Last Updated on 7 years by Charbel Coorey
Personally, quite a bit of disappointment lies around this game. With this clash being on a Friday night/Saturday morning (12:30am) here in Sydney, it would have been awesome to see a full game at Chennai’s true home – M.A. Chidambaram Stadium. Surprise, surprise, political issues have got in the way, and CSK will have to adjust quickly to their new home in Pune.
Chennai Super Kings have excited all fans in IPL 2018, whether you love them or not. In three straight games, they have had three separate players stand up right at the end to twice deliver victory, and once get very close. The “never down-and-out” attitude of CSK is something to behold, but a cause of concern for them is their bowling. Across their first three games, they have conceded an average of 188, and individuals have had to stand up with the bat. What will their fourth game hold?
Rajasthan Royals? Well, not much to write home about so far, in my opinion. They beat RCB (wow!) and a shortened game against DD, but their team is yet to truly gel, falling prey to the KKR juggernaut in their last game. It was a stop-start kind of innings for RR with the bat on Wednesday, finishing up with a respectable 160, but it was quite short of where they needed to be, in the end. Can
their batting fire against a CSK side that is yet to get going with the ball?
Key to a Chennai Super Kings win
CSK have power right throughout their line up – their chances in a game can never be dismissed, as their first three games have proven, but more is needed from their bowlers.
They have conceded 165, 202 and 197 so far, which has got me thinking – have RCB changed their jersey to yellow?!
In all seriousness, CSK need a greater collective performance, to be implemented through better bowling in partnerships, and contributions right down the order from their batting, so they don’t leave too much for the lower order to do. A definite plan of attack will be to target RR’s overseas batsmen with spin, as they’ve struggled so far.
Key to a Rajasthan Royals win
RR have looked a little disjointed throughout this season. Their big gun seamers haven’t fired, neither have D’Arcy Short and Ben Stokes.
How they handle CSK’s spinners will be key to victory. Ajinkya Rahane looks in fine touch, accelerating his scoring throughout IPL 2018, and so too Sanju Samson, who has been one of IPL 2018’s top players. However, the overseas batsmen have generally struggled – expect to see Heinrich Klaasen come in for D’Arcy Short, and the onus will be on Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler to deliver as well.
Predicted teams:
There is talk the yellow superstar Suresh Raina could be back for this game. If he is, expect him to replace Murali Vijay. Also, there is doubt whether MS Dhoni will play, after struggling with a back injury in the last game.
Chennai Super Kings XI: 1. Shane Watson, 2. Ambati Rayudu, 3. Suresh Raina, 4. Sam Billings (wk), 5. MS Dhoni/Dhruv Shorey, 6. Ravindra Jadeja, 7. Dwayne Bravo, 8. Deepak Chahar, 9. Harbhajan Singh, 10. Shardul Thakur, 11. Imran Tahir
Expect D’Arcy Short to miss out for Heinrich Klaasen. Also, will RR opt for spin in the death overs? Ben Laughlin and Jaydev Unadkat have not delivered at this time of the innings – Laughlin has conceded 46 of 3.5 overs, and Unadkat, India’s most expensive man, has gone for 16.5 an over. This could be the game Jofra Archer returns, which could potentially mean Ben Laughlin misses out.
Rajasthan Royals XI: 1. Ajinkya Rahane (c), Heinrich Klaasen, 3. Sanju Samson, 4. Rahul Tripathi, 5. Ben Stokes, 6. Jos Buttler (wk), 7. K Gowtham, 8. Shreyas Gopal, 9. Dhawal Kulkarni, 10. Jaydev Unadkat, 11. Ben Laughlin/Jofra Archer
Stats and Facts:
- Head-to-Head: Matches: 17, CSK: 11, RR: 6
- Suresh Raina needs 61 to overtake Virat Kohli as leading IPL run scorer.
- Ben Stokes SR against pace in IPL 2018: 148. Against spin: 88
Prediction:
Both sides certainly have improvements in them, but I feel with CSK’s spin, they’ll enjoy some success against RR’s batting. CSK to win.