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IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11 Prediction

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IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction

After an action-packed Sunday, IPL 2019 moves to Jagpur. Ajinkya Rahane and Ravichandran Ashwin, two players currently surplus to India’s ODI requirements, are back in the spotlight as they look to lead their respective teams to strong campaigns.

Rajasthan Royals made the IPL 2018 playoffs over the perhaps more fancied MI and RCB. Led by Jos Buttler’s brilliance, RR proved more than capable of causing a headache or two, despite their inconsistency. Now, Steve Smith returns after his one year ban, and joins a side that contains plenty of talent. Can RR get the better of Ravi Ashwin’s men?

The opposite can be said of Kings XI Punjab. They were well on track for a playoffs appearance in IPL 2018, but lost six of their last seven to collapse and finish second-bottom. Plenty seems to rest on Chris Gayle and KL Rahul, and in a competitive league, it is so important that KXIP make a good start. Can they overcome RR’s fine home record?

Also read: 5 big predictions for IPL 2019

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Key to a RR win

Jos Buttler’s five consecutive half centuries at the backend of IPL 2018 catapulted RR in playoffs contention. He is superb in the powerplay in IPL cricket (avg. of 92 with SR of 168.5), and Ajinkya Rahane can be considered the perfect foil to provide the Royals with a strong start. With KXIP possessing the likes of Mohammed Shami and Mujeeb ur Rahman, both of whom are good powerplay bowlers, how well RR negotiate the threat can be a huge factor to the result. With the returning Steve Smith to follow, as well as Sanju Sanson and Ben Stokes, RR can look to setup for a big death overs launch.

Also, in a crunch game vs RCB last season, it was RR’s spinners that did the damage. Shreyas Gopal is one to watch out for in IPL 2019, possessing an ability to both keep runs down and take wickets. However, how well will the seamers fare? Dhawal Kulkarni has a fine record vs key KXIP players, Jaydev Unadkat needs to repay the faith and Jofra Archer can further stake his claim for a place in England’s World Cup squad. In a competitive league, there is plenty for RR to be optimistic about. Can they get the better of KXIP’s key opening partnership?

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction Playing 11 Match Prediction March 25 2019 Cricket Blog CricBlog
AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool. RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11 – Jos Buttler was brilliant in IPL 2018.

Key to a KXIP win

That opening partnership is KL Rahul and Chris Gayle. Most of KXIP’s IPL 2018 joy was courtesy of KL Rahul, who had a superb tournament. He and Chris Gayle, who was outstanding in the recent ODI series vs England, will be key in overcoming RR, who will be sure to focus plenty of their efforts on good powerplay bowling. However, another key question is whether the likes of Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair and Nicholas Pooran can deliver when required.

Also, how well KXIP’s bowlers fare in the likely absence of Andrew Tye, IPL 2018’s leading-wicket taker, will be crucial to the result. Mujeeb ur Rahman, Ravi Ashwin and Mohammed Shami vs Ajinkya Rahane and Jos Buttler be crucial, as well as how well KXIP can keep the pressure on RR’s potentially very dangerous middle order.

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction Playing 11 Match Prediction March 25 2019 Cricket Blog CricBlog
IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11 – Will KL Rahul have another big season?

Possible Playing 11

Steve Smith is set to return for RR. Two key players who will be keen to live up to the price tag are Ben Stokes and Jaydev Unadkat. They were under par in IPL 2018. With Dhawal Kulkarni possessing a good record vs KXIP, he could get the nod over Varun Aaron.

RR: 1. Ajinkya Rahane (c), 2. Jos Buttler (wk), 3. Steve Smith, 4. Sanju Samson, 5. Ben Stokes, 6. Rahul Tripathi 7. K Gowtham, 8. Shreyas Gopal, 9. Jofra Archer, 10. Jaydev Unadkat, 11. Dhawal Kulkarni/Varun Aaron

With Mike Hesson as coach and the astute Ravi Ashwin as captain, KXIP can hope for a better season. Andrew Tye is apparently still in Australia, so he will miss this match.

KXIP: 1. Chris Gayle, 2. KL Rahul (wk), 3. Mayank Agarwal, 4. Karun Nair, 5. Nicholas Pooran, 6. Mandeep Singh, 7. R Ashwin (c), 8. Sam Curran, 9. Ankit Rajpoot/Varun Chakravarthy, 10. Mohammed Shami, 11. Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Dream11 Prediction

Also read: Have Dream11 made the right call changing the deadline time?

Key stats and points:

  • Huge decision to be made on the wicketkeeper position. Both Jos Buttler and KL Rahul were outstanding in IPL 2018.
  • Jos Buttler vs KXIP in IPL 2018: 51 (39) and 82 (58).
  • KL Rahul vs RR in IPL 2018: 84* (54) and 95* (70).
  • David Warner came back with a bang with 85 (53) vs KKR. Will Steve Smith make a strong return too?
  • Chris Gayle vs RR in IPL 2018: 8 (11) and 1 (1). Chris Gayle strikes at just 117 vs offspin. K Gowtham will be possibly used to target Gayle. Definitely worth looking at, but with caution.
  • Sanju Samson was one of the bright spots of IPL 2018: 441 runs at 137.81.
  • Karun Nair was in decent, but unspectacular form in the recent Sayed Mushtaq T20 tournament. His last six scores: 71, 10, 18, 21, 42*, 24, 8*. Mayank Agarwal looked solid – his last five scores: 7*, 33, 43*, 13, 85*.
  • Nicholas Pooran displayed some fine form in the recent Bangladesh Premier League. He scored 47*, 28, 19, 12 and 76* in his last five innings.
  • Ben Stokes had an underwhelming IPL 2018 campaign. However, he was just coming back from injury and had a case hanging over his head. Now, he looks ready to fire.
  • Just 10 wickets for R Ashwin in IPL 2018. However, he has made clear his intentions of not being a one-format player. He will be keen to deliver.
  • Mujeeb ur Rahman will be a key man in the powerplay. Jofra Archer was slightly under par in the recent BBL (and two wickets in two games vs KXIP last season), but he is always worth considering.
  • Dhawal Kulkarni has dismissed Chris Gayle three times in 31 balls in IPL. He has also dismissed KL Rahul three times in 18 balls. This could be an interesting match up.

Option 1:

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction Playing 11 Match Prediction March 25 2019 Cricket Blog CricBlog
RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11 Prediction




Option 2:

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction Playing 11 Match Prediction March 25 2019 Cricket Blog CricBlog
RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11 Prediction

Stats and Facts

  • RR have an outstanding record at Sawai Masingh Stadium in Jaipur: 29 wins, 11 losses.
  • KXIP have never won at Sawai Masingh Stadium (five matches).
  • These two sides played each other twice in the space of three days in IPL 2018. Both sides won a game each.

Match Prediction

This is a game between two sides looking to make a significant impression.

At home, though, RR look good for a win against an KXIP side that has to prove they can bounce back from what was a very poor finish to IPL 2018.

Thanks for reading!

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction Playing 11 Match Prediction March 25 2019 Cricket Blog CricBlog

IPL 2019: RR vs KXIP Preview Dream11. Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab Preview Dream11 Prediction 

Charbel Coorey
Charbel Coorey
Charbel is the owner & founder of cricblog.net, based in Sydney, Australia. He started the website to fulfill his love for the game of cricket. Charbel has also been featured on other publications including OP India, Times of India, and The Roar, among others. For any story tips or questions, you can contact Charbel at charbelcoorey@cricblog.net.

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