RR were gifted a win by PBKS but since then they have been hammered by Delhi Capitals (33 runs), Sunrisers Hyderabad (7 wickets) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (7 wickets). With four wins from 11 games, they need to come out on top in the remaining three matches and hope the other results go their way. On current form, things are not looking too good for the Royals
CSK, in complete contrast, are sitting on top of the IPL 2021 points table with 18 points from 11 games. They are yet to lose a clash in the UAE leg and have defeated Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Hyderabad. They will be extremely confident of putting it across Rajasthan as well.
There are not much changes that RR might make in the playing XI. Liam Livingstone has been a massive disappointment but with no suitable batting replacements available, he might get another go. Whether Shivam Dube comes in for Riyan Parag remains to be seen
RR’s predicted XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (c/wk), Evin Lewis, Liam Livingstone, Mahipal Lomror, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Chris Morris, Kartik Tyagi, Chetan Sakariya, Mustafizur Rahman
Having qualified for the IPL 2021 playoffs, CSK can afford to try out a few players. At the same time, they would want to keep the winning combination going. Sam Curran might come in for Dwayne Bravo, who could be rested. CSK will be mighty pleased with Josh Hazlewood’s match-winning spell in the previous game
CSK’s predicted XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (c and wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Josh Hazlewood
Top fantasy picks for RR vs CSK clash: Sanju Samson, Evin Lewis, Mustafizur Rahman, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis
--Renin Wilben Albert