After securing four back-to-back victories, Rajasthan Royals(RR) suffered their maiden defeat of the ongoing IPL 2024 in their previous game. Despite setting a challenging target of 197, the Sanju Samson-led side lost the high-scoring clash to Gujarat Titans by three wickets. RR will now look to bounce back when they square off against Punjab Kings today.

The high-voltage face-off between the two teams is scheduled to be played at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on Saturday (April 13). Even after losing their previous match, RR still occupy the top spot in the IPL 2024 standings.

RR vs PBKS previous match performances.

The 27th match of the ongoing Indian Premier League 2024 will feature a clash between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, on Saturday, April 13. Kings has so far had a decent campaign winning two out of their five games played. With a narrow defeat in their last game against Sunrisers Hyderabad, the hosts will be looking to come back stronger and climb up in the points table.

On the other hand, things have been brilliant so far for RR as they have won four matches out of the five they have played. Though they did suffer a defeat in their last game against Gujarat Titans, they would be looking to bounce back to winning ways and hold on to the pole position in the points table.

RR vs PBKS Head to Head

RR lead 15-11 in their 26 meetings with PBKS. They’ve also had the wood over Punjab in this decade, winning five of the seven games since IPL 2020.

Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium Pitch Report

The Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur is known for its well-balanced pitch. It tends to provide opportunities for both the batters and the bowlers. The captain who wins the toss may find it advantageous to elect to bat first at this venue and put on a big total.

The surface in Mullanpur has aided pace, bounce and carry and that’s likely to remain unchanged come Saturday. The temperature is expected to be in the mid-30s in the afternoon but is likely to drop down to mid-20s by the time play will get underway. There is also likely to be a 90% cloud cover and some chances of rain.

The newly inaugurated stadium has seen pace-friendly surfaces. In the two games here – one afternoon and one night – quicks have been more successful, claiming 23 wickets as opposed to just four for spinners. Chasing has been the preferred choice here, albeit with mixed results.

Pace the way to go in Mullanpur in RR VS PBKS

It is still early days this season, but the surfaces in IPL’s newest venue Mullanpur have given all the indications of being a a fast bowler’s ally. In the two matches so far, 30 wickets have fallen – 27 picked by the bowlers and three run-outs. Out of these, 23 wickets have been picked up by the quicks. There was significant movement and carry noticeable under the lights when Punjab Kings played Sunrisers Hyderabad at this venue on Tuesday, with run-scoring not as easy initially. That is reflected in the numbers, too.

Among all the venues so far in IPL 2024, Mullanpur has the best average for fast bowlers (19.7) and the lowest run rate (7.7) in the powerplay. Nine wickets have fallen in the first six overs here in two games, joint second with Mumbai. Only Jaipur has seen more wickets fall in the powerplay this season, but four games have already been played there.

Will this concern Rajasthan Royals, who are coming into the game having just been beaten for the first time in IPL 2024 on Wednesday? Nope. On the contrary, they might be the happier side. The Royals’ quicks have picked up nine wickets in the powerplay at an average of 24.3, the best among any team in the tournament. Kings are also not too far behind averaging 26.6 runs per wicket in the powerplay and that could make for an interesting battle up top.

The other thing Royals will need to be wary of is not letting history repeat itself. They had a great start to their IPL 2023 losing just one of their first five games and a playoff spot seemed imminent. But, they won just three of their next nine matches and failed to qualify for the knockouts. In IPL 2024, they’ve again lost one and won four of the first five games, but this time will hope to right their wrongs of last season.

In the spotlight – Shashank Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal

Shashank Singh has twice shown his calibre as a finisher. After his heroics against Gujarat Titans, he almost took Kings to another improbable win in their last game against SRH. While Kings fell narrowly short, he proved his innings against Titans was no flash in the pan. Kings have been going at a run rate of 11.33 so far in the death overs this season and Shashank has been a major contributor.

His strike rate of 195.71 is the third-highest for any batter who has faced 35 balls or more in the tournament. Shashank is also yet to be dismissed since his first-ball duck against Delhi Capitals in Kings’ first game. Do his numbers warrant a move up the order

Yuzvendra Chahal is just three shy of becoming the first bowler in the history of IPL to reach 200 wickets. He is the joint-highest wicket-taker (10) this season along with Jasprit Bumrah and has picked up at least a wicket in every game so far. Eight of those have come in the middle phase, more than any other bowler in IPL 2024. His economy rate of 7.50 during the middle overs also stands out. Chahal has been unafraid to take risks and has often been Samson’s go-to bowler once the powerplay is done.

Vital stats that matters