of consistent performers to win T20 matches, Rajasthan Royals’ hopes seem to ride primarily on the X-factor of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

It is perhaps a simplistic reading of the two franchises, but the neutral observer would certainly gravitate towards the latter simply because of the unadulterated thrill that Sooryavanshi’s stroke-making ability elicits.

When a query along these lines was put to Titans’ assistant coach Parthiv Patel on the eve of Qualifier 2, the former wicketkeeper-batter asserted that results vindicate the franchise’s approach.

“Every team has a different way of playing. We have been quite consistent about the way we go about our business. As long as we are getting results, we don’t have to think about whether we need an X-factor,” Parthiv said on Thursday.

“Other teams can think whatever they want to think. Even in the first half of the tournament, we were not doing great. But we still stuck to our process. We trust in our ability. If we execute our plans, we can win.”

Titans’ established template is facilitated by Sai Sudharsan’s voracious appetite for run-scoring at the top. He may not be as explosive as the young left-hander in the opposition, but Parthiv sees no need for the opener from Chennai to change tack.

“I don’t think there is any kind of temptation to tell Sai Sudharsan to go at a higher strike rate. If someone is striking at 300, it doesn’t mean that everyone has to,” said Parthiv.

At some point, every system meets a question it cannot answer. For Gujarat Titans (GT), that question has arrived early this IPL season.

GT designed its 2025 batting around something almost industrial in its efficiency — an absurd average of 121 in the first 10 overs, the highest in IPL history, built on control rather than chaos. Simply put, it was set up for the bulk of its runs to come from its top three — Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler — with everything else flowing from that certainty.

The openers were never dismissed together in the PowerPlay. GT lost just 12 wickets in that phase, the fewest of any side, while still scoring at 9.22 runs per over.

That set up the trigger. With wickets in hand, the surge followed — 10 runs per over in the middle overs (7-16), the best, and 11.16 at the death. It wasn’t just a template; it was a loop that kept closing on itself. It worked because it didn’t need rescuing.

Take away certainty in the middle-order, and a system built on delayed gratification starts to feel like a gamble. With Buttler not quite in his element, the middle-order of Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, and Rahul Tewatia offers promise more than proof.

That is exactly where Rajasthan Royals (RR) will look to strike at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday.

Jofra Archer, with his PowerPlay dominance, and Nandre Burger, with his angle and lift, will look to break the template early. Behind them sits the pace variation of Sandeep Sharma, the control of Ravindra Jadeja, and the deception of Ravi Bishnoi — bowlers who extend pressure.

GT’s bowling, quietly efficient in the defeat to Punjab Kings, now meets a different kind of volatility, led by Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal. RR began its campaign with a thumping eight-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings.

In its first home fixture, GT’s system meets RR’s disruption. And one of them is about to look a little less certain than it did a week ago.

Rajasthan Royals’ batting coach Vikram Rathour on Friday (April 3, 2026) reiterated his belief in Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s exceptional potential, describing the 15-year-old as a “very, very special player” who continues to justify the hype around him.

“He is a very, very special player. That’s what I believed last year as well. He has done really well post-IPL last year. He is still looking very good, working hard, and playing some really good cricket,” Rathour said on the eve of his team’s clash against Gujarat Titans (GT).

He also underlined the importance of the current season in Suryavanshi’s development. “It’s going to be an important season for him, but his mind is in the right space. He’s working really hard.”

Addressing how the franchise is managing expectations around the young batter, Rathour emphasised simplicity over needless tinkering. “Having loads of conversations with him. One thing that really stands out is that he is very calm. He is very relaxed. I know there’s a lot of attention on him. He’s really not under pressure. He enjoys playing, he enjoys hitting sixes. He loves his batting.”

GT assistant coach Aashish Kapoor backed Jos Buttler to rediscover his best, calling the England star a “top player” who is “on the right path” after a brief lean patch. “It’s a matter of one innings,” he said, stressing Buttler’s pride and hunger to return to form.

He also praised pacer Ashok Sharma as a “terrific talent,” highlighting his fearlessness despite being hit on his IPL debut against Punjab Kings. “He wanted the ball at any stage — that’s what matters,” Kapoor noted.

He added the current XI is “more or less” the ideal combination, with minor tweaks likely if results don’t go the team’s way.