IPL 2019: Dynamic Rajasthan Royals host maturing Delhi Capitals

It is the battle of the underdogs. Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals are the perennial dark horses of the IPL. DC has begun the season well and is showing the signs of becoming a strong unit. On the other hand, RR has been a team in flux. They started this year with three consecutive losses and quickly slipped in the bottom half of the points table. Under the fresh leadership of Steve Smith, RR shall seek to string together a winning spree. They host Delhi Capitals tonight.

Rajasthan Royals:

RR faced two significant developments before their previous match against Mumbai Indians. Their star opener Jos Buttler had to leave the side. The English batsman joined his family for the birth of his child. Buttler was RR’s only consistent batsman. The team management also decided to remove Ajinkya Rahane from the leadership role and instilled Steve Smith as the captain for the remainder of the season.

Despite these changes, RR reigned supreme against the mighty Mumbai Indians. Shreyas Gopal and Jofra Archer continued their spectacular bowling form while Steve Smith and Riyan Parag helped the side in chasing down the total. Leading into this match, Jaydev Unadkat and Dhawal Kulkarni’s bowling form and Ajinkya Rahane and Ben Stokes’ batting rut will be the problem areas for the Royals.

Delhi Capitals:

A side full of youngsters, Delhi entertains in its every game. Their bowling unit is ably handled by the South African speedster Kagiso Rabada and Nepalese leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane. The Indian duo of Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra provide the necessary experience. Similarly, Shikhar Dhawan takes up responsibility in the batting department while Shreyas Iyer leads the team towards victory.

The area of concern for the Capitals team is their fragile middle-order. After Iyer, no batsman is accepting the responsibility of crossing the finish line for the team. DC have found ways to get themselves in trouble while coasting to a win. They are currently at the third position on the points table and will need to be consistent if they are to make it to the playoffs.

Numbers that matter:

Jofra Archer (11 wickets) and Shreyas Gopal (10) lead the bowling statistics for Rajasthan Royals this season. Even after nine matches, their economy rate is under seven.

Delhi’s only win at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium was in IPL 2012 under Virender Sehwag’s leadership.

Steve Smith has the highest average for an RR batsman (49.00) but also has the worst strike rate amongst batsmen (110.85).