Rajasthan Royals suffered a bitter blow for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match against Punjab Kings, with marquee all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin missing out. At the time of toss, RR skipper Sanju Samson explained the reason behind the absence of Ashwin, who has been a consistent performer for the franchise this season. The Royals find themselves in a tricky situation in the playoffs race. Even if the 2008 champions or PBKS manage to clinch two points at the end of the night, a playoff spot would still remain out of their reach. Their qualification will depend on the results of the other teams. But a victory will keep their hopes of making it into the IPL playoffs alive.
RR skipper Sanju Samson said at the toss that they had chosen to bowl looking at the requirements. He also revealed that Ashwin is missing the game due to back spasm.
"We will bowl. Looking at the dimensions and looking at what we require in the tournament, it is better to bowl. We need to win the game. Then see how the other games go. If you want to play good T20 cricket, you need to forget things. We have had four to five days off. One has to understand the conditions. We have a couple of changes. Last-minute changes. Ashwin misses out because of a back spasm."
PBKS skipper Shikhar Dhawan said there is no change in the team.
"Last match, dew wasn't much. First batting or second, it shouldn't change much. We will come and enjoy the game. Will try to give our best shot. We need to take more wickets in the first 6 overs. We can cash in more. We are playing the same team."
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson(w/c), Devdutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Adam Zampa, Trent Boult, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Shikhar Dhawan(c), Prabhsimran Singh, Atharva Taide, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Jitesh Sharma(w), Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh.
With ANI inputs