The
two
IPL
teams
have
been
perennial
under-achievers
in
the
league
and
would
be
desperate
to
change
their
fortunes
after
disappointing
one
and
all
with
their
underwhelming
performances
over
the
past
few
seasons.

More
so
for
Punjab
Kings,
the
only
team
that
has
lacked
any
kind
of
stability
over
the
14
seasons
of
IPL
with
captains
and
coaches
being
changed
like
musical
chairs.

For
skipper
KL
Rahul,
who
has
been
a
prime
performer
in
IPL
2021,
it
will
not
just
be
about
the
runs
he
scores
but
also
about
how
he
leads
the
team
with
guidance
from
Anil
Kumble,
who
will
also
want
to
prove
his
mettle
as
a
franchise
coach.

However,
the
match
on
Tuesday
will
be
more
about
the
kind
of
starts
that
the
top-orders
players
provide.

Livingstone
has
been
a
rage
in
the
shortest
format
of
the
game
for
the
last
couple
of
years
now
and
is
coming
into
his
own
with
some
great
performances
in
‘The
Hundred’.
His
potential
opening
partner
is
likely
to
be
West
Indies
man
Lewis,
who
has
often
been
Indian
cricket
team’s
nemesis
in
various
games.

Mohammed
Shami
is
expected
to
be
partnered
by
either
Chris
Jordan
or
Nathan
Ellis.
If
Livingstone
and
Lewis
can
be
explosive
in
the
Powerplay
overs,
Royals
will
expect
skipper
Sanju
Samson
to
be
more
consistent
in
that
number
three
position.

What
will
be
Royals’ advantage
is
Punjab’s
weak
Indian
bowling
set-up
save
Shami
as
they
have
to
depend
on
either
Adil
Rashid
or
Ravi
Bishnoi
for
wrist
spin.

Their
pace
line-up
with
left-armer
Arshdeep
Singh
as
the
domestic
pick
doesn’t
look
the
strongest.
Royals’
third
and
fourth
foreign
player
in
the
playing
XI
will
be
interesting
choices
as
Chris
Morris
as
an
all-rounder
is
a
certainty,
while
the
fourth
slot
will
go
to
either
David
Miller
in
the
middle-order
or
world’s
No
1
T20
spinner
Tabraiz
Shamsi.

However,
it
is
the
Indian
players
like
Rahul
Tewatia,
Riyan
Parag,
Jaydev
Unadkat
and
Chetan
Sakariya,
who
will
like
to
step
up
their
game
in
the
next
four
weeks
to
ensure
a
play-off
berth
for
Royals,
which
many
believe
is
the
weakest
unit
in
absence
of
Ben
Stokes,
Jofra
Archer
and
Jos
Buttler.

Similarly,
for
Punjab
Kings,
Rahul
and
Mayank
Agarwal
are
expected
to
open
with
Chris
Gayle
still
an
enforcer
par
excellence
at
the
age
of
41
which
will
keep
the
Rajasthan
bowlers
on
tenterhooks.

In
the
middle-order,
Nicholas
Pooran,
who
had
a
horrendous
outing
in
the
first
phase
will
like
to
put
a
far
better
account
of
himself
along
with
M
Shahrukh
Khan.

Squads:
Rajasthan
Royals:
Sanju
Samson
(captain),
Liam
Livingstone,
Evin
Lewis,
David
Miller,
Chris
Morris,
Oshane
Thomas,
Mustafizur
Rahaman,
Tabraiz
Shamsi,
Glenn
Phillips,
Chetan
Sakariya,
Riyan
Parag,
Rahul
Tewatia,
Akash
Singh,
Anuj
Rawat,
KC
Cariappa,
Yashashvi
Jaiswal,
Shivam
Dube,
Shreyas
Gopal,
Kartik
Tyagi,
Mayank
Markande,
Jaydev
Unadkat,
Kuldip
Yadav,
Mahipal
Lomror.

Punjab
Kings:
KL
Rahul
(captain),
Mayank
Agarwal,
Arshdeep
Singh,
Ishan
Porel,
Shahrukh
Khan,
Mohammed
Shami,
Nathan
Ellis,
Adil
Rashid,
Murugan
Ashwin,
Harpreet
Brar,
Moises
Henriques,
Chris
Jordan,
Aiden
Markram,
Mandeep
Singh,
Darsan
Nalkande,
Prabhsimran
Singh,
Ravi
BIshnoi,
Utkarsh
Singh,
Fabian
Allen,
Saurabh
Kumar,
Jalaj
Saxena.

Match
details

Match
date:
Tuesday
(September
21)

March
Starts:
7-30
PM
IST.

Live
telecast:
Star
Sports
Networks

Live
streaming:
Disney
+
Hotstar

Match
updates
can
also
be
read
in:
MyKhel.