With Liam Livingstone missing, Rajasthan Royals has edge over Punjab Kings in IPL 2023 match today

Tonight, it will be Rajasthan Royals (RR) vs Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Barsapara stadium in Guwahati, Assam; the first IPL match to be played in the Northeast.

Both the sides kicked off their IPL 2023 with wins as RR edged Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Sunday, April 2; while PBKS won a match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on April 1, by 7 runs by the DL method in a match hit by rain in the last few overs.

But in Guwahati, PBKS will have to worry a little as their prime hitter Liam Livingstone has still not joined the side and has yet to get his fitness clearance certificate from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

On the other hand, Rajasthan has Jos Buttler, who has been in terrific form since last season and in the first match against SRH in Hyderabad, his 54-run knock of 22 balls showed that he will be the top hitter of RR this season too.

Punjab Kings too have England all-rounder Sam Curran, the 24-year-old who won the Player of the Tournament at the ICC T20 World Cup 2022, for his heroics that also led to England lifting the World Cup.

Why RR has edge over PBKS

Rajasthan’s top batters in line, Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikall and Shimron Hetmeyer, have all been in very good form since the previous season.

And the best thing about Rajasthan is that its domestic talent like Riyan Parag, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Yuzvendra Chahal and R Ashwin have been on top of their game.

This was also a big reason why despite being an underdog team in the tournament, RR climbed up the ladder to qualify for the finals last year.

In the bowling unit, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is the biggest strength of the team. Chahal with his four-wicket-haul in the last match stole the match for RR against SRH.

In the pace attack, the debutant KM Asif, the right-arm medium pace bowler from Malappuram, Kerala, is a fine choice. He is joined by New Zealand’s Trent Boult and West Indian all-rounder Jason Holder.

What is Punjab's strength in this match?

For Punjab, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Arshdeep Singh and Sam Curran are going to be the key players. And if Kagiso Rabada joins the side in tonight’s game, it will be a plus point for PBKS.

Impressively, Punjab Kings, in the match against KKR, played an aggressive game, with skipper Shikhar Dhawan and Bhanuka Rajapaksa playing the knocks of 40 and 50 runs.

But the concern for Punjab will be that apart from Rajapaksa, there is no finisher on the team. Sam Curran is the only one but he comes in at number six. 

The absence of Liam Livingstone is definitely going to strike Punjab Kings as the middle order is weak compared to Rajasthan Royals.

On the bowling front, Sam Curran and Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis and Rahul Chahar will be the key bowlers. 

Pitch report

The Barsapara pitch is considered batter’s paradise. The average first innings score on this pitch is 149, while the average batting second is 138.

However, no IPL match has been played yet on this ground. Only 6 T20I games have been played here, out of which the team batting first won three while the chasing team won 2. One match ended without a result.

The highest ever total on this ground is 237/4, which India scored against South Africa in a T20I last year, in October 2022.

The team winning the toss here would opt to bat first.

Probable Playing XI

Punjab Kings (PBKS): Prabhsimran Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma, Sikandar Raza, Sam Curran, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada

Rajasthan Royals (RR): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Devutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmeyer, Riyan Parag, Jason Holder, R Ashwin, Trent Boult, KM Asif, Yuzvendra Chahal