Fortune hasn’t been kind to Rajasthan Royals this season. It has to play the remaining matches of the tournament without its superstar trio from England — Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Jofra Archer.
So how will the Royals cope up with their absence? We will find out on Tuesday, when they take on Punjab Kings at Dubai.
The Royals are placed fifth in the table and Punjab Kings, sixth. Both teams are on six points, but the men from Jaipur have played a game less.
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Given the fire-power and class in the batting line-ups on either side, it could well be an entertaining and engrossing contest. Just look at the two captains.
Few sights in world cricket are more pleasing than K.L. Rahul or Sanju Samson in full flow. While the Punjab captain has had a good tour of England, his counterpart is smarting from the T20 World Cup snub.
Samson would indeed be keen to come up with some big knocks to get the attention of the national selectors once again. The Royals, too, will need him to fire as they try to move up the table.
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Lusty hitting is also expected from Liam Livingstone and Evin Lewis. Chris Morris has to spearhead the attack, which contains the likes of Chetan Sakariya and Mustafizur Rahman.
They may not find it easy to contain the Punjab batting that features men like Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran besides Rahul. Among the bowlers, the new Australian signing Nathan Ellis could be in focus.