IPL 2019: Match 32, Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals – Toss Report
Apr 16, 2019 at 7:49 PM
The last time when King XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals met at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, it produced a lot of controversy with Punjab skipper Ravichandran Ashwin mankading Jos Buttler to change the course of the game. Punjab eventually went on to win the game with Buttler’s dismissal being the game changer. However, the second clash of the teams between these two teams will be no short of a spectacle at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali as Rajasthan will be up for revenge.
Since then, many things have happened in the tournament with Kings XI Punjab once again sinking down after making a good start. They are currently at the fifth spot and needs to produce good cricket to be in contention for the playoffs. Chris Gayle and KL Rahul have fired in the tournament but have lacked consistency. The middle-order also looked out of socks with no significant contributors. Sarfaraz Khan and David Miller have chipped in one or two matches which have hurt their chances. Kings XI’s fielding has also been a let down in the last couple of games, and unless they display an improvement on that front, they may end up ruing losses in close finishes.
Rajasthan Royals have also faced the same problems with the middle order batsmen failing to capitalise on the good start provided by Jos Buttler. Bowling unit has been an area of concern for the Ajinkya Rahane-led side. No bowlers except Jofra Archer have an economy rate of less than nine which sums up their effort in this edition. They have put in a better effort in they hope to script a comeback in the series.
Toss Report:
Rajasthan Royals skipper Ajinkya Rahane has won the toss and elected to bowl first against at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali.
Here is what the captains said,
Ravichandran Ashwin
We were looking to field first as well. We are playing three spinners so probably we want to make the most use of dry conditions. There has been quite a cloud cover throughout the day, hopefully there is no dew. Moises was set to make his debut but unfortunately got injured. We have Miller back in place of Curran. It’s one of those stages where you got to gain some momentum.
Ajinkya Rahane
We’ll look to bowl first. It’s a dry wicket and on this wicket chasing, teams mostly win. What is important is playing good cricket and giving your best. It’s a funny format. Three changes as Ashton Turner comes in. It was a good victory against Mumai, we did really well. But we need to start fresh.
Playing XI:
Kings XI Punjab: Lokesh Rahul, Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, David Miller, Mandeep Singh, Nicholas Pooran(w), Ravichandran Ashwin(c), Murugan Ashwin, Andrew Tye, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
Rajasthan Royals: Ajinkya Rahane, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Rahul Tripathi, AshtonTurner, Stuart Binny, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Dhawal Kulkarni, Ish Sodhi