Riyan Parag is expected to get a grand welcome from his home fans when Rajasthan Royals try to ensure a safe passage into the IPL play-offs against the ousted Punjab Kings
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

In keeping with its vision of accelerating socio-economic growth in north-east India through cricket, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) caravan has shifted base to Guwahati for its last two home games in the league stage of the Indian Premier League.

On Wednesday, RR is set to go up against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Although PBKS has already crashed out, RR can seal a Playoff spot with a win at the Barsapara Stadium after three consecutive defeats.

Tom Kohler-Cadmore will fill in for compatriot Jos Buttler in the RR playing eleven, with the England captain having flown out to join his national side ahead of the T20I series against Pakistan and T20 World Cup. PBKS is yet to find replacements for Kagiso Rabada and Liam Livingstone, who have returned home with injuries.

Flat track

A flat bed is expected to be doled out at the venue, which has only two IPL games to show for prior to the upcoming fixture. The track may exhibit a hint of dryness that would be expected to aid bowlers inside the PowerPlay with additional movement.

Although one could be in for yet another run-fest, given the shorter fences and dew factor, much of the contest would hinge on the death bowling, a department in which the Kings have been a cut above the rest. The side has picked 36 wickets between the 16th and 20th over in 2024. The closest rival, Delhi Capitals, is seven short of the said mark. RR has merely accounted for 22.

Ashutosh Sharma and Shashank Singh’s pyrotechnics in the death have on more than one occasion saved PBKS the blushes. The left-arm angle and pace of Nandre Burger should be a good match-up to prematurely stop the deadly right-handed duo before they can get their eye in.

Squads:

Punjab Kings: Sam Curran (c), Matthew Short, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sikandar Raza, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis, Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Shivam Singh, Harshal Patel, Chris Woakes, Ashutosh Sharma, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Shashank Singh, Tanay Thyagarajan, Prince Choudhary, Rilee Rossouw.

Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (c), Abid Mushtaq, Avesh Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Donovan Ferreira, Jos Buttler (wk), Kuldeep Sen, Kunal Singh Rathore, Nandre Burger, Navdeep Saini, Ravichandran Ashwin, Riyan Parag, Sandeep Sharma, Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Rovman Powell, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Trent Boult, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Yuzvendra Chahal, Tanush Kotian.

Match starts: 7:30pm IST.