Royal Challengers Bangalore take on the Rajasthan Royals, both teams fresh from a win in their most-recent matches. RCB will be bustling after they opened their account in their match against Kings XI Punjab on Friday night. After their bowlers dismissed the visitors for 155, there was a bit of drama in RCB’s run-chase; but AB de Villiers’s experience and ability to swing matches in an instant ensured they got over their line and got their first points on the board. Sarfaraz Khan has had two poor outings and he will be under pressure – particularly given the variety of quality middle-order options RCB have; it is expected that the team will continue with the young lad, at least for now.
Rajasthan Royals lost their opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad, but came back strongly in the rain-affected contest against the Delhi Daredevils. Playing their first match at Jaipur in nearly five years, RR recovered from a poor start to post a reasonable total when their innings was prematurely terminated. The exciting all-rounder Jofra Archer has arrived and is available for selection; it will be interesting to see if the 23-year old is given a go at the expense of Ben Laughlin.
Head to Head
Overall: Matches – 16, Royal Challengers Bangalore won – 8, Rajasthan Royals won – 7, No Result – 1
At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium: Matches – 6, Royal Challengers Bangalore won – 2, Rajasthan Royals won – 3, No Result – 1
Trivia
1. Rajasthan Royals’ D’Arcy Short has been run out twice in two matches this season.
2. Ben Stokes has dismissed Virat Kohli on 5 occasions so far in his career – including once in IPL 2017.
3. While AB de Villiers averages 48.50 against the Rajasthan Royals, Virat Kohli averages 19.85 – his lowest against any of the IPL teams.