Rajasthan Royals v Kings XI Punjab
27/9/20, 3pm (BST), Sharjah
WINNER
RAJASTHAN ROYALS – 10/11
V
KINGS XI PUNJAB – 10/11
Match Preview
The Royals had a good time out in their win over Chennai Super Kings, smashing their way to 216/7, but perhaps most important was their key batsmen Steve Smith and Sanju Samson getting time at the crease and looking good.
The will only be strengthened by the return of in-form Jos Buttler – whose arrival could force a rethink in the batting order – and they will be confident in staying at Sharjah where they found the ground dimensions to their – Jofra Archer in particular – taste.
They face a battle-hardened Kings XI side however who have already played a game more than them and following on from KL Rahul’s stunning century and an all-round team effort with the ball, they are full of confidence setting this game up to be a cracker.
Our Prediction
Mayank Agarwal to hit over 2.5 fours – 5/4
Agarwal was the star of Kings XI’s first match in hitting a 60-ball 89, and sparkled briefly second time out with 26, so he is a man on top his game already and a fluent strokemaker at the top of the order which should give him every chance to bring this one home.
Smith is also a contender in this market at 11/10 and looks set to open the batting, while in the bowling markets, Archer is likely to be the most exciting on display so 11/10 for him to get over 1.5 wickets is tempting, despite the good form of the Kings XI batsmen.
Top Run-scorers
RR | KXIP |
Sanju Samson – 74 | KL Rahul – 153 |
Steve Smith – 69 | Mayank Agarwal – 115 |
Jofra Archer – 27 | Krishnappa Gowtham – 20 |
Rahul Tewatia – 10 | Nicholas Pooran – 17 |
Top Wicket-takers
RR | KXIP |
Rahul Tewatia – 3 | Mohammad Shami – 4 |
Jofra Archer – 1 | Sheldon Cottrell – 4 |
Shreyas Gopal – 1 | Ravi Bishnoi – 4 |
Tom Curran – 1 | Murugan Ashwin – 3 |
PREVIOUS PREDICTIONS
MATCH | SELECTION | ODDS |
Delhi Capitals v Kings XI Punjab | Rishabh Pant Player of the Match | 12/1 |
Rajasthan Royals v Chennai Super Kings | Lungi Ngidi over 1.5 wickets | 5/4 |
Kings XI Punjab v Royal Challengers Bangalore | Yuzvendra Chahal over 1.5 wickets | 5/4 |