🏏IPL 2023: Match 8 - RR vs PBKS on 05/04/23 at 7:30 PM IST 🏏

🏏IPL 2023: Match 8 - RR vs PBKS at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on 05/04/23 at 7:30 PM IST 🏏

Tag and Logo credit goes to Sandy aka Sevenstreaks

Will Royals and Kings give us another high-scoring contest?

Both teams scored big and won their opening fixtures, and another high-scoring contest is likely in Guwahati.

This contest has produced some huge totals in recent seasons. At Sharjah in 2020, Rahul Tewatia played an iconic innings to help Rajasthan Royals chase down 224. At the Wankhede in 2021, Punjab Kings scored 221 but won by only four runs. Ground dimensions and pitch conditions were key factors in those high-scoring matches, and their clash in Guwahati could go the same way.

In October 2022, India and South Africa scored a total of 458 runs for the loss of only six wickets in a T20I in Guwahati. While both Royals and Kings scored big and won their opening fixtures this season, Sanju Samson's men are at full strength, while Shikhar Dhawan's Punjab have to play without Liam Livingstone once again.

Despite Livingstone's absence, the Kings batters went hard from the start during their fixture against Kolkata Knight Riders. Dhawan played anchor while the others were explosive around him. The challenge will be to repeat that against a much-stronger bowling attack.

The Royals will want a repeat of their season opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad: attacking top-order batting, an incisive new-ball performance, and their spinners providing the squeeze.

Wednesday's game will also be the first time the IPL moves to north-east India. In 2020, the Royals, who have a long-standing partnership with Assam Cricket Association, were supposed to play in Guwahati, but Covid-19 ruined those plans.

PS: Don't forget to send your predictions for Match 8

Deadline for toss prediction: 7:00PM IST

Deadline for rest of the predictions: 7:30PM IST

Make sure you hit "Submit prediction" button for initial predictions and "Update Prediction" button after making any subsequent changes to register your predictions.

Rajasthan Royals vs Punjab Kings Pitch Report

The pitch at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium is a balanced track. The new-ball bowlers may get some lateral movement off the surface. The batters need to be patient early in their innings. Once they get their eye in, they can start hitting through the line.

Rajasthan Royals vs Punjab Kings Weather Forecast

The temperatures in Guwahati are expected to range between 21 and 33 degrees Celsius.

Both fast bowlers and spinners could struggle in Guwahati, which is usually a batting-friendly surface with medium-sized boundaries. Humid conditions are expected with a small chance of rain in the evening.

Team Watch

Rajasthan Royals

Tactics & Match-ups: The Royals' top-three of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson have close to 1200 runs between them against the Kings, including seven fifties as well as a century for the RR skipper. Meanwhile, Buttler, Samson and Shimron Hetmyer have handled left-arm pace well, with all three averaging 40-plus and having strike rates hovering around the 160 mark. They will also bank on Yuzvendra Chahal, who has fared well against right-handers, to match-up against the likes of Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma and Shahrukh Khan.

Possible XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson(c/wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Jason Holder, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, KM Asif, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Punjab Kings

Tactics & Match-ups: The left-arm variety - both spin and pace - has troubled Jaiswal in the past and PBKS have enough left-armers in the bowling line-up. Meanwhile, Buttler's struggles against leg spin could prompt PBKS to introduce Rahul Chahar early.

Possible XI: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Prabhsimran Singh, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sikandar Raza, Shahrukh Khan, Sam Curran, Nathan Ellis, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh.

Team news: No Livingstone, but Rabada's in

Livingstone is still awaiting fitness clearance from the ECB and has not yet arrived in India, but Kagiso Rabada has joined the Punjab squad after completing South Africa's ODI series against Netherlands on April 2. If Rabada is ready to go, he will replace Nathan Ellis in the XI. The only doubt for Royals is West Indies fast bowler Obed McCoy, who is still nursing an injury.

Stats that matter

• Buttler has had the upper hand in his battles against Rabada. In 11 innings in T20 cricket, Rabada has dismissed Buttler only once, while conceding 96 runs off 56 balls.
• Arshdeep keeps Buttler quiet (21 runs conceded off 20 balls) but is expensive against Samson (49 runs off 26 balls).
• Royals could consider bowling Ashwin early to Dhawan. In 13 innings, Dhawan has a strike rate of only 88 against Ashwin - 85 runs off 97 balls - and has been dismissed four times.
• Since IPL 2022, Royals have a 100% success rate of defending totals of 190+. Trent Boult's ability of taking wickets in the first over has certainly helped their defence. Boult has 17 first-over wickets since IPL 2020; the second-best - Jofra Archer - has only five.

Thanks for the thread and for tagging me, Raji.🤗

Best wishes to both the teams, a bit more to RR!😃

Did you know?

- Yuzvendra Chahal has picked up 28 wickets against Punjab, which is the third most in the IPL against this team, after Umesh Yadav (34) and Sunil Narine (33).

- Since IPL 2019, Jos Buttler has scored only 152 runs in 190 deliveries against leg-spin, and has also been dismissed six times - twice by Rahul Chahar.

- Shikhar Dhawan has scored 576 runs against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and should he cross 600, he will become only fifth player to do so against RR.

What they said:

"Our bowlers are skilled enough to bowl on any pitches. Everyone, including me, have the plans sorted on how to bowl on a flat wicket, how to bowl in conditions where there's dew. So I think we are pretty sorted right now. We'll see how the game plays, how the pitch plays, and then carry our variations and strategies according to that." - Riyan Parag, RR all-rounder, on countering batting-friendly conditions in Guwahati.

"Not for this game, but definitely they'll be available soon. [Kagiso] Rabada was playing the Netherlands series, he should be available from the next game. [Liam] Livingstone, we are just waiting and he should be joining the squad soon." - Sunil Joshi, PBKS spin coach, on the availability of Livingstone and Rabada.

Thanks for the thread, Raji!