Match 52 - Who wil win

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Match Details

Date: 07 May 2022

Time: 3:30 PM IST

Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Ball-by-ball commentary: SportsTiger App

Preview

In Match 52 of IPL 2022, Mayank Agarwal's Punjab Kings will be up against Sanju Samson's Rajasthan Royals. While Punjab are coming on the back of a convincing victory over Gujarat Titans, Rajasthan have lost two games on the trot. Now, with the playoff places at stake, both teams will hope to emerge victorious when they meet on Saturday (7 May) at the Wankhede Stadium. Both teams will face each other for the first time this season, making the clash even more interesting.

Pitch Report

The Wankhede pitch has relatively been on the slower side with the surface gripping a bit. Runs have not come that easily and the bowlers have had their fair share of help. Pacers with good variations will be handy. Also, since it's a day game, spinners will get a role to play in the first innings.

Team Analysis

Punjab Kings:

The Kings from Punjab showed a valiant effort to pin down the table toppers in their last game of the season. Marquee players stepped up for Punjab as they kept their playoff hopes alive. Kagiso Rabada, Shikhar Dhawan, and Liam Livingstone put on a show. With a win in the pocket, the momentum is with Punjab. However, they have a hefty task ahead of themselves with RR desperate for a win. The new opening pair of Jonny Bairstow and Shikhar Dhawan looks more sensible as compared to Punjab's previous pair. However, Mayank Agarwal coming lower down the order may or may not work well. In the bowling department, Rahul Chahar's form is a worry for the Kings as the leggie has not taken off at all this season.

SportsTiger Playing XI of PBKS

Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Liam Livingston, Mayank Agarwal (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Sandeep Sharma

Rajasthan Royals:

The Royals suddenly have quite a few issues to address after two consecutive losses. With Jos Buttler not firing, RR found themselves in trouble in the last two games. Sanju Samson himself accepted that his team fell short of a few runs at the end. Riyan Parag has not troubled the opposition as he would have liked. Shimron Hetmyer also looked off-color against KKR. The bowlers are doing their job though. The pace trio of Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, and Kuldeep Sen is doing the asked job. The spin duo of Yuzi Chahal and R Ashwin, however, has struggled a bit which is also a concern for RR going into the business end of the tournament. But Sanju Samson and management will back their players to come good in RR's game against Punjab.

SportsTiger Playing XI of RR

Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Karun Nair, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, R Ashwin, Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Sen

Match Prediction

Conclusion

RR may have lost their last two games but the team has the capability to beat Punjab Kings who have blown hot and cold this season.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the author’s point of view. They neither reflect the opinion of SportsTiger nor advise anyone to make any prediction based on this. SportsTiger does not assume any responsibility and liability for the same.